White Paper - e-Continuity: The New Imperative

> Fibre channel technology, which makes it pos-
sible to rapidly transmit large volumes of data
over distances
> Disaster-tolerant clustering, which uses redun-
dant infrastructure in geographically dispersed
locations to greatly reduce the risk and duration
of any potential service outage
> Zero latency solutions that make enterprise
data instantaneously available across the
widest range of platforms, networks, devices,
and applications
In turn, these technologies enable techniques
that enhance continuity, such as SAN storage,
electronic vaulting, load balancing, remote data
mirroring, distributed content solutions, and
forward recovery of a database to the point of
failure. In the next two to five years, wireless and
GPS (Global Positioning System) technology will
add new tools to the continuity arsenal. For
example, smart, mobile devices — such as a
courier delivery truck that has broken down
on the highway — will be able to announce
their location, request service assistance, and
specify what parts are required to restore
normal operation.
III. A framework for achieving e-Continuity
Today, the cost of a continuity solution rises
steeply as an application progresses from 99%
availability (about 3.5 days of downtime a year)
to 99.999% (5 minutes of downtime). According
to Forrester Research,“A 99.999% available
[e-commerce] site can easily run up more than
$6.9 million in capital costs and $2.9 million in
operations.”
9
Given the fact that it is not yet
feasible or affordable to ensure 24 x 365 continu-
ity for an organization’s entire business operations,
companies need a systematic way to evaluate
their continuity needs and prioritize their continu-
ity investments.
In the past, that responsibility rested with the IT
organization, which tended to be infrastructure ori-
ented and ungrounded in the underlying business
dynamics of the enterprise. Disaster recovery and
business continuity services were engaged, almost
as an afterthought, during the rollout of a new
application or business process. In today’s demand-
ing environment, businesses need to take a more
comprehensive and proactive approach to continuity,
addressing business strategy and risk management,
IT architecture, infrastructure and operations, part-
ner relationships, and emerging technologies.
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Because continuity is a business issue that affects
revenue, customer loyalty, and brand image, the
commitment to continuity must begin with sen-
ior management. This is especially important for
organizations that promise 24 x 365 service as
part of their value proposition.
Perhaps surprisingly, such commitment may
require education, advocacy, and a continuity
champion at the executive level. IDC notes
that “many enterprises are not fully aware of
the consequences of an interruption to their
business and in fact do not have adequate
protection against interruptions.” For example,
the firm estimates that 90% of European
enterprises with global revenues in excess of
5
9
Forrester Research, Is Nonstop Enough? February 2000.
Process/Application Continuation: External
Process/Application Continuation: Internal
Operational Recovery
Infrastructure and Data Protection
Asset Protection and Replacement
Planning and Consulting
Continuity
Recovery
Protection
24 x 7 e-Business
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Business continuity strategies need to address all aspects of the IT infrastructure,
from basic asset protection and replacement to ensuring application continuity
for internal operations and third parties.