Business Continuity Planning
A fully managed solution that provides our clients with a cost-effective way to bullet-proof their data with a comprehensive Backup and Disaster Recovery Solution (BDR) for Windows 2000 and Windows 2003 Servers.

This reasonably priced, all-encompassing solution provides Small to Medium sized Enterprises with near real-time backups that also include seamless off-site data storage along with multi-year archiving and standby server capabilities.

There are advanced restoration options like file and folder level restorations, with Exchange message and mailbox recovery and bare metal restorations to dissimilar hardware. Typically in less than an hour, our unique NAS Backup device can also be configured to function as a standby server, when needed. This solution will replace management intensive, error-prone tape backups while providing much more.

This new NAS-based technology performs data backup at the block level where the actual 1's and 0's are captured from the hard drive essentially eliminating failures related to open files. Block level data is raw data which does not have a file structure, imposed on it.  

Database applications such as Microsoft SQL Server and Microsoft Exchange Server transfer data in blocks without having to worry if the files are open or being used.  Block transfer is the most efficient way to write to disk.  Backups are performed as frequent as every 15 minutes providing clients with an increased amount of restore points when compared to traditional tape backups.

Data is securely sent from the local NAS device to high availability, redundant off-site co-location facilities. All aspects of the on-site and off-site solution are monitored 24X7 by EAPEN's NOC. This solution allows the SMB organization the ability to continue to function even after a disastrous event without the need to deploy redundant hardware and software and the need for them to invest in costly fault tolerant systems.

This solution allows a solid, more frequent backup and a well thought out recovery strategy that is the primary component of a Business Continuity Plan.

The NAS device can be configured to backup multiple Windows 2000 and Windows 2003 Servers and their volumes or logical drives. There are no file or folder level exclusions because a snapshot of the entire volume is taken at the block level or the actual 1's and 0's on the hard drive. In order to take advantage of the standby server function the operating system drive must be selected. Additionally, the data backup can be scheduled to run during selected times and days of the week.

Base Image
The base image is the first backup that occurs on the server, which is a complete image of the volumes intended for backup. The base image serves as a starting point for all incremental backups. The incrementals collapse into the base image when a restoration is performed providing you with a complete image of the server from the selected point in time.

Incremental Forever Methodology
The Incremental Forever Methodology is similar to Incremental Backups where each Incremental performs a backup of all changes since the last backup.  Where this technology differs is that only one full backup or base image is required.  This greatly reduces the time it takes to perform backups as each Incremental takes only seconds to complete.

The Incremental Backups are the changes on the hard drive since the last backup. For example, the first Incremental will be all of the changes since the Base Image and the second Incremental will be all of the changes since the first Incremental. There are 96 incrementals in a 24 hour period if the backup frequency is set to every 15 minutes.

Synthetic Incrementals
As the Incrementals are taken, they are collapsed into what we call Synthetic Incrementals. For example, imagine two Incremental backups with the first backup taken at 10:15am and a second taken at 10:30am. When the collapsing process occurs the 10:15am backup is collapsed into the 10:30am backup leaving a single backup as of 10:30am. This is what we call Synthetic Incremental.

Please bear in mind that the frequency of off-site back ups is limited by the amount of available bandwidth at the customer site. Limited bandwidth will result in longer transmission periods which means back ups may only be done hourly or daily depending on the available internet bandwidth.

The Daily Synthetic Incrementals are created at the end of the day or 24 hour period when all of the 15 minute Incrementals are collapsed leaving you with a single recovery point for that day.  The Synthetic Incrementals result in a complete archiving solution as each Daily SI is collapsed to create a Weekly SI, each Weekly SI is collapsed into a Monthly SI and finally each Monthly SI is collapsed into a Yearly SI. When a recovery from a specific month or a year is needed we simply collapse the selected Monthly Incremental into the Base Image leaving you with a complete image of the server for the selected month. The entire collapsing process takes less than a minute to complete.

Recovery Options
Recovering files and folders is a simple process where the entire server is mounted as a volume on the NAS device. The files can then be copied to the destination server over the network.  We also have utilities to restore files, folders, Exchange mailboxes or messages and SQL tables and databases.

Virtualization (Physical to Virtual) - Standby Server Functionality
The NAS device is capable of virtualizing failed servers while keeping the exact system state previous to the failure. This means there are no configurations necessary as the server retains the same IP address and application state.  Once virtualized, the server will resume the same backup schedule previous to the failure. The EAPEN Engineers will perform this work at no additional cost.

Bare Metal Restore (Virtual to Physical)
When it comes time to restore the Virtualized Server back to physical hardware our Bare Metal Restore process allows restorations to dissimilar hardware. Once the server image is loaded on the new server we can manipulate the Hardware Abstraction Layer by inserting new drivers for the new hardware. The EAPEN Engineers will perform this work at no additional cost.

Monitoring and Management
EAPEN's total BDR Solution is monitored and managed 24x7 by our NOC Team. It takes about One hour to set up a new, NAS.  If an issue occurs during any backup or with the hardware we are immediately notified and take corrective action. Not only do we monitor the entire solution - Servers, NAS and Remote Storage facilities, but we also manage it by performing restorations and virtualization of servers as needed.