text: 1. Field
  Embodiments of the invention relate to information management and, in particular, to systems and methods for managing data from heterogeneous data sources.
  2. Description of the Related Art
  As the reliance on electronic information increases, individuals and businesses are turning more and more to various backup data solutions. Conventional backup systems generally employ a monolithic backup and retrieval system servicing a single server with attached storage devices. These systems usually control all aspects of a data backup or retrieval and often direct only one type of backup, whether it is a network backup or a single machine backup.
  With the numerous available backup solutions also comes the challenge associated with accessing and utilizing the stored data, especially when data is stored in different backup formats in a distributed computing environment. For instance, in a business enterprise, different divisions within the same company may use different vendors and/or applications to back up, or otherwise store, data over a network having multiple interconnected computers, often heterogeneous and/or geographically remote.
  Certain information management systems attempt to address at least some of the foregoing problems by using a common application to back up data from a variety of sources (e.g., SQL server, MICROSOFT EXCHANGE) such that the all the data in the enterprise environment is stored in the same backup format. For example, the GALAXY system commercially available through CommVault Systems, Inc. (Oceanport, N.J.) supports backup of data through a common application that allows for subsequent data retrieval, reporting and information processing. However, such systems still require data from the various sources to be converted from a native format to a different single backup format.