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Data Protection and Failover Clustering During Migration To Cloud

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Data Protection and Failover Clustering During Migration To Cloud

Migrate Existing System Running SQL Server And WSFC Configuration To Cloud With SIOS For Data Protection and Failover Clustering

Gulliver is pursuing to migrate their existing on-premises systems to cloud.  For this project, they picked SIOS Data keeper to ensure real-time replication, data protection and failover clustering.

The company aimed to build an IT infrastructure capable of responding swiftly and flexibly to the growth of these businesses. Protection of important data is essential as they shift to the cloud.

The system owned by Gulliver included the used car sale system “Dolphinet”. Most parts of this system has been built and operated on physical servers in their data center. Therefore, reform is definitely in their pipeline to achieve the expansion goal of 1,600 global stores.

Full Transition From On-Premise To Cloud

IT Team Tsukishima School said that for Gulliver, IT is the core of the business. Thus, having a strong and secure IT foundation would allow the company respond to rapid business expansion. Since 2011, the company has been contemplating a full-scale system migration to the AWS cloud service. Their entire operation can be controlled in the cloud which is easy and fast.

Challenges Faced in Migrating to the Cloud

Many of Gulliver’s systems are constructed with Microsoft products such as Windows Server, SQL Server of relational database, IIS (Internet Information Services) of Web server, .NET Framework of application development and execution environment.

The first challenge in transitioning to the cloud is the question of how to implement these platforms in AWS.

“We initially considered utilizing the SQL Server function supported by RDS (Relational Database Service), but we are also trying to use redundant (clustering) important systems and user management (Active Directory link) We did not have all the necessary functions yet. So, we considered other methods but the risks were too many many and too huge to undertake.”

Redundancy Plan To Ensure High Availability

So Gulliver chose to use the virtual server’s Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC 2) natively. The existing environment including the failover clustering (WSFC) function of Windows Server running on-premises is used directly. Therefore, DataKeeper played an important role in synchronizing the data of the existing environment as it is.

Achieve Real-Time Data Protection Without Using Shared Storage

DataKeeper performs data replication in real time between the production node and the standby node and protects data until just before the failure occurs. Compared to the general storage mirroring function, volume mirroring is realized at low cost. It can be utilized according to various needs such as the system configuration and the importance of data and the necessity of measures against disaster recovery (DR).

Simple HA Cluster Without Using Shared Storage On AWS

It is advantageous to be able to have HA cluster system (application protection configuration) without using external shared storage premised on failover clustering like WSFC. This is the point where Gulliver chose to adopt DataKeeper for Data Protection and Failover Clustering.

Gulliver’s Tsukishima said, “I was surprised that DataKeeper looks as if it is sharing storage from WSFC. The speed of mirroring is good. When an abnormality happens in HA cluster operation, I am extremely satisfied that it is easy to isolate and deal with. Whether it is on the clustering (WSFC) side or the data replication (DataKeeper) side, it becomes a quick and fuss free process. This point applies even when we are configuring the physical server. It became possible to shift to AWS without changing the operation form of the existing system at all. ”

Gulliver intends to move on to the rest of the existing system by 2014. At the same time, it is implementing the newly developed system in AWS.

To find out more about SIOS products, go here
To read about how SIOS helped Gulliver achieve data protection and failover clustering in their cloud migration go here

SIOS Data Replication And Disaster Recovery Solution For Data Protection

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SIOS Data Replication And Disaster Recovery Solution For Data Protection

Software Company Serving Educational Institutions Uses SIOS’ Cost-Effective Data Replication And Disaster Recovery Solution For Continuous Data Protection

The much anticipated Windows Server 2008 R2 became available in late October. VISUCATE became one of many small businesses to deploy Microsoft Hyper-V and enjoy its new features such as live migration. The company required a data replication and disaster recovery solution. One that was reasonably priced and delivered first-class protection.

In an effort to complete its set-up, VISUCATE wanted a business continuity platform that met its small business expectations. They took advantage of the high availability features of Windows Server Failover Clustering. However, 5fhbvd VISUCATE needed additional assurances that a loss of critical data or downtime would not compromise its software sales. To address these specific data replication hurdles, VISUCATE turned to SIOS DataKeeper Cluster Edition.

The Challenge

They required an affordable, uncomplicated and robust data replication and disaster recovery solution to protect its new Hyper-V set-up. To prevent any downtime, the company needed its servers to replicate and maintain their operational capabilities. If one server fails, the other server is configured to take over to sustain operations, maximize uptime and assure user productivity. The joint solution of Microsoft Hyper-V with Windows Server Failover Clustering and SIOS DataKeeper Cluster Edition addressed those business requirements essential for VISUCATE as well as any organization intent on overcoming this challenge.

VISUCATE Maintains Hyper-V Availability, Business Continuity with SIOS DataKeeper®

VISUCATE deployed Windows Server 2008 R2 on two physical servers with the Hyper-V role enabled. The company uses Windows Server Failover Clustering and SIOS DataKeeper Cluster Edition to provide replication and failover of the virtual machines. With the Hyper-V deployment, VISUCATE’s five virtual machines were installed across both servers. Three in one server and two on the other server.

By keeping an operational Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V virtual machine synchronized between two physical servers, SIOS DataKeeper enables disaster recovery without the recovery and downtimes typically associated with traditional back-up and restore technology. Realtime continuous replication of active Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V virtual machines ensures that in the event of any downtime impacting VISUCATE set-up, the replicated virtual machine can be automatically brought into service with minimal or no data loss. VISUCATE considered several options for a failover cluster solution. The company dismissed the option of creating a cluster with either a lowcost SAN or NAS/file server. If the SAN in that configuration crashed, the entire set-up would fail.

SIOS DataKeeper Cluster Edition reduces the cost of deploying clusters by eliminating the need for a SAN. It also increases the availability of virtual machines and applications by eliminating the single point of a failure that the SAN represents in a traditional shared storage cluster.

Benefits

SIOS DataKeeper Cluster Edition allows companies such as VISUCATE to build “shared-nothing” and geographically dispersed Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V clusters. By eliminating the requirement for shared storage, companies can protect against both planned and unplanned downtime for servers and storage. Also, the use of SIOS DataKeeper with Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V virtual machines allows for non-disruptive disaster recovery testing. By simply accessing the replicated virtual machine in the disaster recovery site, VISUCATE and other companies can segment a virtual network separate from the production network. Also, it would be able to start the replicated virtual machine for disaster recovery testing. An administrator can perform complete data replication and disaster recovery solution testing without impacting the production site.

In addition to support for Hyper-V clusters, SIOS DataKeeper Cluster Edition enables multi-site clusters for all other Microsoft cluster resource types. This includes SQL Server, Exchange, File/Print and DHCP.

To find out more about SIOS products, go here
To read about how SIOS helped VISUCATE achieve data replication and disaster recovery solution, go here

SIOS For U.S. Navy’s High Availability Data Replication Needs

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SIOS For U.S. Navy's High Availability Data Replication Needs

SIOS Provides GTS with High Availability Data Replication and Business Continuity for U.S. Navy Combat Systems

Global Technical Systems (GTS) had to find a technical solution to meet the U.S. Navy’s high availability data replication needs; one that could keep data synchronized among cabinets and would meet the requirements for the Navy’s mission critical needs. They issued a request for proposal (RFP), which consisted of a need to find an enclosure and Common Processing System (CPS) for the Navy to feed various programs of record, such as the ship self-defense system.

The Solution

SIOS Protection Suite was the optimal solution to provide multi-site cluster configurations and enable cascading of multiple node failovers. They was selected by GTS to monitor and protect the Navy’s IBM BladeCenter BCHT and storage infrastructure against planned and unplanned network downtime. With the ability to combine the robustness of a classic, shared storage cluster with efficient, blocklevel data replication to a disaster recovery site, SIOS Protection Suite also enabled automatic replication redirection to deliver comprehensive disaster recovery protection for the Navy’s combat systems.

In certain configurations, the Navy has two data centers with two servers that provide local availability. Inside the data centers are two node clusters that are connected to shared storage. Both sets of machines exchange data replication on a continuous basis. GTS liked how SIOS Protection Suite combined shared storage support, cascading failover, real-time continuous data protection, and application level monitoring.

Ensuring High Availability Data Replication All The Time

Since these systems run with a rack of servers that will travel out at sea, GTS needs to ensure there is continuous availability in the event that there is combat. With the SIOS failover advantage, the Navy is protected from hardware issues that may surface. SIOS’s solutions allow business data to appear as is, showing no changes in the secondary server. Its application awareness feature has the ability to comprehend the interdependencies that occur between all system components, which greatly differs from competitors whose features are limited to monitoring the hardware, operating system, and database.

Ease Of Installation

There were no integration issues in terms of implementing this solution into the system baseline. GTS took the baseline and loaded the solution into the system. Next, it ran quality control and operational qualification tests then shipped the units to the Navy. The deployment process from start to finish was roughly a yearlong activity for all software and hardware subsystems that, for SIOS products, was both hassle free and easy.

The SIOS Protection Suite allows the end user to choose or use the capability. This means if the user chooses to not deploy the SIOS Protection Suite, they will not receive the added benefit of having SIOS protection. Services are billed on a monthly basis. For this extra fee, customers can receive the added benefit of having a disaster recovery solution that maintains uninterrupted access to data. SIOS takes over the failover of the solution and ensures a resilient environment by monitoring each server.

Benefits

SIOS Protection Suite enables the Navy to meet its mission critical requirements by helping GTS maintain the availability of data. The Navy must be able to meet their mission at hand with high availability. If the enclosure is not able to fail over, they are not able to meet their mission. This solution concisely affords the Navy to meet their mission requirements.

GTS completed an extensive trade study prior to selecting Lifekeeper. SIOS Protection Suite’s price point and its ease of deployment was a key factor in GTS’s decision to select this solution. In addition, the solution’s unique composition provides GTS with the flexibility and savings that are associated with open source platforms.

The robustness of the SIOS Protection Suite provides enterprise class high availability data replication and failover. Protecting critical data is absolutely an imperative necessity for the Navy. The fact that SIOS was chosen for this project speaks volumes, as it ensures systems are 100 percent secure and reliable.

To find out more about SIOS products, go here
To read about how SIOS helped US Navy achieve high availability data replication, go here

ezRez® Turns To SIOS For Failover Cluster Solution

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ezRez® Turns To SIOS For Failover Cluster Solution

Platform supporting Web-centric travel services seeks failover cluster solution with SIOS Protection Suite for Linux

ezRez® needed a failover cluster solution to protect their databases. San Francisco-based Software, a software-as-a-service (SaaS) provider of online travel and loyalty solutions, enables its clients to deliver a variety of travel products, including airline, car and hotel reservations, as well as vacation activities and travel insurance. Whether a business wants to provide a standalone offering or products packaged with other services, the ezRez platform allows a company to launch online travel services with the look and feel of a customized implementation.

The Challenge

ezRez has unique data protection requirements for its online travel services solution. The company operates separate databases for each client. It has developed its own platform based on the PostgreSQL open source database management system to support its services. However, PostgreSQL does not contain failover-clustering capabilities. If ezRez’s systems were to go down, the company and its clients would lose revenue, productivity and brand equity. ezRez needed an affordable failover cluster solution solution that could assure their systems remained available. They conducted a thorough search for a solution that would easily integrate with the company’s PostgreSQL-based platform. Soon after, ezRez determined that SIOS Technology and its SIOS Protection Suite for Linux was the best choice.

Maintain Online Stability And Eliminate Downtime

As a company whose platform processes thousands of transactions each day, ezRez needed a failover solution to monitor the databases. It has to provide a strong level of protection in case of a failure. In addition to requiring a failover cluster solution that would accommodate its PostgreSQL-based platform, ezRez wanted a solution that would eliminate downtime. When a system fails, it causes a lot of inconvenience for the enduser. In an online environment these failures are magnified. Experiencing downtime can be detrimental to a company’s revenues, reputation and success. This is especially so for a company such as ezRez whose core business depends on maintaining online stability. “Our clients expect a high percentage of uptime,” said Bruttig.

SIOS Failover Cluster Solution

SIOS Protection Suite for Linux ensures the continuous availability of ezRez’s data by creating a fault resilient environment. In addition, SIOS Protection Suite for Linux monitors each database instance to ensure that any fault is automatically detected and corrected while also maintaining uninterrupted access to the data. The solution is the only commercial product that works seamlessly with ezRez’s PostgreSQL database infrastructure. SIOS has been supporting the PostgreSQL open source database management platform for several years. The software provide solutions that allow businesses to add data protection functionality into PostgreSQL-supported database management systems. In addition to SIOS Data Protection Suite for Linux, SIOS Data Replication for Linux supports PostgreSQL 7 and 8 out of the box, which was a key prerequisite for ezRez. ezRez currently runs on Dell servers to manage its 8 node clustering environment and operates EMC PowerPath – a combination that often proves to be troublesome when searching for a HA failover solution. SIOS Protection Suite for Linux works in conjunction with EMC PowerPath. It does not require a proprietary file system. The solution’s compatibility with shared storage configurations, such as EMC PowerPath, as well as other types of storage configurations, made the SIOS Protection Suite for Linux the clear choice for ezRez.

Benefits

“It’s been 2.5 years since we deployed SIOS Protection Suite for Linux into our architecture,” said Bruttig. “During this time our uptime has been over 99.95 percent.” SIOS Protection Suite for Linux’s price point and its ease of deployment was an additional key benefit in ezRez’s decision to select the data protection solution. “The solution caught a crucial issue that had potential to result in a global outage. SIOS Protection Suite for Linux failed it over successfully, which resulted in no downtime to our customers,” said Bruttig. “If SIOS Protection Suite for Linux was not in place it would be extremely expensive to maintain our 99.95% uptime. The solution performs at the highest degree, delivering exactly what it promises to do.”

To find out more about SIOS products, go here
To read about how SIOS’ failover cluster solution helped ezRez®, go here

SIOS Protection Suite Ensures High Availability Cluster Solution

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SIOS Protection Suite Ensures High Availability Cluster Solution

Protecting Data Aggregation, Processing And Transition Of The Central Bank of the Russian Federation With SIOS

The Central Bank of the Russian Federation (the Bank of Russia) payment system needed a High Availability Cluster Solution. The bank comprises more than 600 bank offices, 1,100 commercial banks and 2,400 side offices that provide financial services to hundreds of thousands of governmental and public organizations, and commercial companies across Russia. The complex daily account routines at all these organizations generate more than a billion electronic filings every year. In the Moscow region, these functions are performed by a dedicated organization called the Interregional Center for Informatization of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation (ICI BR). ICI BR has built a special Information and Reference System (IRS) that works as a wide area network (WAN) with geographically dispersed data sources that send information to the main data center. To protect this critical system, they chose SIOS Protection Suite for Linux with data replication to ensure high availability and data integrity of IRS’s key components.

The Challenge

ICI BR chose FOBOS PLUS Co., Ltd., an experienced system integrator that specializes in building highly available data centers with an emphasis on data integrity and security features to develop the Bank of Russia payment system’s IRS. After conducting a thorough and comprehensive analysis of the IC BR needs and requirements, FOBOS PLUS engineers set out to create a system that would combine the required functionality at a moderate price. Cost factors guided the company’s choice to use industry standard platforms and open source operating systems. To achieve high availability, they implemented key components of the Bank of Russia’s IRS as fault tolerant cluster solutions. FOBOS PLUS engineers needed a solution that met a broad range of requirements.

They needed a cluster solution that would ensure high availability for both Oracle databases and custom applications and enable data replication over local area networks to eliminate shared storage use.

High Availability Cluster Solution

After detailed analysis of various cluster solutions’ features and specifications, they chose SIOS Protection Suite for Linux with data replication. SIOS Protection Suite would provide safe and seamless failover in the event of primary system faults and the ability to maintain continuous data replication between cluster nodes. The cluster was initially configured in a test environment to assure its effectiveness. And also to fine-tune the custom applications that should work in high availability mode. After the full testing cycle was completed, they needed less than a week to deploy the cluster at the ICI BR data center. They built twin two-node clusters, one located at a primary data center and the other at a backup center. Both clusters maintain continuous data replication between cluster nodes. The key reasons for choosing SIOS Protection Suite as a cluster solution included the platform’s affordable price. As well as open source operating system and support for Oracle DBMS support and custom applications. The SIOS Protection Suite High Availability Cluster Solution virtually eliminates data loss due to hardware or software faults. Also it provides high availability for applications and processed data.

Benefits

SIOS Protection Suite and its high availability cluster core achieved all project objectives quickly and with minimal expense. The solution’s scalability also allows the system to convert into geographically dispersed clusters with primary and backup data centers operating as nodes. This allow them to add disaster recovery at virtually no additional cost. The SIOS clusters will easily withstand not just one server loss but an entire primary site loss. In the worst-case scenario, SIOS Protection Suite will seamlessly restart all applications on the backup site machines. Then it would continue to provide continuous data replication to ensure little to no data loss. Finally this would enable the entire system to continue operating normally. After finishing test and deployment procedures, both FOBOS PLUS and ICI’s engineers praised SIOS Protection Suite’s intuitive graphical user interface. It allowed them to easily configure and monitor the cluster status. Furthermore, it provided comprehensive information on node and application status on a single screen. It even extends high availability by making potential problems immediately identifiable to users.

To find out more about SIOS products, go here
To read about how SIOS helped Central Bank of Russia achieve high availability cluster solution, go here