FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

WHY SHOULD I ENCRYPT MY DATA?

Encrypting your data prevents anyone else from reading or changing it. If your data is confidential or valuable to you, then it should be protected.

What value do you place upon your mailing lists, customer records, patient records or research results?

Only you can decide if your business is worth less than Paranoia2 at £9000.

WHAT DO I NEED TO DO TO INSTALL THE PARANOIA2?

Power down the system if necessary.

Remove the tape drive cable from the host system.

Plug the tape drive cable in the “Tape Drive” slot at the rear of PARANOIA2.

Connect the cable supplied with PARANOIA2 between “Host” slot and the host controller.

Switch on the tape drive; switch on PARANOIA2; power up the host, then enter the security codes.

DO I HAVE TO INSTALL IT MYSELF?

No; Oak Systems offer a complete solution, including all cables, installation, training and continuing support.


WHAT ARE THE SECURITY CODES AND HOW DO THEY WORK?

The security codes make your PARANOIA2 unique: only a PARANOIA2 unit having the same security chip and security codes can read your data.

There are two parts to the security codes: half are embedded in the P2SEC chip at manufacturing time, the remainder are keyed in by the user during installation.



HOW DO I ENTER THE SECURITY CODES?

After installing as above, connect the serial cable supplied between the PARANOIA2 and your PC.

Load the Parasoft CD in your PC and wait for the software to be loaded.

Follow the instructions on the PC screen and enter the codes when called for.

Ensure that your security codes are stored safely for future use, as necessary.

HOW DOES PARANOIA2 WORK?

Paranoia2 encrypts as it receives data from the host, then passes it to the tape drive.


HOW SECURE IS THE ENCRYPTION METHOD? Data is encrypted to the dual interlaced DES3 standard, used by the US and other governments, for defence purposes. This is the most secure encryption method currently available short of the classic “one-time pad”.

DOES PARANOIA2 ENCRYPTION SLOW THE BACKUP PROCESS?

No: unlike software data encryption, the backup process is not slowed.

The PARANOIA2 unit has a buffer in which data is stored before being fed to the P2SECboard for encrypting and compressing. This results in a steady flow of data to the tape drive, which keeps the drive streaming.

When small files are written to a modern, high capacity tape drive, there is an overhead in the writing of filemarks, so that the drive rarely reaches full speed. This is a common cause of slow backups, which the buffering of the PARANOIA2 helps to overcome.

In some circumstances, the buffering and compression features in the PARANOIA2 actually reduce the backup time.


WHAT HAPPENS IF THE PARANOIA2 FAILS TO WORK?

The PARANOIA2 consists of the P2 main board (with P2SEC chip), display, power cord, power supply and fans.

The failure of any component requires a shutdown of the PARANOIA2 unit while the part is replaced.

Shutdown of the PARANOIA2 unit demands a re-keying of the security codes, as per the installation instructions above.


WHAT HAPPENS IF THE P2SEC CHIP IN THE P2 BOARD FAILS?

The PARANOIA2 unit is delivered with a duplicate P2SEC chip, which should be safely stored for future use.

The P2SEC chip, which stores the factory-installed codes, should be replaced by the duplicate, with re-installation as per the instructions above.


WHAT HAPPENS IF I HAVE LOST THE DUPLICATE P2SEC CHIP?

Oak Systems, as part of its service to PARANOIA2 users, holds two copies of your unique P2SEC chip for just such eventualities.


WHAT HAPPENS IF MY PARANOIA2 UNIT AND DATA TAPES ARE STOLEN?

There is no need to worry, even if your PARANOIA2 unit and some tapes are stolen.

When the PARANOIA2 is powered off for a certain length of time, the security codes you have entered are lost. The length of time is a variable setting you select during installation: the default is 5 minutes.


WHAT IF I LOSE ONE OR MORE TAPE CARTRIDGES?

The data cannot be read; there is no need to worry.


WHAT IF I WANT TO SEND UNENCRYPTED DATA ON A DATA CARTRIDGE?

The PARANOIA2 can be temporarily set to “Unsecure mode” so that the data can be written unencrypted.

I HAVE TWO TAPE DRIVES: DO I NEED TWO PARANOIA2 UNITS?

In certain circumstances, we can provide a switch to allow one PARANOIA2 unit to be shared by up to four tape drives.



HOW CAN I BUY PARANOIA2?

Contact Oak Systems Limited on 01952 299 998