HSM with AXF is Better than LTFS

In this document you can find a comparison between AXF, LTFS and TAR formats. The document explain why for long term archive the AXF is the choice. Etere HSM offer free of charge both AXF and LTFS formats.

Etere allows customers to choose between AXF and LTFS formats at no additional charges. The Archive eXchange Format (AXF) standard is a encapsulation format that allows file-based content to be stored, transported and preserved on any type of operating system, file system, storage media or technology. AXF incorporates a physical implementation of an object store that was designed to meet the requirements for a long-term open storage and preservation format without limitations in legacy container formats.

AXF technology abstracts the underlying file and operating system technology facilitating long-term portability and accessibility to the files contained in the container while adding several Open Archival Information Systems (OAIS) preservation characteristics to provide long-term protection for file-based assets. AXF is a open-file system with a universal view of all stored objects, files and metadata, allowing exchanges with any application that is compatible with its format. AXF also defines a specific method for media storage technology for example, data tape, magnetic disk, optical media, flash media, etc. It also allows a self-describing feature for both the AXF objects as well as the media on which they are stored, thus allowing independence from the systems which originally created them. Archive eXchange Format (AXF) is the world's only published open-standard focused on transport, long-term access, protection and preservation of file-based asset collections regardless of their origin.

Key Features
■ Protection against long-term vendor lock-in
■ Any type, size and number of files are encapsulated into immutable preservation objects
■ No restrictions on the type of storage technology, operating system and file system used
■ Publication of open-standards, allowing any user or organization to access stored AXF assets
■ Inherent support for the pillars of OAIS including fixity, provenance, context, etc
■ Allows embedding of metadata along with the asset payload
■ Self-describing media and self-describing objects ensure portability and accessibility
■ Repository is scaleable
■ Open read/write tools available to leverage AXF content free of charge