What is Data Replication?

Data replication is the process of sharing information across a computer network so as to ensure consistency between redundant resources. It is the long-distance version of mirroring.

Why do you need remote data replication?

The reasons to implement a remote data replication scheme are these:

• Data recovery
• Maintenance
• Backup

Disaster recovery is the primary reason for remote replication. Any enterprise is vulnerable to unplanned disruptions. Reliance on complex supply chains, for example, can cause even a small interruption to bring an organization’s operations to a halt, as can a disaster a state or a continent away. A single local event such as a fire, theft, severe weather, computer virus, or human error can be catastrophic, wiping out years of data and crippling an organization’s ability to function effectively.

Once a disaster recovery solution is in place, an IT department can use the infrastructure to maintain email or other servers by moving their operation to the remote replication site. Patches, upgrades, and repairs to hardware or software and building maintenance are possible with minimal downtime – the time to bring the remote server online. Remote replication can also allow your organization to remain online while moving a data center.

What are the difficulties?

Data replication used to be very expensive with limited options available – mainly large, monolithic storage systems. Today, there are a variety of options. An IT manager needs to consider these concerns when deciding on a replication system:

• Daily data amount, which determines network bandwidth needed
• Available network bandwidth between locations
• Distance between locations, which determines whether to use synchronous or asynchronous replication
• Type of operating systems and how many servers are involved
• Whether clustering is in use; if so, the remote location must be within synchronous replication distance
• Availability of storage, servers, and floor space at the remote site
• Budget

How can we help?

Overland Storage’s REO SERIES® Disk Backup and Recovery Appliances solve the challenges of remote data replication by providing fast, reliable data backup and recovery. The REO SERIES provides:

• Flexibility of configuration as a virtual tape library, standalone virtual tape drive, and/or disk volumes (LUN).
• Compatibility with all popular open systems or Windows-based backup software, physical tape drives or tape libraries and easy connections to Ethernet (iSCSI) or Fibre Channel networks for seamless integration into existing backup environments.
• Fast, reliable disk backup and recovery operations when configured as virtual tape, where data is written sequentially and in large blocks.
• Patented (pending) Dynamic Virtual Tape technology that automatically sizes virtual tape cartridges to match the capacity of the backup operation.
• Virtual tape library (VTL) provides user-definable virtual tape library drives, cartridges, and partitions.
• REO® Protection OS™ embeds data protection intelligence to deliver a core set of volume and device virtualization, management and connectivity features.

Overland Storage sets the standards for automated tape backup with our full range of tape libraries and autoloaders. The NEO SERIES® libraries deliver field-tested solutions, flexible configurations, and features such as redundant robotics, tape drives, power supplies, controller cards and interfaces so that no single failure can disable the entire library. ARCvault™ is Overland's new family of tape automation solutions that makes low-cost tape backup and archive a reality for businesses of all sizes.

Combine the ULTAMUS® RAID nearline storage arrays with the NEO SERIES libraries and ARCvault libraries, in addition to our REO SERIES disk-based backup and recovery appliances, for a complete disk-to-disk-to-tape solution.

Overland Storage products are designed to secure your data with business continuity solutions, combining data backup hardware with data protection software.

Get more information

Overland Storage products solve remote data replication challenges by providing fast, reliable data backup and recovery. Request Product Information or Contact a Product Specialist