It's so important to protect your data that you cannot skimp on making your storage systems as airtight as you can, according to users at ComputerWorld's Storage Networking World conference last week. Attendees at the event said that they continue spending money on storage despite growing economic pressure to cut back on IT expenses. A survey at the conference found that one-third of attendees listed IT budget constraints as their top challenge in storage management. But John Striber, executive director of IT at George P. Johnson Co., an Auburn Hills, Mich.-based events marketing firm, said that his company plans to buy an email archiving tool because it will help save on long-term retention costs. "If I found a good e-mail archiving solution here, I wouldn't hesitate to buy it," said Striber. "The economy doesn't really influence me. Taking care of our immediate needs and planning for the future--that's what's expected of me."

For more on data protection costs:
- See this ComputerWorld article