(866) 683-8844 Phone
(609) 683-9664 Fax
338 Wall Street
Princeton, NJ 08540
(Directions)
This
page is
printer friendly.
TechNote:
Continuous Backup
Continuous Backup for Workstations
InfraStor has partnered with Storactive to provide their client-server backup software, LiveBackup. LiveBackup provides Continuous Data Protection (CDP) for corporate workstation and mobile system data for Windows laptop and desktop PCs.
LiveBackup automatically and transparently backs up and centralizes distributed laptop and desktop data, restores data as recent as the last save, and reverses the effects of virus attacks.
Previously vulnerable workstation and laptop users now have self-serve file recovery, system rollback capability to restore downed systems to functional checkpoints, bare-metal disaster recovery imaging, and data redundancy elimination to minimize the impact of the backup on network performance and the need for centralized storage capacity.
|
Feature |
Description |
Benefit |
|
Real-Time Protection |
LiveWatch™ technology monitors files for changes and backs up data as it is saved |
Backup schedules are eliminated and recovered data will always be as recent as the last save |
|---|---|---|
|
Transparency |
LiveBackup operates automatically in the background without requiring special interaction or causing network overload |
Does not interfere with end-user work patterns or network performance, thus assuring data is always backed up |
|
Disconnected State Support |
Replicates changed files to a local cache if the server is not available |
Data is protected from loss on laptop and mobile computers even while roaming |
|
Central Management |
Data from distributed PCs is backed up to a central server, under control of a central management console |
Administrators can enforce consistent backup policies across the WAN and manage features available to users |
|
Remote Administration |
The Microsoft Management Console interface can be accessed from remote workstations |
Administrators can remotely monitor and control the LiveBackup server and remotely repair malfunctioning systems |
|
Self-Serve File Recovery |
Recovery wizards facilitate easy recovery of lost user documents |
Users can recover their own files without help from the IT staff, lowering TCO and improving productivity |
|
System Rollback |
Versioning technology allows all corrupted files and systems on a PC to be brought back to a known good state |
Malfunctioning systems can be restored without costly troubleshooting; virus attack damage can be literally undone |
|
True Bare-Metal Disaster Recovery |
Non-functional PCs can be restored to a working state without the need to reinstall the operating systems and applications |
Lost, stolen or unbootable PCs and laptops can be completely restored in only hours (vs. days), lowering TCO |
|
Document Migration Tools |
IT can centralize data for migrations in advance; data can be transferred with both source and target PCs off or on-line |
Data transfers and software deployments can be made across a PC fleet; migrations can be performed with zero downtime |
Real-Time (Continuous) Disk-Based Backup
Unlike traditional backup products, LiveBackup does not operate on a schedule. LiveBackup's client agent is actually a file system filter that detects updates to files (or creation of new data) as they occur. The new data is first cached on the local disk and then is uploaded to a centralized server on an opportunistic basis (i.e. when a server connection is available). Consequently, LiveBackup is an ideal solution for remote and laptop PCs where connection to the Internet is often unavailable -- data is protected even when the laptop is "roaming".
System Roll-Back
System Rollback is an innovative troubleshooting tool. It allows users to return their PCs to a working state, without understanding the cause of the problem. Users (or administrators) can simply "roll back" the system to a time when everything was working properly. After a reboot, the PC will be in the exact state it was in at the time and date specified.
True Bare-Metal Disaster Recovery
From the Administrator Console, administrators can easily create synthetic disk images, for recovering systems that completely lose their hard drive, without re-installing the O/S. This feature allows administrators to use ubiquitous and user-friendly bootable CD or DVD media instead of slow and difficult-to-use streaming tape devices.
LiveBackup versus NAS Backup
Many administrators seek to ensure end-user data protection by encouraging their end-users to store their data on shared network volumes (NAS) rather than on the workstation, believing that the data will be backed up as part of the regular system backups. While this is theoretically a good concept, the policies are difficult to enforce. The use of a LiveBackup allows end-users to keep data on their own machines, satisfies the need for data protection, and reduces the burden on resources for both NAS storage and backup. Email us at cdp@infrastor.com for more complete discussion of the advantages of LiveBackup.
Additional Information
InfraStor's partner Storactive has a wealth of information on their web-site at www.storactive.com including a LiveBackup FAQ-sheet that describes many of the features and system requirements in detail. StorActive also provides a related product, LiveServ, that enables continuous, disk-based backup of Microsoft Exchange servers, and capabilities for quickly returning the server to operation and to a known-good state that existed minutes or seconds before a problem occurred. A LiveServ White Paper is available.
Key Point Summary
Common Backup Issues:
- "IDC research shows that 53% of organizations leave it up to users to back up to a network drive. This puts corporate enterprises in a very vulnerable position, without protection for the majority of their data and without a strategy to recover this irreplaceable data in the event of disaster or virus attack." (Fred Broussard - IDC)
- Conventional backup products are periodic, do not serve the needs of an increasingly mobile work-force, and are administratively complex
- Conventional backup products do not address bare-metal recovery.- Conventional backup products require an administrator to restore data
A Continuous Data Protection Solution:
- LiveBackup backs up workstation data continuously on a central disk resource as it is saved
- End-users can retrieve their own backed-up data that is as old as the last "save"
- With LiveBackup, mobile users can remotely back up their laptops while on the road to a central storage resource
- Any workstation can be regenerated to a known good state from "bare-metal"
- Content-based, smart-storage compression ensures that only a single copy of any data-block is backed up and maintained on the central server, reducing network bandwidth impacts and capacity requirements for centralized storage