Tips to Implement DRaaS Strategy

Comport Consulting Corporation shared strategies they have been deploying with their ComportSecure, DR as a Service (DRaaS) solution.

Companies using DRaaS can expect lower downtimes during outages. Just as important, DRaaS solutions also provide a paper trail of successful recovery efforts to investors, auditors and stakeholders. See below for a quick list of best practices for DRaaS:

Ensure interdepartmental cooperation
All decision makers should be in on the decision to implement DRaaS. This will ensure that you get the resources that you need to not only implement the solution but continue your company’s operations. Experts have found via survey that many companies are too confident of their in-house security and disaster operations. Do not allow the DRaaS implementation process gets derailed because of unproven confidence or a hidden agendas to save money.

Assess your recovery needs
Different companies require different levels of DRaaS – there is no one size fits all solution. Also, different levels of your company may require different tiers of security. Organize your company into recovery tiers based on the level of urgency. Define the level of recovery that each tier will need before investing in a solution that may be overkill for your organization. Understand what your RPO’s and RTO’s are so you can find a company to meet them.

Plan for non local problems
Plan to have HA on premise technology alongside your DRaaS plan. This will help to ensure continuous service during an event. In order to cover the widest range of disruptions, make sure the two initiatives are working in tandem with each other. Plan for multiple simultaneous problems. When problems occur, Murphy’s Law is in full effect (“everything that can go wrong, will go wrong”). The interconnectivity of today’s digital architecture virtually ensures that no problem will be able to quarantine itself on its own. Many companies believe that environmental disasters will be the cause of most downtime. In reality, environmental disasters are among the lowest causes of downtime. The highest levels of downtime are caused by multiple problems that originate within the digital structure of a company. Do not waste your time investing in a structure to protect against physical issues if you have not protected your virtual infrastructure as well.

Test your solution on a regular basis
Once you have your DRaaS in place, it should be tested at least two times per year, according to experts. Run worst case scenarios. Make sure to test for situations when your IT team is unavailable. Do not test the same scenario every time. Finally, run a manual backup every time you test to ensure you keep all records. The right DRaaS provider will do this for you automatically.