DR-as-a-Service offers a simpler, more cost-efficient way to protect IT operations against extended downtime.
It’s hurricane season once again, with the threat of severe weather increasing operational risk for organizations of all sizes. However, disasters come in many forms, from extended power outages to cyberattacks to human error.
Whatever the cause, a disaster can bring any organization’s operations to a grinding halt. According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, one-fourth of businesses shut their doors permanently after a disaster. A U.S. Small Business Administration study found that 90 percent of businesses fail within two years.
That’s why it’s critically important to have a disaster recovery (DR) plan. An effective DR plan covers every aspect of the organization, from personnel safety to facilities management to communication with customers. Depending on the nature of the disaster, any or all of these elements might come into play. Because IT systems touch almost every aspect of operations, they’re a natural focal point for DR planning.
Traditionally, DR required that organizations replicate their IT infrastructure. They would have to purchase and implement systems that would be activated in case of disaster, and manage and maintain equipment that sat idle most of the time. As a result, only the largest enterprises could afford full-fledged DR sites. Now, the cloud has leveled the playing field, putting DR within reach of even the smallest organizations.
How DRaaS Works
Disaster Recovery-as-a-Service (DRaaS) allows organizations to replicate their onsite systems and data in a cloud environment. Organizations that have moved their systems to the cloud can use intracloud DRaaS to protect their environment.
Specialized software provides the orchestration needed to transfer operations from primary to backup resources in a disaster. Users can access those resources from the cloud and continue to do their jobs. Operations fail back to primary resources once they are restored.
Using the cloud provider’s infrastructure eliminates much of the cost and complexity of DR. Organizations simply pay for the resources and services they need and scale up or down as circumstances dictate. DRaaS also provides better assurance of business continuity. Even if the disaster impacts the customer’s entire site, the cloud provider’s offsite infrastructure won’t be affected. Of course, cloud service providers typically have redundant infrastructure and their own DR plans to ensure continuity of service.
It’s important to note that DRaaS is different than Backup-as-a-Service (BaaS), which simply replicates data to a service provider’s storage infrastructure. BaaS protects critical data against loss but doesn’t provide for business continuity. Failover to the backup cloud resources is the critical feature that distinguishes DRaaS from BaaS. Additionally, recovering data from a BaaS solution can take hours or days, while data is accessible instantly with DRaaS.
Key Capabilities of a DRaaS Solution
Expertise is another advantage of DRaaS. In addition to providing infrastructure, true DRaaS adds multiple layers of services, including DR planning, ongoing management and support. DR processes are handled by the service provider’s DR specialists, increasing confidence in the solution and allowing the customer’s IT resources to be redirected toward other initiatives.
However, DRaaS capabilities vary widely, and organizations should do due diligence in selecting a service provider. Key questions to ask include:
- Does the service provider’s data center have redundant power, cooling and communication links?
- Is the service provider’s data center located in an area where natural disasters are unlikely to occur?
- Can personnel administer the site remotely if weather, pandemic or other circumstances prevent travel?
- Is the data center SSAE 16 certified? Does the service provider follow applicable operational standards?
- Does the service provider conduct periodic testing of the DR plan?
- Does the service provider monitor data replication processes and provide 24x7 support?
- Does the service provider employ experienced personnel who can quickly activate and manage failover and failback processes?
The service provider’s data centers should also be far enough away that a regional disaster won’t affect both the production and DR site, yet close enough for effective data replication.
Choosing the Right DRaaS Provider
When selecting a DRaaS provider, organizations should ensure that the cloud infrastructure can support their server platforms. It’s important to evaluate the service-level agreement (SLA) and ensure that the DRaaS provider can deliver acceptable network performance during normal and disaster operations. This is particularly critical for organizations that have large volumes of data, which require a lot of bandwidth for transfer to and from the cloud.
There are multiple DRaaS models to consider, including self-service, assisted and managed DRaaS. Self-service is the least expensive, but the in-house IT team is responsible for implementing and managing the solution. Assisted DRaaS provides tools and consultation with experts, while managed DRaaS allows for complete outsourcing of the process.
After selecting a service provider, organizations should use the migration to DRaaS to bring their DR plans into closer alignment with business objectives. Instead of focusing on protecting individual systems and data, IT teams can work with a knowledgeable DRaaS provider to develop an enterprise-level DR plan that considers critical dependencies within the environment.
Disasters can strike at any time, but disaster recovery used to be a costly and complex process that only the largest enterprises could manage. DRaaS provides the infrastructure and expertise needed to protect IT operations from crippling downtime.
