about raid, disaster recovery, backups etc.

[ilcapibara]

Hi, i need to build a new server.

It's for a small office with just 5 pc clients, but data security and availability is very important, aka i cant lose data or im in big trouble.

So of course i use RAID and 3 different types of backups to have my back covered (tape, external usb drive and i also backup the data to one of my desktop pc's hard disk.).

But my concern is: what if the server stops working? I mean, some bad harwdare failure that requires some part of the harware to be replaced, and i dont have it available in short time.

At that point my quicker options to resume activity would be to recover the data from the backups, because i cant extract the data from the raid array in any way and copy it to another computer to use as a temporary server, to use while i repair the real server, and that's not really a great solution, because i would lose all the work made between the last backup and the hardware failure.

So my point is: what's the best configuration/system to use,  to build an array on my server but being able to recover the data from that array in case the server stops working?

I was thinking: RAID 1 would be just two hard disk mirrored, so i can read one of the two hard disks on another computer and recover the data. But i would lose a lot in performances compared to a RAID5 or better.

Another idea: use a server with a RAID controller that i can take out and install on another pc (one of the desktops), and from there recover the data from the array.

Any other ideas/solutions?

The budget is not really big.

P.S. This thread has been moevd from General to Business Recovery Planning. - Hp Forum moderartor

[BK_HPE]

Hello @ilcapibara

I know you are worried about disaster recovery like all business are these days.  I recommend looking at Disaster Recovery with HP Cloud Object Storage, every minute of downtime equals dollar losses for your business. With a cloud-based disaster recovery system in place, you can minimize your risk of downtime and get your business back on track faster.  HP Cloud Object Storage offers multi-location backup for critical data at geographically separated data centers. HP Cloud Object Storage comes with an industry-leading SLA and the highest security standards.

You can get the cloud based solution to fit your business needs, there is;

TwinStrata:

The CloudArray Cloud Storage for Disaster Recovery extends your iSCSI storage infrastructure to the cloud for off-site backup and enables one-click data recovery to any location or in the cloud for fast recovery. It also supports a variety of different cloud storage platforms and provides infinitely scalable off-site storage for disaster recovery.

Panzura:

Panzura’s cloud-based storage and global file system enable rapid disaster recovery and smooth business continuity without provisioning a second site.  Panzura offers a unified platform with simple deployment and support, maximum operational efficiency, and unmatched performance, while reducing storage costs.

Riverbed:

Riverbed Whitewater cloud storage gateways revolutionize data protection by eliminating tape, improving DR readiness and reducing costs by 30 to 50 percent.  Whitewater delivers local-like performance and drop-in installation that allows HP cloud storage to become an integral part of any organization’s data protection strategy.

Another option is talking to an HP Disaster Specialist for more information on Disaster Recovery options available through HP, please let me know if you would like to pursue that option.