The Essentials Series

Virtualization and Disaster Recovery

sponsored by

by J. Peter Bruzzese

 Article1:DataProtectioninaVirtualizedEnvironment........................................................................1 AnOverviewofVirtualization:EnhancedProtectionwithLessHardware...............................1 CostSavingsofaMirroredSite(FewerSystemsandPersonnel)..............................................2 FacilitationofTesting...................................................................................................................................3 TheRulesRegardingTraditionalDataProtectionAreNotDeprecated......................................4 MoveDataQuicklyandCostEffectivelyAcrosstheWAN..................................................................5 TheBenefitsofanEffectiveDataProtectionandRecoveryStrategy...........................................5 Article2:LeveragingVirtualizationforHighAvailabilityandBusinessContinuity...................7 HighAvailabilityandBusinessContinuityBenefitsfromVirtualization....................................7 AnOverviewofReplicationBasedTechnologies..................................................................................8 LevelsofHighAvailabilityResiliency.....................................................................................................10 CommonReplicationConfigurations..................................................................................................10 EnsuringCriticalBusinessFunctions......................................................................................................11 RegulatoryCompliancewithinaVirtualizedEnvironment...........................................................12 Summary..............................................................................................................................................................12 Article3:ReplicationandRecoveryManagementSolutions.............................................................13 PricingModelsComeinAllShapesandSizes.......................................................................................13 ServerVirtualizationROI..............................................................................................................................14 SellingtheSolution..........................................................................................................................................16 PurchaseaVirtualizationSolution.......................................................................................................16 RentaVirtualizationSolution................................................................................................................16 Summary..............................................................................................................................................................17

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Article1:DataProtectioninaVirtualized Environment
Inatraditionalnetworkenvironment,thehardwareistheheartofoperations.Buttimes arechanging,andalthoughhardwareisstillanindispensablepartoftheoperationsinany ITcenter,softwaretechnologiesareexpandingintonewterritories.Thesetechnologiesaim toprovidethesameorbetterlevelofstrengthfoundinahardwaresolutionwhile decreasingthenumberofhardwaredevicesyouneedinyourbusinessenvironment.Oneof themostpopulartechnologiesinthisregardisvirtualization.

AnOverviewofVirtualization:EnhancedProtectionwithLess Hardware
Virtualizationisnotanewconceptithasexistedfordecadesbutwhatisnewaboutitis therapidrateofadoptioninITdepartmentsofallsizesandshapes.Onceusedmainlyin testinganddevelopment,virtualizationisnowakeyplayerinproductionenvironments.In theeventyouhaventhadachancetoworkwithvirtualizationsoftware,letsreviewthe overallconcept. Theconceptofvirtualizationissimpleyourunapieceofsoftware(avirtualmachine)on aPCasifthisvirtualmachineisjustanordinarysoftwareapplication.Inthevirtual machine,youcaninstalltheoperatingsystem(OS)ofyourchoiceandontopofthisOS, installanyapplicationsyouneed.Thisway,ononehardwareconfiguration,youcanhave manyvirtualPCs,eachofthemrunninganOSandsoftwareapplicationsofitsown, independentlyfromtheOSandtheapplicationsyouarerunningonthemain(host) computer.Keepinmind,however,thatthelayerrunningabovethehardwareisstanding inbetweenyourvirtualsystemsandthebaremetal,sotospeak.Thethinnerthatlayercan bethebetter. WhatstandsbetweenthehardwareandtheguestOSiscalledahypervisor.Typicallyon standalonesystems,thehypervisorrunsofftheconventionalOSthatyoumightbeusing, whereasahypervisorthatrunsdirectlyonthebaremetalorasclosetoitaspossibleisa moreserverorientedvirtualmachine(VM)architecturethatyouwouldlooktowhen consideringvirtualizationanddataprotection.

 Note Althoughmultiplevirtualmachinesrunningononephysicalmachine illustratewhatservervirtualizationis,thereisanotherequallyimportant typeofvirtualizationthatisalsousedinITenvironmentsstorage virtualization.Servervirtualizationusesthehardwareresourcesofone computertorunmultipleOSs/servers/applications;storagevirtualization dealswithstoragedevicesonly(forinstance,diskarrays).Similartoserver virtualization,whichabstractslogicalserversfromthephysicalhardware infrastructuretheyrunon,storagevirtualizationabstractsstoragefromthe separatedriveswheredataisphysicallydispersed.Briefly,datacanbe writtenovermultiplephysicaldisks,butfromtheadministrationconsole,all thesedisksappearasonelogicalentry.Thetermstoragevirtualizationmight notbeasmainstreamasitsservercounterpart;thereishardlyanITperson whohasnotheardofRAID,SAN,orNAS,whichareexamplesofstorage virtualization. Typically,whenonesaysdisasterrecovery,RAIDtechnologiesarethefirsttocometo mind.Althoughstoragevirtualizationtechnologyisamorecommondirectionpeoplelook towhenattemptingtoprotecttheirdataandsystemavailability,servervirtualizationis becomingsoreliableandcosteffectivethatdisastersarenolongermitigatedthrough traditionalbackup/restoremethods.Infact,usingvirtualizationtechnology,acompany maybeabletoachieve100%availabilitywithcompletedataprotection.

CostSavingsofaMirroredSite(FewerSystemsandPersonnel)
Servervirtualization,realtimedatareplication,andfailovertechnologyarecapabilities thatprovideahighlevelofprotectionwhilekeepingcostsataminimum.Asalready explained,servervirtualizationallowsyoutomaximizeperformancebyallowingfewer virtualizedserverstodotheworkofmultiplephysicalservers,yetatthesametimecut costsbecausewhencomparedwithnonvirtualizedenvironmentsservervirtualization allowsforfewermachinestoperformthesameamountofwork. Wherevirtualizationreallyshinesfordataprotectionanddisasterrecoveryisintheability toeliminatethetypicalhardwareequalityrequiredinphysicalserverredundancyand recoverysolutions.Thepiecesofhardwarebecomelesscriticalinavirtualized environment.Bymovingtoavirtualmodelwithahardwareagnosticformation,youcan restoresystemswithoutaconcernforidenticalhardwareorevennearidenticalhardware. Thisprovidesaquickerandfarmoreefficientdisasterrecoverysolution.

 Hostserversmustbepowerfulmachines(intermsofCPUandRAMmainly).Althoughthe minimumrequirementsofmostservervirtualizationsolutionsaremoderate,optimal performancecantbeachievedonaweakmachine.Inanycase,addingmoreRAMor upgradingtoafasterCPUismuchcheaperthanpurchasingaseparatebrandnew machineoneofthepointsthatmakeservervirtualizationacosteffectivesolution. Oneofthebiggestobstaclestochoosinganeffectiveprotectionsolutioniscost.Ifa companysfiscalneedswerenotanissue,therearemanyadvancedhardwareandsoftware solutionsthatprovideareallyrobustdataprotectionmechanism.However,therealityis thatveryfew,ifany,ITdepartmentscanaffordtoinvestmillionsinsucharobustsystem. Ofcourse,inthosecases,wheredataprotectionismorethanvital(forexample,military systems),costcomessecondtoreliability. Therearemanyrobustsolutionsthatmightnotnecessarilybemilitarystrengthbutare vigorousenoughtoprotectcriticaldata.Veryoften,theoptimalsolutionisahighlevelof dataprotectionatanaffordableprice;thesesolutionsarewhatatypicalITdepartment needs. Inadditiontocuttinghardwarecosts,virtualizationallowsforareductioninthenumberof requiredpersonnel,thusprovidingforwagerelatedsavings.Virtualenvironmentscanbe centralizedandmanagedremotely,sothereisneedforfewerpersonnelworkingonthe administrationofsystems,andyourworkforcecannowbeusedforothertasks.Certainly, inachallengingeconomywithpossibleshrinkingbudgetsbeingofferedtoITdepartments, theabilitytodecreasepersonnelresourcesisamotivator.

FacilitationofTesting
AsIhavealreadymentioned,beforegoingmainstreaminproductionenvironments, virtualizationwasusedmainlyfortesting.Theusesofvirtualizationfortestinghavebyno meansdecreasedandevencompaniesthatdontusevirtualizationinaproduction environmentuseitdailyfortesting. Theadvantagesofvirtualizationfortestingareobvious.Havingyourdatavirtualized allowsformorefrequenttestingthanwithphysicalservers.Youjustcopythetestingsetup fromanothermachineorrestoreitfromabackup,andyouarereadytogo.Thereisno needtoinstallandconfigureapplicationsorOSsyousimplycopythefileofthevirtual machine.Inaddition,whilephysicalservertestingcanoftentimesbepainfuland frustrating,virtualizationallowsserverstobeshutdownandturnedoneasily,even allowingforremoteserverfailuresimulationwithoutconcernoverphysicalaccesstothe systemthatyounormallyprepareforwhentestingremotefailuresonphysicalsystems.

 However,youshouldbeawareofthepotentialdownsidesofthissolution.With virtualizationfortesting,oneofthedrawbacksisthatitisnotanimpossibility(though certainlyitisnotthenorm)toobservedifferencesinthebehaviorofapplicationswhenrun onavirtualizedplatformthanwhenrunonstandalonemachines.Insomecases,the differencesmightbecriticaland,inevenrarercases,itispossiblethatthereare applicationsthatcannot(orshouldnt)beruninavirtualizedenvironment.Fortunately, suchcasesareinfrequent;thus,typically,itisappropriatetousevirtualizationfortesting.

TheRulesRegardingTraditionalDataProtectionAreNotDeprecated
Whendiscussingdataprotectioninavirtualizedenvironment,theperceptionmightbe onesidedinthinkingthatvirtualizationisusefulonlyforremotesiteserverssupporting replicationandfailover.Itstruethatvirtualizationprovidesforamazingrecoverability throughWANdisasterrecoverysites,butitsimportanttorememberthatyoumusthavea backupsystemdesignedintoyourproductionenvironmenttoensuretheprotectionof bothphysicalandvirtualservers. Dataprotectionstartsatthephysicallevel.Iftherearenoclearlydefinedrulesabouthow youprotectdataphysically,eventhemostsophisticatedmethodsareeasilycompromised. Thephysicalaspectofdataprotectionincludesaccess,backups,andprotectionagainst naturaldisasters,anditisthebasisofyourdataprotectionpolicy. Youmusthaveclearrulesregardingwhoandunderwhatcircumstancesdatacanbe accessed.Unauthorizedaccessmakesanyotherdataprotectionmethodsuseless.You shouldalsoregularlybackupyourdata(weekly,daily,orevenrealtime)andkeepthe backupsinasafeplace.Naturaldisastersdonthappenonadailybasisbutwhentheydo happen,theresultisdevastating.Therefore,ifyouwanttomakesurethatyourdatais protectedagainstphysicaldestruction,alwaysmakereasonablemeasurestoprotectthe premisesagainstflood,fire,earthquakes,andsoon,andaboveall,alwayskeepanupto datebackupatasecureremotelocation.

 Tofullyenjoythebenefitsofvirtualizationfordataprotection,youneedtoapplycertain measurestoensurethatthedataisprotectedfromrisks.Virtualizationisnotapanacea, andifyouneglectbasicrulesinregardtodataprotectioningeneralandinavirtualized environmentinparticular,dontcountonvirtualizationtosaveyourdata.Whendatais dispersedoveranetwork,nomatterwhetheritisaLANoraWAN,andthisnetworkisnot guardedproperly,thereisnoeffectivedataprotectionmechanisminplace.Anetworkisas secureasitsweakestpart,soiftherearegapsinthesecuritypolicies(thatis,rolesand privilegesarenotproperlydefinedandenforced),theintegrityofthewholesystemis underquestion.Generally,theleastprivilegeruleisagreatsecuritypolicy,soyourebetter beingrestrictivenowratherthansorrylater.

MoveDataQuicklyandCostEffectivelyAcrosstheWAN
Whendisasterstrikes,thelastthingyouhaveistimetothinkwhattoevacuatefirst. Usually,evenifthereisadetaileddisasterrecoveryplan(andsuchaplanshouldbepartof anydataprotectionpolicyineveryITdepartment)andyouknowwhatyoumustdo,timeis acriticalassetandyoudonthavelonghoursatyourdisposal. Thus,youneeddataprotectionsolutionsthathavetheabilitytomovedataquicklyandcost effectivelyacrosstheWAN.Ifyoucancountongreaterutilizationofthelinksinvolvedin theWANportionofyourprotectionplan,youhavemuchmoreflexibilitytoplanproperly. CombiningvirtualizationwithasolidWANconnectiontoadisasterrecoverysitechanges therecoverygamedramatically.Youcanreplicatebothphysicalandvirtualizedservers overtovirtualserversatthedisasterrecoverylocationbothquicklyandcosteffectively. Virtualizedserversareaboonintermsofspeedofdataevacuation.Becausevirtualized serversareinfactjustsoftwarefilesthatyoucancopyfromonemachinetoanotherinno timeatallorcanbecopiedautomaticallythroughspecializedsolutionsthatprovidefor justthattypeofscenarioyourentiresetofoperations(servers,applications,andfiles) canberedundantinanalternatevirtualizedlocation.Thefiles,whichcontainavirtualized server,aresmallinnumber(butlargeinsize)andtransferringthemtoaremotelocationis mucheasierthanmovingthousandsoffiles. Additionally,dealingwithlockedoropenfilesiseasierbecausealockedfileisnota separateentityyoucantrenameormove;itisjustafilenestedinsidethefilewiththe virtualizedserver.Migrationofopenorlockedfileswhileusersareaccessingorwritingto thosefilesisnotthekeyconcernitwouldbewithcertainsimplebackup/recovery solutions.Thereisalsonotaconcernoverthesecurityofthoseredundantfilesbecauseif thelockisdoneproperly,youwontbeabletoopenand/ormodifythefile;thus,ifthedata insidethefileissensitive,youdonthavetoworrythatwhenyoustorethefileona virtualizedplatform,thedatainsideitisreadilyexposedtounauthorizedaccess.

TheBenefitsofanEffectiveDataProtectionandRecoveryStrategy
Throughtheflexibilityofvirtualization,youcanencapsulatetheOS,applications,anddata intoavirtualizedsystem.Youcanthentransmitthisencapsulatedapplicationwithinyour

 productionenvironmentortoanoffsitelocationjustasyouwouldtransmitadatafile andmakeitavailableonaremotemachineforemployeestoaccess.Eveniftherewereno otherbenefitsofvirtualizationinregardtodataprotection,thiscapabilityalonecancut downtimeintheeventofsystemfailurefromdaystohoursorless. Inconsideringthebenefitsofanydisasterplanningandrecoverysolution,therearetwo commonmetricsthatareanalyzed:RecoveryTimeObjective(RTO),whichisa measurementofthetimefromthepointofsystemfailureandthetimewhenthatsystemis functionalyetagain,andRecoveryPointObjective(RPO),whichisatimedefinition connectedwithhowmuchdatalossispossiblewiththerecovery.RPOrelatestothe timeframeofthelastgoodbackupthatcanberestoredintheeventofatotaldisaster.For example,ifadiskarrayfailsanddataisonlyrecoverablefromyourtapebackups,whichgo backtothenightbefore(roughly10hoursforthesakeofourexample),yourRPOis10 hours.Theinterestingaspectofthesetwometricsisthatthereistherealityofwhatyou haveandthegoalthatyouarereachingtowards.Betweentherealityandthegoal,there areaslewoftechnologyoptionsforhighavailability,clustering,hardwareRAID, virtualization,andsoforth.ThetighteryourRTOandRPOrequirements,themoremoney youwillhavetospend,dependingonthetechnologyyouchoose. Typically,companiesarelookingattheirRTOandRPOresultsandseeingthattraditional methodsarenotevenclosetobeinggoodenoughfortheirdesiredobjectives.Thisiswhat isdrivingthemovementtowardvirtualization.Certainlythefeaturebenefitsmentioned earlierwiththeabilitytoperformtestingandmanageserversremotelyandmoreeasilyare certainlyadraw.Butitistheabilitytorecoveryquicklyfromadisasterwithaminimal disruptionofbusinessoperationsatanaffordablepricewherevirtualizationshines.

Article2:LeveragingVirtualizationforHigh AvailabilityandBusinessContinuity
Thepreviousarticlediscussedthebasicsofvirtualizationandexamineditsbenefitsfor dataprotection.Companiescanalsobenefitfromvirtualizationintheareasofhigh availabilityandbusinesscontinuity.Highavailabilityandbusinesscontinuityarecritical; withoutthem,adequatedataprotectionisimpossibleandtheproblemsthatarisecanbe veryserious.Insomecases,alackofhigh(ormoreprecisely,any)availabilityandbusiness continuity,especiallyforaprolongedperiodsoftime,canthreatentheveryexistenceofa company. Theconcernsofdisasterrecovery,virtualization,andhighavailabilityoftenfallintotheIT departmentsworrybox.However,theseconcernseffectthecompanysabilitytocontinue business,andshouldthereforebeviewedascriticalbytheentirecompanyespecially decisionmakerswhoalltoooftenhaveshallowpocketswhenitcomestodisasterrecovery needs. Modernbusinesshasa24/7nonstoprunningrequirement.Consideryourvariousservers andimagineanyoneofthembeingunavailableforanylengthoftime.Wouldyour companybeabletoloseanyoneofyourITservicesanddealwithalongtermdisruption (orevenashorttermone)?Thecostofadisruptioninservicecouldbesubstantial,soitis akeypartofabusinesscontinuityplantolookintoallapproaches(bothhardwareand softwareoriented)toensuredataprotection,highavailability,anddisasterrecovery.As hardwaresolutionsareoftencostprohibitive,companiesarelookingmoretosoftwareand virtualizationtoprovidethecosteffectiveandreliablesolutionstheyneed.

HighAvailabilityandBusinessContinuityBenefitsfromVirtualization
Thefollowinglisthighlightswaysanorganizationcanbenefitfromvirtualization: SimplificationofinfrastructureVirtualization,bothserverandstorage, simplifiestheinfrastructure.Allequal,whenthereislesshardware,thereisless complexity,whichinturn,meansthattheinfrastructureiseasiertomonitorand troubleshootwhenproblemsarise.Thistranslatesintolessdowntimeandhigher availability. EasierbranchmanagementProvidingdataprotectiontoagloballydispersed networkofmachinesisalwaysachallenge,butthankstovirtualization,remote locationsareeasiertomanage.Withvirtualizedsolutions,thereisnoneedtohave physicalaccesstoamachineinordertotroubleshootandrestartit.Additionally, thankstovirtualization,branchescanbeeasilyconsolidated,thushelpingtonot onlyachievehigheravailabilityandimprovedbusinesscontinuitybutalsoreduce costs.

 CrossplatformissuesbecomeirrelevantHomogeneousnetworksaremoreof anexceptionthanarule,andvirtualizationcanmaketheadministrationof heterogeneousenvironmentsmucheasier.Forexample,supposeyouhave applicationsthatrunonLinuxbutyoudonthaveasparemachinewithLinux installed.IftheLinuxmachineonwhichtheapplicationsarerunningcrashes,ina traditional,nonvirtualizedenvironment,youarehelpless.Butwhenyouuse virtualization,thisscenarioisnotaproblem.YousimplycopythefilewiththeLinux machineonanothermachine(regardlessofitsoperatingsystemOS;theonly requirementisthatthemachinebecapableofrunningavirtualmachine.The solutionisfast,easy,andefficient. EasilyseparatebusinessunitsInadditiontocentralizationofresources, virtualizationcanbeusedtoseparatebusinessunits.Decentralizationisusefulin largeinfrastructureswheretherearemanybusinessunitsanditisbettertoisolate themfromoneanotherinordertomanagethemeasilyasseparateentities.Agood exampleisahostingproviderwhorunseachcustomerssitesinaseparatevirtual machine,thusshieldingthemfromthedangersofsitesruninamulticlient environmentwhilestillusingareducednumberofphysicalmachines.

AnOverviewofReplicationBasedTechnologies
Letsfocusabitmoreintentlyonthetechnicalaspects,ormoreprecisely,thetypesand usesofreplicationbasedtechnologyinavirtualizedenvironment.Replicationbased technologiesallowthecapturingofasetofdataataparticularpointintime,typically involvingminimaloverheadandfastrestorationofdata.Thisfunctionalityiswhy replicationbasedtechnologyisthepreferredsolutionforprovidinghighavailabilityof criticalsystems.Althoughreplicationistypicallyviewedfromtheperspectiveofremote WANbasedreplicas,usingthesametechnologyforthecreationoflocalreplicasisanother methodtoachievingbusinesscontinuity. Whenlookingintoasolutionthatyoucancountonforyourenvironmentintermsof replication,youwanttobesureyouhaverealtimedatareplication,whichbasicallymeans dataisreplicatingasitiscomingintothelocalsystem.Insomecases,therightsolutionis synchronousreplication,whichofferszerodatalossbyensuringthatthedataiswrittento boththelocalandremotesystemswithaconfirmationbeforeproceeding.Inother situations,asynchronousreplicationisutilized.Thismethodrequiresspecificdataorlogs tobeclosedoutononeserverbeforebeingreplicatedovertotheotherserver.With asynchronousrealtimereplication,thereisthepotentialforasmallamountofdataloss.

 Oneoftheconcernswithreplicationisthatacorruptfileontheproductionsidemightbe replicatedovertothedisasterrecoverysiteortoalocalvirtualizedserverthatyouusefor replication.Tomeetthischallenge,afeaturecalledContinuousDataProtection(CDP)isa crucialfactortoanybusinesscontinuityplanning.CDPprovidestheabilitytorevertbackto anearlierversionofdata.Thus,intheeventcorruptionoccurs,youcanreplaypointin timeversionsbackwardtoremovethatcorruption.Dependingonthetechnologyyouare using,therearedifferentgranularitiestosuchasolution.Somesolutionsmayhavefixed timeintervalsofrestoration(everyhour,5hours,24hours,andsoforth).When consideringareplicationsolution,factorinasolutionsabilitytoofferCDPbasedoneither everywriteoraspecifiedtimeframe(evenifthosetimeframesareasnarrowasseconds). YoushouldalsopursuereplicationtechnologythatconsidersWANoptimizationineither hardwareorsoftware(orboth).Althoughyoumightbereplicatingdatabetweentwolocal systemsinyourscenario,typicallyfordisasterrecoverysites,youneedaWANconnection toanoffsitelocation.ThatWANconnectionbecomesacriticalcomponentnotonlyforthe replicationprocessbutalsointheeventyouneedtosupportyourofficesfromthatdisaster recoverysite(andtheneventuallywhenyouneedtorecoveroverthoseWANconnections). Whilelookingforaproducttomeetyourneeds,considerWANoptimizationanessential itemonyourchecklist.Dependingonthesizeofyourenvironment,youshouldalsohavea replicationstrategythatcentralizesyourservers,relocatingthemtoprimaryand secondarydatacenters. Replicationcanworkinmanyenvironments,butyouneedtotakeintoaccountwhat hardwareandsoftwareyouwillbeusingbecausetheexistingenvironmentcouldbean issuethatlimitsyourchoices.Forinstance,therearevirtualizationsolutionsthatworkon onlycertainOSsandononlyparticularmodelsofhardware.Ifyourhardware/softwareis notsupportedbythevirtualizationsolutionofyourchoice,youwilleitherhavetochoosea differentvirtualizationsolutionorreplaceyourhardware/software,whichcouldbevery expensive.Consider,forexample,environmentsthatuseamixtureofMicrosoftsolutions (Exchange,SQL,IISWebservers,fileservers)acrossboth32and64bitarchitectures. SupposetheyalsoutilizeanOracleserver,aBlackBerryserver,andLinuxorSolaris servers.Theymustensurethatthesolutiontheyarepursuinghastheabilitytosupportall oftheseplatforms.Ifnot,theywillneedtocontinueinvestigatingforanallinclusive solution.Fortunately,manyoftheleadingvirtualizationsolutionssupportawiderangeof hardware/softwareplatforms,sochancesarethatyouwillnotfacethisincompatibility issue.Itisworthwhile,however,tofirstdoublecheckcompatibilityandthenproceedtothe choiceofareplicationconfiguration.

LevelsofHighAvailabilityResiliency
Thereareavarietyofwaystoimplementvirtualizationforanenvironment.Inadditionto checkingpossiblecompatibilityissues,youmusttakeintoaccountthefollowingreplication configurationconsiderations: Decidingwhattoreplicate.Firstyouneedtodecideifyouwillreplicateeverything oronlysomedata.Thisdecisioninfluencesyourchoiceofreplicationconfiguration. Ifyoudecidetomirroraserver(thatis,replicateeverythingonit),itisbest,though notmandatory,ifthereplicationtargetisadedicatedmachineoratleastavery powerfulone.Ofcourse,youcanreplicatemanyvirtualserverstoonetarget machine,butonlyifyouhavemadewisedisasterrecoverypreparationsforthat criticalserver(whichleadstoournextpoint). Decidingwhereyouwillreplicateto.Choosingthereplicationtarget(themachine youwillbereplicatingto)isalsoimportantbecauseifyoumakeunwisechoicesand yourtargetfails,youwillhavenoreplicatorestorefrom.Oneoftheworstcasesis whenyoudecidetoreplicateallyourvirtualizedsystemstoonetarget.Thischoice isriskybecausethetargetbecomesasinglepointoffailure.

Additionally,iftheapplicationsyouarereplicatingdonotcoexistpeacefullyonone machine(forexample,SQLServer,aLotusserver,andanOracledatabaseortwoversions ofExchange)andyoureplicatethemononemachine,youcanbetatleastoneapplication (orevenallofthem)willstopworking.Fortunately,inthiscase,virtualizationcanhelp becauseallyouneedtodoiscreateaseparatevirtualmachineforeachoftheapplications andreplicatethemthere.Ofcourse,ifyouarereplicatingdatabaseapplications,which generallyusealotofresources(CPUtime,writesandreadstothedisk,andsoon),you needtoinsurethatthephysicalmachineisapowerfuloneotherwisethewholescenario mightnotwork.

CommonReplicationConfigurations
Choosingwhatandwheretoreplicateareveryimportantdecisions.Thenextstepisto choosehowexactlyyouwillperformthereplication.Therearemanypossible configurationsthatusevirtualizationforhighavailabilityandbusinesscontinuity.The followinglistfocusesonthreecommonconfigurationpossibilities: ReplicationofaphysicalsetofserverstoavirtualsetofserversThe advantageofusingaphysicalsetofserversreplicatingbacktoavirtualsetof serversisthatyoucanutilizefewervirtualserversonthebackend.This configurationmakessensewhenyourfrontendserversarenotunderaveryheavy loadand/oryouarenotreplicatingeverythingfromthem.Thehostmachineofthe virtualizedsystemmustbeaveryrobustone;otherwise,thewholeconfigurationis risky.

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 ReplicationofavirtualsetofserverstoavirtualsetofserversThis configurationusesvirtualizedserversbothfortheproductionsideandforthe recoverysite(orforalocalizedsetofvirtualizedserversonsite).Usingthis configurationallowsyoutomaximizehardwareutilizationonboththefrontend andbackend.Duetonumerousadvantagesovertheotherconfigurations,this configurationisfrequentlyrecommendedasthemostcosteffectivewaytoincrease availability. ReplicationofavirtualsetofserverstoaphysicalsetofserversThis configurationisrarelyusedbecauseitofferstheleastcostsavingsandnot necessarilythehighestavailability.Additionally,itismoredifficulttoadminister. Thisconfigurationmakessenseifyouhappentohavesparephysicalmachinesat yourremotelocationthatyouwanttoutilize.

Virtualizationopensnewperspectivesfordataprotection.Thankstovirtualization,itis possibletoachievehighlevelsofavailabilityandbusinesscontinuityatanaffordableprice. However,notallvirtualizationsolutionsareequal. Note Thenextarticleoftheserieswillfocusonthepricingmodelsfor virtualizationsolutions,thushelpingyoutodecidehowtofindtheperfect combinationofqualityandpricetosuityourneeds.

EnsuringCriticalBusinessFunctions
OneoftheglobalbenefitsofvirtualizationforacompanyisthatitmakesIToperations mucheasierandmorereliable.Virtualizationmakescompanymanagementeasierby significantlyreducingtherequiredhardwareandthenumberofpeopleinvolvedto performthesameamountofwork.Managinglesshardwareandpeopleeasesthe managementofthecompanyasawhole. Sometimesitisneitherpossiblenornecessarytoensurehighavailabilityforeverysingle businessfunctioninyourorganization.Thereisnodoubtthatitisbesttoprovide100% highavailabilityforeverybusinessfunction,butthepriceandeffortrequiredtodoso couldbemorethanyoucanafford.Inthiscase,youneedtomakesurethatatleastyour criticalbusinessfunctionsarecoveredbyyourhighavailabilityefforts. Criticalbusinessfunctionsvaryfromonecompanytoanotherandyouneedtoidentify themforyourcompanyratherthanborrowthemfromthedocketofanothercompany. Thinkofallthebusinessfunctionswithinyourorganizationthatifinterruptedcouldlead toseriousfinancial,legal,orotherdamagesorpenalties.

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 Throughvirtualization,youachievehighavailabilityforyourcriticalbusinessfunctions becauseitallowsforrapidrestorationofthesefunctionsaftertheyhavebeeninterrupted byadisaster.Withvirtualization,restorationofafailedsystemisaseasyascopyingthe configurationfromonemachinetoanother.Also,whenyouhavemultipleserversonone physicalmachineandoneofthemfails,youcanquicklyisolatethefailedserverand preventdisruptionofoperationoftheotherserversonthesamemachineoronthe networkasawhole.

RegulatoryCompliancewithinaVirtualizedEnvironment
Highavailabilityandbusinesscontinuityarenotonlyessentialforinternaloperations;very often,externalfactorssuchasregulationsmakeitmandatoryforcompaniestoprovide continuedbusiness.RegulationssuchastheSarbanesOxleyActandtheHealthInsurance PortabilityandAccountabilityAct(HIPPA)areexamples. Thankstovirtualization,itispossibletoconsolidatedatacentersandhavecentralized, strictersecuritypoliciesincompliancewiththeseregulations.Inthataspect,virtualization isnotaluxury,itisanecessity;ifyourITdepartmentisnotcompliantwiththese regulations,noncompliancecouldleadtofinancialpenalties,adropincompanystocks, lossofcustomerconfidence,andlostprofits.

Summary
Virtualizationcanhelpacompanytoachievehighavailabilityandbusinesscontinuity whilekeepingthecostsundercontrol.Whenacompanycantensurehighavailabilityfor itsIToperations,consequencesarehefty.Highavailabilityisnotafunctionoftechnical expertiseandmodernequipmentonly;itisalsoafunctionofmanagementcapabilities(or theirlacking).However,whenacompanydoesnthavethenecessaryexpertiseand equipmenttohandledisasterrecoveryquickly,eventhemostbrilliantmanagerishelpless. Thatiswhythesuccessfulcombinationforhighavailabilityandbusinesscontinuityisthe rightequipment/expertiseandgoodmanagerialskills.Inthisaspect,virtualizationisa valuableallytoanygoodmanager.

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Article3:ReplicationandRecovery ManagementSolutions
Animportantaspecttoimplementingvirtualizationanddisasterrecoveryisthepricing model.Everycompanyisdifferentandtheirneedsvary;everyvirtualizationsolutionis uniqueaswell.Oneoftheimportantfactorsforadecisionmakertoconsideristhe environmentyoucurrentlyhave(forexample,amixedenvironment)andwhatthepricing structureyouareinvestigationoffersintermsofsimplicity,implementation,and scalabilitynottomentioncost.

PricingModelsComeinAllShapesandSizes
Pricingmodelsaretypicallyuniforminconcept(persocket,perinstance,perprocessor,or perCPUmodels)althoughyoumightdiscoveruniquenamingforthesesolutions dependingonthevendoryouareworkingwith.Also,veryoftenapricingsolutioncomes withvariationsdependingontheneedsoftheclient,whichiswhyitisalwaysbestbeforea companybeginstheimplementationphasetoperformthoroughresearchoftheavailable options.Manyvendorsareflexibleintheirpricingmodelsandwithsomeresearch(and maybeabitofnegotiation),itwillbepossibletofindasolutionthatsatisfiesallparties involvedintheprocess. Inadditiontovirtualizationoptions,somecompaniesprovideentiresolutionsfordisaster recovery.Withtheseproductsuites,youmustfactorinthecostspending/savingsyouhope toachievewiththeaddedfunctionalitytheyprovide.Youmightprefertopickandchoose piecesofyoursolutionfrommultiplevendors,buttraditionally,asingle,economical packagewithacompletesetoftoolsatyourdisposalfromasinglevendoristheeasiest waytomeetyourneeds. VirtualizationLicensingPriceModels PerinstanceAfeeischargedbaseduponeachinstanceofthe applicationserverrunninginitsownvirtualmachine.Withvirtualization, itisnotuncommonforvirtualclusterstohavephysicalserverswith differentCPUconfigurations(twoway,fourway).Asimplefailoverfrom atwowaytoafourwaysystemmayviolateCPUbasedlicensing, whereasperinstancewouldholdupinadisasterrecoveryvirtualized environment. Perprocessor(orperCPU)Thismodelallowsacompanytolicenseby processor(thenumberofprocessorswithinasystem)andallows multiplevirtualizedinstancesoftheOSonthatmachine.Thus,youmight havealicensebasedonthephysicalprocessor(s)withinthesystembut unlimitedvirtualizationontopofthat.Somepricingmodelsevenfocuson thenumberofsocketsorthenumberofcoreswithintheprocessor, perhapsignoringthevirtualizationaspectaltogether. 13

ServerVirtualizationROI
Oneofthefirststepsacompanyneedstomakeinthedirectionofvirtualization implementationisanindepthanalysisoftheexpectedreturnoninvestment(ROI)ofthe endeavor.TherearemanysophisticatedformulastocalculateROI;basically,theyallboil downtocalculatinghowmuchyouwillspendandhowmuchyouwillgainbyaparticular solution. ROIcalculationisnoeasytaskanddifferentinterpretationscouldleadtoverydifferent results. TocalculateROI,youneedtodeterminethecostsyourcompanycouldmitigateor eliminatebyadoptingvirtualization.Thislooksprettysimpleandstraightforwardbutin realitytherearemanyfactorstoconsider.Veryoften,somedirectcostsdontgetadequate weight(thatis,theyareunderestimatedoroverestimated)intheequationandindirect costsarenotcountedatall.Thesameappliestotheexpectedbenefits.Whenthedeviations aresubstantial,thefinalresultwillalsovarysignificantly. Letshavealookatasimpleexample.Imaginethatyouwanttoobtain20virtualization licensesforyourITdepartment.Youmightfirstask,Whatisthecurrentstateofyour existingservers?Intheeventthesystemsaremoderatelyold,youmayneedtoupgrade.If yourmachinesareveryold,itmightnotmakesensetoupgradethem,sotheonlychoiceis tobuynew(powerful)machines.Youroptionsare: Useyourexistingmachinesastheyare Upgradeyourexistingmachines Buynewer,morepowerfulmachines

Thefirstcaseisthemostfavorableintermsofcostsbecauseyouwillnothavetospenda centonnewhardware.Infact,ifyourhardwarehasbeenunderutilized,thisscenariois quiteprobable. Thethirdcaseisthemostexpensive;however,whencalculatingcosts,whatyouarehoping toseeisthatevenwiththepurchaseofnewsystems,thiswillultimatelyprovidea reasonableROIwhileprovidingforthefailoveranddatarecoverabilityyouneed.Toclarify, ifyouwanttohave20dedicatedmachinesat$2000each,thisis$40,000altogether.Ifyou wanttohave20machinesbutyouplantousevirtualization,youcanget10machines(or even5orless)anddeploymultiplevirtualserversonthem.Ifyouget10machinesofthe samepowerasthemachinesforthecasewithoutvirtualization,thismeansthatinthe secondcase,youwillhavetopay$20,000less.Obviously,therearecostsrelatedto implementingvirtualization,soitisnotprecisetosaythatrightnowyouhavesaved $20,000becauseofvirtualization.Andcertainlyyouneedtoseethatinthelongrunthe savingsoflesspersonnelandincreasedhighavailabilityanddisasterrecoveryshouldall factorintotheROI.

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 Thesecondcase,whichisthemostcommon,istoupgradeyourexistingmachinesinorder tomakethempowerfulenoughtohostavirtualizationsolution.Here,costsalsovary,but youcangowith$500to$800orevenlesspermachineformoreRAMand/orafasterCPU. Ofcourse,thisdoesnotmeanyoushouldgetthecheapest4GBofRAMyoucanfindyou willbebuildingaserver,notaPCforatempworkerdoingdataentry;thus,youcantafford togetthecheapest,lowqualitycomponents.Still,allequal,upgradinganexistingmachine ismuchcheaperthanbuyingabrandnewone. Inadditiontothesavingsyouwillrealizebyspendinglessonhardwarewhilestill performingthesameamountofwork,virtualizationofferssavingsonanongoingbasis: Youwillneedlessspace10machineslesscouldsaveyoutheneedtorent additionalroom(s)oryoucouldstoprentingsomeofyourcurrentfacilities.This couldsaveyouletssay$1000amonth.(Ofcourse,ifyourpremisesarelocatedin anexpensiveregion,therentfortheadditionalroomcouldbemoreandyour savingswillbehigher.)Thisis$12,000peryear,whichisthepriceofsixnew machines! Youwillneedlessenergy10machineslessalsomeanslessenergyforpowering andcoolingthem.EnergyexpensesareamajorarticleinanyITbudget,andthe moreyoucutdowntheenergybill,thebetter.Thesavingsinthisgroupcouldbe $200to$500(partiallydependingonhowmuchyouwillspendoncooling,which largelyvariesamonglocationsandseasons),whichresultsinatleast$2400to $3000ayearinsavings. YouwillneedlessstaffThisbenefitmightnotbethemosttangibleandyouwill hardlycutyourITdepartmentbecauseofvirtualization,butitisafactthat virtualizationhelpstoreducethestaffyouneed.Here,savingsvaryenormouslyif yourequire10hoursofservicelessat$50perhour,thisis$500amonthsaved.10 hoursamonth(or2.5hoursaweek)isnotmuchanditisquitepossiblethatyou willsavemoreadminhoursamonth,resultingin$6000to$10,000orevenmore savingsperyear.

Keepinmind,however,thatasubstantialROImaynotoccurimmediately.Insomecases,it mayeventakeayearortwotobeginseeingresults.Butyouarelookingatvirtualizationas asolutionfirst,asasavingsavenuesecond.Allsolutionsinitiallycomeataprice,buthaving aneasiermethodofdataprotectionandbusinesscontinuitythatactuallybringsdownyour costsoverthelongrunisworthpursuing. Asyoucansee,ROIcanvarywidelyamongcompanies,soyouneedtodoyourhomework andcalculateROIinyourcaseaspreciselyaspossible.Doingsowillensureyour expectationsforavirtualizationsolutionarerealistic.

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SellingtheSolution
ThefirststepinthedecisionmakingprocessistodetermineROIcalculations,butthe processdoesnotendhere.Togetherwith(orevenbefore)theROIanalysis,youneedto considerthepricingmodelyouwillbeusing.Therearemanypricingmodelsandyour choicelargelyaffectsyourROI.Letsfocusontwosolutiontypespurchaseofa virtualizationsolutionandrentalofavirtualizationsolution.

PurchaseaVirtualizationSolution
Thefirstoptionyouhaveistopurchaseavirtualizationsolution.Purchasinga virtualizationsolutiondoesntmeanhiringateamofdeveloperswhowillcreateacustom madesolutionforyoubecausethisapproachiswaytooexpensive(also,withvirtualization becomingamainstreamtechnology,thisinevitablyleadstodropinprices,sothereare manyaffordableandsolidreadymadevirtualizationsolutions). Beingthatthepricesoflicensesvarydramatically,beforeyougoshopping,havealookat thepricelistsofthemajorvendorsandseewhattheyoffer.However,youneedtohavein mindthatthefinalpricedependsonmanyfactors,suchas:Areyouanewclient?How manylicensesdoyouplantobuy?Willyoubuytrainingandsupport?Thus,youmustbe preparedfordrasticdifferencesintheoffersyouwillget.Onthepositiveside,itispossible tonegotiateafairprice. Youmightalsowanttohireaconsultanttohandleeverythingaroundtheselectionofthe product,theprocedureofpurchasingit,andthedeploymentitself.Thisroutemightbeabit moreexpensive,butifyoudonthavetheinhouseresources(thatis,peoplewhocan handlethistask)orifyouneedthesolutionsoon,hiringaconsultantcouldbethebetter choiceandpossiblyeventhemorecosteffectivechoiceintheend.

RentaVirtualizationSolution
Analternativetopurchasingavirtualizationsolutionistorentvirtualization.Thereare manyservices,forinstanceSoftwareasaService(SaaS),cloudcomputing,managed capacity,managedservices,serverinstancebasedsolutions,andalacarteofferingsthat essentiallyrevolvearoundthefactthatyoudontbuythelicenseandyoudontdeploythe solutioninhousebutrenttheinstallationfromanothercompanyandpaya(mostoften) monthlyfeefortheservice.Therearedifferencesbetweeneachofthelistedsolutions,so beforeyoumakeadetermination,checkwhatyouwillbegettingfromyourvirtualization solutionhostingproviderandhowmuchitwillcost. Rentingavirtualizationsolutioncanbecheaperthanpurchasinganddeployingitinhouse, butthisisnotanabsoluterule.Therearecaseswhenrentingavirtualizationsolutionis moreexpensivethanpurchasingit,especiallyinthelongrunandfromatechnicalpointof view.Also,thereareprosandconsforusingSaaS,clouds,andson,butgenerallythese servicesareabetteroptionforsmallcompanieswithnodedicatedITstaffandwithafew machinesonlybecausewhenyououtsourcevirtualizationtopros,itismucheasierforyou and(asarule)moreefficientthandeployingthesolutioninhouse.

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Summary
Inaworldthatrequires24/7businesscontinuity,dataprotectionanddisasterrecovery optionshavereachedanewlevelthroughvirtualization.Enablingtheabilitytoprovide realtimereplication,simplifiedandcentralizedmanagement,andimmediatefailoverwith highavailability,allthewhileusingfewerresources,virtualizationisasolutionevery companyshouldconsider.

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