Originally developed by ProStor Systems in 2004, RDX is a disk-based removable storage format intended as a replacement of tape storage. Tandberg Data, which acquired the technology in 2011, eventually became part of Sphere 3D following the acquisition of Overland Data in May 2014.
 
Sphere 3D continues the development effort of the technology with the release of RDX+ (RDX Plus) which the company claims is the industry’s first software technology designed for 64-bit software architectures that enables support for disk drive capacities greater than 2TB while maintaining backwards compatibility with its QuikStor backup appliances.
 
Compared to other RDX solutions with 2TB maximum capacities, RDX+ enabled backup appliances is backward and forward compatible with Sphere 3D’s QuikStor appliances as disk drive capacities grow beyond 2TB.
 
All existing QuikStor product investments made by Sphere 3D customers are protected and will support the larger than 2TB cartridges with a non-disruptive upgrade to RDX+ technology. Similarly, Sphere 3D’s OEM partners who currently ship QuikStor backup appliances, including HP, IBM, Fujitsu, Hitachi, NEC, Lenovo and Toshiba, will receive the updated RDX+ software technology to support the future needs of their customers for RDX®-enabled drive capabilities larger than 2TB.
 
IDC estimates the global purpose-built backup appliance (PBBA) market to be US$3.38 billion in 2014 and predicts this to grow at a 7.4 percent CAGR through 2018 when it will reach US$4.49 billion.
 
The Sphere 3D RDX-enabled QuikStor backup appliance is a purpose-built solution with removable storage capability and encrypted security that seamlessly integrates into existing environments, and offers a simple plug-and-play operational experience. Sphere 3D says that over 450PB of QuikStor products have been deployed in the last three years.