Network Disaster Recovery (part 2)

Network Disaster Recovery

Part 2 - Disaster Recovery Techniques An Article by your Guide Bradley Mitchell

Disaster Recovery Techniques All good IT disaster recovery plans consider the three main components of operations:

data systems people From the technical perspective, most organizations rely on some form of redundancy to make possible the recovery of data and systems. Redundancy allows secondary data or system resources to be pressed into service on short notice should primary resources fail or otherwise become unavailable. Traditional backup strategies, for example, archive copies of critical data at a given point in time so that they can be restored later if needed. Organizations may also choose to replicate servers and other critical hardware at multiple locations to guard against any single point of failure. More advanced network technologies, like SONET, and some forms of clustering, incorporate built-in failover capabilities that attempt to automatically recover from some failures. While these and similar approaches have been a part of IT practice for many years, more sophisticated disaster recovery techniques have grown in popularity due to the events of 11 September 2001. Periodic data backups, for example, have limited value if the "snapshots" are not taken frequently enough. Some organizations now generate so much data that even daily backups are too infrequent. A more sophisticated approach like disk mirroring ensures that data remain available from multiple sources in near real-time. However, traditional mirroring only works over limited distances. Storage area network (SAN) and other competing technologies can alleviate this problem, albeit at a higher cost. Another recent trend in IT disaster recovery planning, third-party relocation services, gives organizations access to fully-equipped operations space at temporary facilities in remote locations. These facilities can be a wonderful option in times of crisis... if trained personnel are available to staff them. Conclusion Overall, the events of 11 September 2001 have reminded us of the prime concerns with IT disaster prevention, planning, and recovery today: cost - comprehensive disaster recovery is extremely expensive testability - disaster recovery plans that look great on paper but are technically unproven will likely fail in practice overemphasis on the backoffice - without the people and the client-side infrastructure available, business still can't be done The recent resurgence in focus on business continuity needs to be balanced against the practical considerations of the costs and non-business priorities involved.