Business Continuity Support and Service for

Altaro VM Backup Solutions: Hyper-V and VMware Virtual Server Backup
Altaro VM Backup is designed to provide small and mid-size businesses with a reliable and affordable solution for backing up and restoring Hyper-V and VMware-based virtual machines (VMs). Altaro VM Backup can be used for local, offsite, multi-site, and cloud-based environments and also supports cost-effective cloud backup to a Microsoft Azure Block Blob storage account. Top features include industry-leading Augmented Inline Deduplication to reduce backup storage requirements, Continuous Data Protection (CDP) with backup intervals as low as five minutes for reducing your exposure to data loss, military-grade encryption, granular restore options for entire virtual machines or for individual files and emails, extensive support for Windows Server Cluster Shared Volumes (CSV) and VMware vCenter, and the ability to leverage Microsoft Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) technology to back up live virtual machines without downtime.

Progent is a certified Altaro partner and can provide a broad range of services to help you plan, deploy, optimize and troubleshoot a backup/restore solution based on the Altaro VM Backup platform. Progent also offers ProSight Data Protection Services managed backup to provide end-to-end monitoring and management of your backup ecosystem. Progent's Hyper-V consultants and VMware experts can help you design and manage virtual machine deployments that utilize on-premises or offsite VMs or that use a hybrid architecture that incorporates both local and cloud-based resources. In addition, Progent offers business continuity/disaster recovery (BCDR) planning consulting to help smaller organizations prepare for potentially catastrophic threats to business-critical data such as ransomware, human error, hardware failure and natural disasters.

Key Features of Altaro VM Backup
Altaro VM Backup is designed to handle the backup/restore requirements of most small businesses and combines simplicity of operation with a rich feature set that includes capabilities typically found only in enterprise-grade platforms. Altaro protects the most widely used versions of Hyper-V and VMware and supports popular backup media:

Altaro VM Backup includes powerful features in three crucial areas of data protection: backup/replication, restoration/disaster recovery, plus management and reporting.

Backup and Replication
Altaro VM Backup offers fast, efficient, and secure backup for data protection and archiving plus offsite replication for disaster recovery. Major backup and replication features include:

• Augmented Inline Deduplication: Inline variable block size deduplication sends only changed data to the backup device or site, conserving bandwidth, reducing storage requirements, and improving performance.
• Continuous Data Protection (CDP): Rather than run daily backups, you can reduce backup intervals to as short as five minutes to lower your Recovery Point Objective (RPO).
• Concurrency: You can back up multiple virtual machines simultaneously, which makes it possible to conduct backup operations during shorter off-hour time windows when more bandwidth is available and network performance is less critical.
• Live/Hot Backup: Integration with Microsoft Volume Shadow Copy Service allows you to back up virtual machines without incurring downtime.
• Cluster Shared Volumes & VMware vCenter: The ability to back up virtual machines running in a Hyper-V Failover Cluster (with or without cluster shared volumes) or in a VMware vCenter environment supports larger deployments.
• Offsite Replication: To facilitate disaster recovery, you can set up the Altaro Offsite Server tool on an external server for storing a copy of your backups at a different location.
• Flexible Scheduling and Retention Policies: You can set different backup schedules and retention policies for individual VMs.
  
  Backup scheduling and retention options for Altaro are easy to configure, review and update

• Application Consistent Backups: Altaro VM Backup can use Microsoft Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) and all VSS Writers running inside the protected VM when making a backup. Applications like Microsoft SQL and Exchange will be aware the backup has happened and automatically run the relevant maintenance tasks such as truncating transaction logs.
• Military-Grade Encryption: Prior to saving your data to a backup device, you have the option of encrypting it using 256-Bit AES Encryption.
• Virtual Disk Exclude: You can select which Virtual Disks to include or exclude in your VM backups.
• Grandfather-Father-Son Archiving (GFS): In addition to your continuous and daily backups, you can set up a special backup schedule to create and archive a new backup version every week, month and year.
• Cloud Backup to Azure: Altaro supports backup to an Azure Block Blob storage account, which is the most affordable storage option available on the Azure cloud.

Restore and Disaster Recovery
Altaro VM Backup includes a rich set of tools for point-in-time granular recovery of VMs and files that have been periodically backed up and need to be restored for any reason. In a disaster recovery scenario, Altaro has tools for quickly restoring an entire site from the latest replicated version stored offsite.

• Restore as Clone: You can restore a VM backup to a new location with a new name, allowing the cloned VM to run side by side with the original VM. This avoids the need to overwrite live VMs.
• Restore to Different Host: You can restore a VM backup to a different host. The VM will be restored to a new location on the new host and will be given a new name.
• Boot from Backup: You can instantly boot any VM version directly from the backup location either for verification purposes or to achieve a significant reduction in RTO (Recovery Time Objectives) in a disaster recovery scenario.
• File Level Restore: You can quickly restore individual files and folders from any VM backup.
• Microsoft Exchange Item Level Restore: You can restore individual emails from within the Exchange Mailbox database.
  
  Altaro VM Backup allows you to restore individual emails from an Exchange Mailbox

• Restore Different Versions: You can restore from multiple points in time rather than being limited to the latest backup
• Sandbox Restores and Verification: This features lets you schedule or manually launch test drills to confirm the integrity of your backup data. You can verify backup folders without attaching the VM to your Hyper-V or VMware Host, or you can run a complete test restore to a clone and ensure that the restored VM can boot.
• Backup Health Monitor: Backup storage integrity can be monitored proactively and repaired automatically as part of the next backup process.

How Progent Can Help You Benefit from Altaro VM Backup
Progent's Microsoft-certified Windows Server Hyper-V consultants and VMware-certified vSphere and vCenter consultants can help you plan, deploy and manage a backup/restore solution based on Altaro VM Backup. Progent's Exchange consultants can help you integrate Altaro VM Backup with your Exchange environment, and Progent's Azure hybrid cloud consulting specialists can show you how to use your Azure Block Blob storage account with Altaro to protect your VM backups. Progent's Business Continuity consultants can show you how Altaro VM Backup's replication features and offsite backup capability can help safeguard your mission-critical data and enable you to resume your core services quickly in case of a catastrophic event. Progent's GIAC-certified information assurance consultants can assess the security profile of your backup solution and can help you deploy the latest tools and follow industry best practices for operating safely in the modern threat landscape.

Additional Fault Tolerant Solutions Offered by Progent's Consultants
Progent's Microsoft and Cisco support professionals can help you to design a sensible, high-availability system that addresses key problems covering a wide array of networking solutions and processes such as:

Workplace Recovery Planning
Progent's disaster recovery planning professionals can help you create a workplace recovery strategy that will allow you to restore network functionality in case of an information network catastrophe. Progent can assist you to develop a comprehensive disaster recovery strategy that incorporates scheduled disaster recovery evaluations and testing. Progent's Microsoft and Cisco-authorized engineers can also show you how to build an affordable, high-availability network solution that addresses reliability issues covering a wide array of network technologies and processes. To read more, go to Business Continuity Consulting and Support Services.

Fully Managed Cloud Backup: ProSight Data Protection Services
ProSight Data Protection Services offer small and medium-sized organizations a low cost end-to-end service for secure backup/disaster recovery. For a fixed monthly rate, ProSight DPS automates your backup activities and allows rapid restoration of critical data, applications and virtual machines that have become lost or damaged as a result of component breakdowns, software bugs, natural disasters, human mistakes, or malware attacks like ransomware. ProSight Data Protection Services can help you protect, recover and restore files, folders, applications, system images, plus Hyper-V and VMware images/. Critical data can be protected on the cloud, to an on-promises device, or mirrored to both. Progent's BDR consultants can provide advanced expertise to configure ProSight Data Protection Services to be compliant with regulatory standards like HIPPA, FIRPA, and PCI and, when needed, can assist you to recover your critical data. Find out more about ProSight Data Protection Services Managed Cloud Backup and Recovery.

Microsoft Server 2016 Disaster Recovery
Progent's Windows Server 2016 disaster recovery/business continuity experts can help your organization to plan and deploy a disaster recovery solution built around Microsoft's cloud-tested Failover Clustering tools including Cluster OS Rolling Upgrade for non-disruptive migration to Windows Server 2016, Storage Replica for zero-data-loss recovery, Storage Spaces Direct for high-performance network-attached storage using low-cost equipment, VM Load Balancing for improving the performance and fault-tolerance of Failover Clusters while reducing capital investment and management overhead, and Cloud Witness for fast, economical deployment of a stretch cluster quorum arbitration point. For details, see Windows Server 2016 Disaster Recovery Expertise.

Windows Server 2012 Failover Clusters
Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 introduced enterprise-class fault tolerance and system recovery to Microsoft's failover clustering solution. Windows Server 2012 R2 adds to this foundation and delivers important enhancements offering more expandability, better disk storage availability for server applications, simpler administration, quicker automatic failover, and more flexibility for designing clusters. To find out more, visit Windows Server 2012 R2 Failover Clustering Integration.

VMware Site Recovery Manager (SRM) Disaster Recovery Solutions
VMware's Site Recovery Manager (SRM) is a component of VMware vCenter that allows you to orchestrate, automate and test a consistent runbook for restoring applications and services rapidly after an outage. Site Recovery Manager supports centrally managed and automated disaster recovery, application mobility, and transparent site migration, failback and re-protect. Site Recovery Manager also supports non-disruptive testing for site recovery, updates and fixes and can generate audit reports to verify full service recovery, validate SLAs and demonstrate compliance. Progent can provide the support of a VCDX certified VMware SRM consulting expert to help you to design, deploy, test and maintain a disaster recovery solution powered by VMware SRM.

NetApp MetroCluster High Availability and Disaster Recovery Software
NetApp MetroCluster is a high-availability and disaster recovery platform that uses failover storage clustering along with replication to deliver rapid, zero data loss disaster recovery between sites located up to 300km away from one another. Progent offers the skills of a NetApp MetroCluster consultant who can help you to plan, configure, manage, update, test and troubleshoot a disaster recovery system built around NetApp MetroCluster. Progent can assist you to choose an architecture for your MetroCluster deployment that aligns with your technical requirements and IT budget. Progent can ensure you adhere to best practices for configuring your MetroCluster solution by providing guidance with procedures such as assigning shelf IDs, determining aggregate layout, setting up volumes, setting up NetApp Snapshot, provisioning Cisco and Brocade switches, implementing a tiebreaker mechanism, setting up a TCP/IP configuration replication network, and verifying your MetroCluster DR solution to verify adherence with industry standards and regulatory requirements.

High Availability Load Balancing
Progent offers high availability load balancing support that addresses network load balancing, load balanced applications, LAN/WAN infrastructure routing, and content dispatching products including F5 Networks 3DNS. Non-stop load balancing products for which Progent can provide consulting services include Microsoft Windows Server 2003 and 2008 Network Load Balancing Manager, Citrix Metaframe and Presentation Server, Cisco CSS, Cisco Content Engine and ACNS, and F5 Networks BIG-IP. For details, visit Fault Tolerant Load Balancing.

Zero Downtime Internet Data Centers
Progent's Data Center engineers can help you identify high availability data centers that meet the particular needs of your business. Fault tolerant colocation sites are particularly attractive to small and mid-size organizations due to of their affordability and convenience compared to taking a do-it-yourself approach. Trying to create an on-site data center that offers even a basic level of fault tolerance is financially prohibitive for the majority of small businesses. Progent can help you reap all the advantages of high-availability colo centers by offering a complete array of engineering and maintenance services. For details, see Fault Tolerant Colocation Consulting.

Fault Tolerant Inter-office Connectivity
Progent’s interoffice connection professionals can help companies achieve non-stop interoffice connectivity solutions via fully redundant networks featuring transparent failover. Progent’s Cisco-premier CCIE engineers can plan and deploy high-availability Inter-office connections based on fault tolerant EIGRP network routers or non-stop OSPF configurations of Cisco routers. Progent can show you how redundant connectivity and automatic fail-over can provide economical 24x7 interoffice connectivity. For details, go to Fault Tolerant Inter-office Networking.

24x7 Internet Access
Progent's Cisco-authorized IT engineers can show you how to build an economical, high availability Internet configuration solution that can achieve non-stop Internet access via a broad array of high availability Internet network solutions including fault tolerant BGP, transparent fail-over, and redundant ISPs. Progent can provide CCIE professionals to show you how to utilize the most up-to-date techniques for fault tolerant Internet connectivity to implement a cost-effective, fully redundant Internet interface with automatic failover and other capabilities to create non-stop Internet availability. For more information, visit Fault Tolerant Internet Connectivity Solutions.

Backup and Recovery Solutions Consulting
Progent can provide affordable remote support from engineers with expertise in a wide range of utilities and services that deliver solutions for backing up Windows, Apple Mac, and Linux servers and desktops plus laptops and handhelds. Progent offers consulting support for all major data protection platforms such as Acronis, Backup Exec, BackupAssist Software, CrashPlan PRO, Double-Take, MozyPro, Retrospect, Time Machine, VMware Data Recovery (VDR), and FLARs. Progent can assist your company to deploy, upgrade, or maintain backup solutions for a range of environments including on-premises, remote, cloud-based, or hybrid. For more information, see Backup and Restore Solutions Consulting and Support Services.

Microsoft System Center Data Protection Manager (SCDPM) Backup and Recovery Consulting
Progent's certified System Center Data Protection Manager engineers can help you to develop an effective workplace recovery strategy, design a cost-effective high-availability IT infrastructure, install a System Center Data Protection Manager-powered backup and recovery solution, comprehensively test your DPM system, train your administrative personnel or local service providers how to manage System Center Data Protection Manager, or provide complete IT outsourcing including off-site housing of SCDPM servers in Progent's data center facility. To find out more, see System Center Data Protection Manager Consulting.

Barracuda Backup Cloud and Offsite Backup and Disaster Recovery
Barracuda Backup is a low-cost, subscription backup/restore platform for small and medium-size organizations. A Barracuda Backup deployment can incorporate a purpose-built hardware storage device manufactured by Barracuda or a software-based appliance with similar functionality but which utilizes your existing storage hardware. Barracuda Backup protects critical business data generated on-premises, at one or more remote locations, or in the cloud. For disaster recovery, you can replicate data to the Barracuda Cloud, to Amazon AWS, or to any site with a Barracuda appliance. Progent is a certified Barracuda partner and Progent's Barracuda Backup consultants offer a wide range of consulting support services to assist you to plan, integrate, manage and repair a backup and disaster recovery system based on Barracuda technology. For details, see Barracuda Backup and disaster recovery consulting and management.

Consulting for Double-Take Software for Data Backup/Restore
Double-Take Software publishes a selection of tools intended to provide small and midsize companies a range of affordable alternatives for replicating and recovering business-critical workloads such as Microsoft Exchange Server, SQL, RIM Blackberry, and Microsoft Office SharePoint. Progent’s disaster recovery planning experts have extensive experience integrating Double-Take technology into small business information networks to create a high level of availability and disaster recovery readiness at a budget-friendly price. For details, see Consulting Services Double-Take Software for Backup.

CRISC-Premier Network Risk Control
The CRISC program was initiated by ISACA to validate a consultant's ability to design, implement, and maintain information system control mechanisms to reduce risk. Progent can provide the expertise of a CRISC-certified consultant to assist you to create and execute a workplace continuity or disaster recovery plan that follows leading practices promoted by CRISC and geared to align with your organization's risk appetite, business goals, and budgetary guidelines. To learn more, see CRISC-Certified IT risk management experts.

Why Pick Progent for Disaster Recovery/Business Continuity Planning?
Because Progent is a Microsoft Partner and provides professional application support for a wide range of business applications, Progent is able to assist customers to find complete information technology solutions that substantially enhance the business value of your network. As a Registered Partner with Cisco, Progent can provide the services of certified engineers and specialists with experience in designing, implementing and maintaining infrastructure solutions based on Cisco technology. The depth of Progent's technical experience and Progent's appreciation for the requirements of small and midsize companies make Progent the ideal partner for creating and running a cost-effective, high-availability information system.

How to Get in Touch with Progent's Experts for Business Continuity Planning Support
If you wish to contact Progent about consulting support for business continuity planning, call 1-800-993-9400 or refer to Contact Progent.