ArchiverFS

Old files on congested Windows file servers can be moved to a cheaper second tier while users keep opening them from the same paths. ArchiverFS is built by MLtek Software, which first released it in 2002, and the vendor reports use in more than 40 countries.

How links left behind keep files reachable

When a file is archived, a stub or link stays in its place. The vendor describes links that behave like the original item, plus folder-level and file-level shortcuts that are closer to standard Windows shortcuts and can be used from Apple Macs with an add-in. Access runs straight from the user's workstation to the archived file, with no agent in the path. A daily maintenance job returns recently accessed content to live storage.

Archive targets without a database

Any device reachable by a UNC path over SMB can receive archived files, including NAS, SAN, virtual machines and cloud platforms such as AWS, Azure and Google Cloud. The company says it stores nothing in a database, using plain NTFS or ReFS, so there is no proprietary format to lock a customer in. Directory structure, permissions, attributes and timestamps carry across, and no client software is installed on workstations or servers.

Scale and reported customer sizes

The vendor says its customers range widely, with the largest counted in petabytes, and include government bodies and universities. Its largest reported customer archives 3.4 PB, handled by one small virtual machine with four vCPUs and 6GB of RAM under a Datacenter edition licence. Licences are offered as perpetual or subscription. The archive tier mirrors the live file system but holds only old, unused files.

Windows versions and file features

Installation is supported from Windows Server 2008 onwards, including Windows Storage Server and Server 2019. The product works with Windows deduplication and compression, DFS, SAN replication and Unicode file names. It can archive by age, size and type. The three-tier structure of live, archived and graveyard stages is described as a form of hierarchical storage management.

Compliance and retention

The firm presents the software as a controlled way to move and retire unstructured files, which it says can help with GDPR and data protection compliance. Retention policies can be set to suit the organization, and a file server can be cleared of old content without disrupting users.