Page 21 - TelecomReseller JunJul 2014

June/July 2014
Telecom Reseller 21
An Integrated Disaster-Recovery
online right away--automatically, securely and
almost seamlessly.
This “closed-loop” approach incorporates both Solution Keeps the Enterprise Going
fiber connectivity and the automated backup/
recovery of data. The fiber backbone, plus the
multiple data centers connected to it, means the E
integrated solution is:
very enterprise IT executive today running again as fast as possible.
l based on a secure facility;
worries about the possibility of a system The bad news: traditional disaster-recovery NICHOLAS
l subject to a service level agreement (SLA); and crash that could bring down business approaches rely on cumbersome, unreliable
l configured with routing that is optimized for operations, disrupt transactions and cut into processes that take several hours or even days
low-latency data backup and restoration
revenues. Not surprisingly, most IT executives to execute. The good news: an alternative By Rick Nicholas, Vice President of Data
Traditional Disaster-Recovery Plans have adopted some type of disaster-recovery approach, in the form of an integrated disaster- Center Services for WOW! Business
Aren’t Up to the Task
plan designed to get the enterprise up and
recovery solution, can get organizations back
(rick.nicholas@wideopenwest.com)
Some enterprises copy their data onto magnetic
tapes, either nightly or weekly, and then regularly
transport the tape drives to an off-site facility.
If a system crashes, IT staff members set up a
temporary operations center, retrieve the relevant
backup tapes and then restore the data from the
most recent tape copies. Yet tape backup not only
is complex and time-consuming; it also relies on
an unreliable medium--the tape itself. Further,
depending on the amount of data lost, the typical
enterprise recovery time objective (RTO) for tape
backup is three-seven days.
Other enterprises transmit backup data over
a network to an off-site environment, such as
the cloud or a dedicated data center. If disaster
strikes, IT staffers need time to retrieve the data
from wherever it is stored--assuming, of course,
that the disaster did not cut off secure, high-
speed access to the network. Even if network
connectivity is intact, the enterprise’s RTO still can be days, during which time IT executives
have to hope that nothing goes wrong in the
cloud or the dedicated data center.
Speed, Low Latency and Security Are Crucial
An integrated disaster-recovery solution HYGT. GA.
combines cloud storage with fiber-optic ELPING OU ET HEREREATMERICA
transmission to replicate and recover data. The
solution provider uses its own fiber network,
multiple data centers connected to that network
and a fiber link to the enterprise to replicate data,
quickly and securely, from the enterprise to a
data center. If a disaster occurs, the integrated
solution transmits the data back to the enterprise.
High-speed, low-latency fiber ensures the
integrated solution backs up data in near real
time, while multiprotocol label switched (MPLS)
routing moves the data securely from the GreatAmerica is committed to helping you achieve greater
enterprise to a cloud node.
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If a disaster occurs, an enterprise employee pulls business services.
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The RTO of a couple of minutes contrasts sharply
with the RTO, measured in days, associated with
traditional disaster-recovery approaches.
• Expertise to help you implement, finance, bill, and monitor your
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Disaster Recovery that Keeps Business
in Business
• Fast and flexible financing from a dedicated team of communications
In today’s IT-driven economy, business data must and IT professionals
move across a variety of components, any one
of which may be susceptible to failure. However,
an integrated disaster-recovery solution, by
combining the network and the cloud, minimizes
downtime, protects data and maintains business
continuity. It also helps reduce IT costs, enhance
customer satisfaction and strengthen profitability. The dynamic marketplace never stops for a
disaster, but an enterprise equipped with the
right disaster-recovery solution does not have to
stop for a disaster, either.
www.greatamerica.com | 888.307.2641

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