(Note: Microsoft has terminated support for Windows Server 2003 and it is advisable to consider upgrading from this legacy OS to an up-to-date version of Windows Server. If your organization is considering moving up to Windows Server 2019 or Windows Server 2016, Progent can provide online and onsite Windows Server 2019 planning and configuration consulting services or Windows Server 2016 disaster recovery consulting to ensure your project finishes on time and within budget. In addition, Progent's Windows Server Failover Clustering Consultants can help you a configure and troubleshoot a high-availability clustering solution based on Microsoft's latest technology.
Even with typical fault tolerant feature found in high-end server hardware, such as redundant power supplies and mirrored or RAID 5 disk arrays, failed devices must be identified and replacement components must be procured and installed. These failures can bring down a server for hours, if not days. Furthermore, during regularly scheduled software maintenance functions, servers need to be rebooted or brought off-line for an extended period. For customers who need 100% uptime, the only solution is to deploy a clustered server configuration that provides fully redundant servers for a single application.
A server cluster is a group of independent computers that work together to provide a common set of services. Windows 2003 provides this high-availability solution with the Cluster service. If a cluster node (a computer in a cluster) fails, other nodes in the cluster assume the functions of the failed node. Server clustering is an essential piece of any fault-tolerant architecture, and making large investments in communication infrastructure redundancy without providing for server redundancy defeats the value of that investment.
Progent offers Windows 2003 Server consulting to help your company implement clustered server configurations that can potentially provide 100% uptime, even for normal maintenance functions. This high-availability is possible because a single server in a cluster can be brought off-line for maintenance work without affecting users. Clustering also allows IT personal to perform critical security updates during regular business hours without reducing user productivity.
Microsoft Windows 2003 Server offers mature clustering technology. This is the third major release of Microsoft clustering technology, which was first released in 1997. Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition, and Windows Server 2003, Datacenter Edition, present a single view of the server to users, applications, and the network and both versions of Windows Server 2003 support up to eight-node clusters. Failover clustering configurations can be built around Microsoft technologies for mission-critical and collaborative applications such as Microsoft Exchange, Microsoft SQL Server file and print services.
Host Clustering with Microsoft Virtual Server
Virtual Server host clustering is a technique for enhancing the capability of Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 with the server cluster support incorporated in Microsoft Windows Server 2003. By means of Virtual Server host clustering, your network can benefit from an array of services via a minimum number of actual hardware servers and, simultaneously, ensure the high availability of the provided services. In case one server requires scheduled or unscheduled downtime, another server can immediately take its place and begin supporting services. As a result, your clients experience minimal service disruption. Progent's Microsoft-certified network engineers have in-depth experience deploying and supporting Microsoft Virtual Server. For more information, refer to Consulting Services for Microsoft Virtual Server.
Server Clustering and Storage Area Networks
A storage area network (SAN) is a set of disks, tapes, and servers connected to a common infrastructure, or storage fabric, such as Fibre Channel. A SAN allows multiple servers to access a common pool of storage. This allows storage to be assigned dynamically from the pool whenever it is required. Storage on a given server can be increased or decreased as needed without complex reconfiguring or re-cabling of devices. SAN technology is a good way to build clusters where shared access to a data set is required. By deploying multiple clusters onto a single storage area network, all of the benefits of SAN technology can be brought to the cluster environment. Progent's Microsoft certified engineers can show you how to combine Microsoft's server cluster technology with storage area networking to make your network more fault tolerant and easier to manage.
Server Clustering with Microsoft Exchange
Messaging systems based on Microsoft Exchange are vital for many businesses. Unfortunately, this crucial function is vulnerable to component failure, power loss, operator errors, and natural disasters. By allowing the failover of resources, server clustering provides fault tolerance for an Exchange environment. Server clusters that use the Microsoft Cluster Service can maintain data integrity and provide failover support and high availability for mission-critical applications and services on your back-end servers, including messaging systems, databases, and file and print services.
This figure shows an example of a four-node Exchange cluster with three active nodes and a passive standby node:
Progent's Microsoft-certified Exchange experts have proven, world-class skills in designing high-availability Exchange environments and can show you how to configure an Exchange Server cluster with shared data access to data and automatic failover capabilities. For details about Exchange consulting services available from Progent, visit Microsoft Exchange Consulting Support.
Non-stop Technologies Provided by Progent's Experts
Progent's Microsoft and Cisco-certified consultants can help you to implement a sensible, non-stop network that resolves major issues encompassing a broad range of networking solutions and processes such as:
Workplace Recovery Planning
Progent's disaster recovery planning professionals can show you how to create a disaster recovery strategy so you can restore IT functionality in the event of an information network disaster. Progent can assist you to develop a comprehensive disaster recovery plan that incorporates scheduled disaster recovery assessments and drills. Progent's Microsoft and Cisco-authorized consultants can also help you build an affordable, high-availability system architecture that addresses availability issues involving a broad array of network technologies and processes. For more information, go to Workplace Recovery Consulting Services.
CRISC-Premier IT Risk Control
The Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control (CRISC) certification program was established by ISACA to verify an IT professional's skills to design, implement, and maintain IS control mechanisms to reduce network risk. Progent can provide the services of a CRISC-certified engineer to assist your company to develop and carry out a workplace continuity or disaster recovery plan based on industry best practices identified by CRISC and crafted to align with your organization's risk appetite, business goals, and IT budget. To read more, see CRISC-Premier network risk control specialists.
Microsoft Windows Server 2019 Fault-tolerant Failover Clustering
Microsoft Windows Server 2019 introduced important improvements in scale, performance, management, cybersecurity, app compatibility, Linux co-existence, Kubernetes networking, and hybrid combinations of local and cloud assets. Top enhancements of Windows Server 2019 include Windows Admin Center for unifying the management of hybrid on-premises/cloud-hosted deployments, System Insights for utilizing modern predictive analytics to control local environments, Windows Defender ATP Exploit Guard for host-intrusion defense, container orchestration with Kubernetes, Cluster Sets technology for deploying and administering large high-availability scale-out clusters, and Storage Migration Service for streamlining the migration from legacy editions of Windows Server. For more information, see Microsoft Server 2019 High Availability Failover Clustering Expertise.
Windows Server 2016 Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity
Progent's Windows Server 2016 disaster recovery consultants can help you to design a disaster recovery system based on Microsoft's latest Failover Clustering technologies such as Cluster OS Rolling Upgrade for non-intrusive migration to Windows Server 2016, Storage Replica for crash-consistent Recovery Point Objective (RPO), Storage Spaces Direct for high-performance storage clusters using industry-standard equipment, Virtual Machine Load Balancing for enhancing the speed and fault-tolerance of Failover Clusters while minimizing capital investment and management overhead, and Cloud Witness for easy, affordable creation of a failover cluster quorum witness. To learn more, go to Microsoft Server 2016 Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity Expertise.
VMware Site Recovery Manager (SRM) Disaster Recovery Solutions
VMware's Site Recovery Manager is a component of VMware vCenter that lets you specify, automate and test a repeatable workflow for recovering applications and services quickly after an outage. Site Recovery Manager provides centrally managed and automated recovery, application mobility, plus non-disruptive site relocation, failback and re-protect. Site Recovery Manager also supports non-intrusive testing for site recovery, upgrades and fixes and can generate reports to confirm full service restoration, validate SLAs and demonstrate disaster recovery compliance. Progent offers the skills of a VCDX certified VMware Site Recovery Manager consultant to help your organization to design, configure, test and maintain a disaster recovery solution based on VMware SRM.
NetApp MetroCluster Disaster Recovery Technology
NetApp MetroCluster is a disaster recovery platform that uses array-based storage clustering with replication to provide fast, zero data loss disaster recovery between sites located up to 185 miles (300km) away from one another. Progent offers online or on-premises access to a certified NetApp MetroCluster expert who can assist your business to plan, configure, administer, upgrade, test and troubleshoot a disaster recovery solution built around NetApp MetroCluster. Progent can help you to choose an architecture for your MetroCluster environment that meets your functional requirements and budget. Progent can make sure you adhere to best practices for installing your MetroCluster environment by delivering guidance with procedures like assigning disk pools and shelf IDs, arranging aggregate and plexes layout, provisioning FlexVol volumes, setting up NetApp Snapshot, installing Cisco and Brocade switches, designing a tiebreaker mechanism, setting up a TCP/IP configuration replication network between your peered clusters, and testing your MetroCluster DR solution to show compliance with industry standards and regulatory requirements.
Network Load Balancing
Progent offers fault tolerant load balancing support that addresses network load balancing, load balanced programs, network infrastructure routing, and content dispatching technology including Cisco Content Engine. High availability load balancing solutions for which Progent offers consulting services include Microsoft Windows Server 2003 and 2008 Network Load Balancing Manager, Citrix Metaframe and Presentation Server, Cisco Content Services Switch, Cisco Content Distribution Manager and Cisco CDN Software, and F5 Networks 3-DNS. For details, visit High Availability Load Balancing.
Non-stop Data Centers
Progent's Data Center consultants can show you how to find fault-tolerant data centers that meet the particular requirements of your business. High availability colocation sites are especially appealing to small and mid-size organizations because of their low cost and convenience in comparison to taking a do-it-yourself strategy. Attempting to create an on-site data center with even a basic level of fault tolerance is too expensive for typical small companies. Progent is ready to help you reap all the benefits of non-stop Internet data centers by offering a complete range of consulting and maintenance services. To learn more, visit Fault Tolerant Colocation Consulting.
High-Availability Interoffice Connectivity
Progent's branch office connection professionals can help organizations achieve fault tolerant multi-site connections through redundant networks with transparent failover. Progent's Cisco-certified CCIE engineers can plan and deploy fault-tolerant Inter-office connections supported by non-stop EIGRP network routers or non-stop OSPF deployment of Cisco routers. Progent can demonstrate how multi-path connections and automatic fail-over can provide affordable non-stop interoffice networking. To find out more, go to High-Availability Inter-office Connectivity.
Non-stop Internet Connections
Progent's Cisco-authorized IT consultants can help you build an affordable, fault tolerant Internet configuration architecture that can deliver non-stop Internet connectivity via a wide range of fault tolerant Internet network solutions including non-stop BGP, transparent fail-over, and redundant Internet Service Providers. Progent can provide Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert consultants to show you how to apply the most up-to-date techniques for high availability Internet connectivity to implement an economical, fully redundant Internet interface with automatic failover and other capabilities to deliver non-stop Internet availability. To find out more, visit 24x7 Internet Access Architecture.
Backup and Recovery Solutions Consultants
Progent offers affordable remote access to engineers skilled in a broad range of utilities and technologies that provide solutions for backing up Microsoft Windows, Mac, and Linux/UNIX physical and virtual servers and workstations as well as notebooks and smartphones. Progent can provide help for leading backup products including Acronis Backup and Recovery, Backup Exec, BackupAssist Software, CrashPlan PRO, Double-Take Backup, MozyPro, Retrospect, Apple Time Machine, VMware Data Recovery (VDR), and FLARs. Progent can assist your company to deploy, upgrade, or maintain backup/restore solutions for a range of architectures such as local, edge to datacenter, cloud-based, or a mix. To read more, go to Backup and Recovery Solutions Expertise.
System Center Data Protection Manager Data Recovery Consultants
Progent's certified System Center Data Protection Manager (SCDPM) support professionals can assist you to develop a practical business continuity strategy, design a cost-effective fault-tolerante IT architecture, install a Microsoft System Center Data Protection Manager-powered backup and recovery system, comprehensively validate your system, train your administrative staff or regular service providers how to manage System Center Data Protection Manager, or provide complete information technology outsourcing services such as remote hosting of SCDPM servers in Progent's world-class data center. For more information, visit System Center Data Protection Manager Expertise.
Barracuda Backup Cloud and Offsite Backup and Disaster Recovery
Barracuda Backup is an affordable, subscription-based backup/restore platform for small and medium-size businesses. A Barracuda Backup solution can incorporate a custom-designed hardware storage device manufactured by Barracuda or a virtual appliance with similar functionality but which utilizes your existing storage infrastructure. Barracuda Backup safeguards critical business data generated on-premises, at one or multiple remote locations, or in the cloud. For disaster protection, you can replicate data to the Barracuda Cloud, to Amazon Web Services (AWS), or to any location with a physical or virtual Barracuda Backup appliance. Progent is a certified Barracuda partner and Progent's Barracuda Backup consultants offer a wide array of consulting services to assist you to plan, integrate, operate and troubleshoot a backup and disaster recovery solution built on Barracuda technology. For details, visit Barracuda Backup and disaster recovery consulting.
ProSight DPS Altaro VM Backup Solutions for Backup and Disaster Recovery
Hornetsecurity's Altaro VM Backup provides small and mid-size organizations a reliable and affordable platform for backing up and recovering Hyper-V and VMware-based virtual machines (VMs). Altaro VM Backup can be deployed in on-premises, remote, distributed, and cloud architectures and also supports cost-effective cloud backup to Azure storage. Altaro VM Backup supports high-end features such as Immutable Cloud Storage for an extra layer of recoverability from ransomware. Progent is a certified Altaro partner and can provide a broad range of online or onsite consulting services to assist you to plan, install, manage and troubleshoot a modern backup and disaster recovery system based on Altaro VM Backup software. With ProSight Data Protection Services Altaro VM Backup, Progent offers a fully managed backup/restore service based on Altaro VM Backup software. For details, see Altaro VM Backup consulting.
ProSight Data Protection Services 365 Total Backup Services for Microsoft 365
Microsoft 365 provides simple archiving but does not include native support for crucial data protection capabilities like Exchange backups or greater than 30-day point-in-time data recovery for OneDrive for Business or SharePoint Online. Hornetsecurity's 365 Total Backup (previously branded Altaro O365 Backup) provides a full-featured BDR solution for programmable backup and rapid recovery of all your organization's M365 mail, Microsoft Teams Chats, SharePoint sites, OneDrive for Business files, and content on Windows endpoints. Progent is a certified Hornetsecurity/Altaro partner and has designed ProSight Data Protection Services (DPS) 365 Total Backup to deliver end-to-end managed services for Hornetsecurity's 365 Total Backup suite. ProSight Data Protection Services 365 Total Backup delivers a low-cost backup-as-a-service (BaaS) alternative that defends M365 components against data loss resulting from user or software error, malicious corruption, and cyber attacks like ransomware. To learn more, visit ProSight Data Protection Services 365 Total Backup services for Microsoft 365.
Managed Cloud Backup: ProSight Data Protection Services ECHO
ProSight Data Protection Services ECHO offer small and medium-sized organizations an affordable end-to-end service for reliable backup/disaster recovery (BDR). Available at a low monthly cost, ProSight Data Protection Services ECHO automates your backup activities and allow fast restoration of vital data, applications and VMs that have become lost or damaged due to component breakdowns, software bugs, disasters, human error, or malicious attacks such as ransomware. ProSight Data Protection Services ECHO can help you protect, retrieve and restore files, folders, applications, system images, as well as Microsoft Hyper-V and VMware images. Important data can be backed up on the cloud, to a local device, or mirrored to both. Progent's cloud backup specialists can provide world-class expertise to configure ProSight DPS ECHO to be compliant with government and industry regulatory standards like HIPAA, FINRA, PCI and Safe Harbor and, whenever needed, can help you to recover your business-critical information. Read more about ProSight DPS ECHO managed backup and recovery.
ProSight DPS 360 Backup Solutions
Progent can help you to design, implement and troubleshoot a backup plan built around MSP360 software. MSP360 enables file or image-based backup/recovery for VMs and physical machines, supports all popular public clouds, and allows you to build a data protection solution with a low Recovery Time Objective and a granular Recovery Point Objective. With ProSight Data Protection Services 360 Backup, Progent offers comprehensive monitoring and remote management of your backup environment to protect against data loss caused by user miscues, system errors, malicious users, and malware assaults like ransomware. To read more, see ProSight DPS 360 Backup services.
Consulting for Double-Take Solutions for Backup/Restore
Double-Take offers a family of products designed to deliver small businesses a range of cost-effective solutions for backing up and restoring vital workloads such as Exchange, SQL, Blackberry, and Microsoft Office SharePoint. Progent's disaster recovery planning experts have extensive backgrounds integrating Double-Take products into small company information networks to create a high level of fault tolerance and disaster recovery capability at a budget-friendly price. To learn more, see Consulting for Double-Take Solutions for Backup.
Why Pick Progent for Disaster Recovery/Business Continuity Planning Solutions?
Because Progent is a Microsoft Partner and provides high-level application support for a wide range of small business applications, Progent can help customers to arrive at complete information technology solutions that maximize the productivity of your IT network. As a Registered Partner for Cisco, Progent can provide the expertise of premier consultants and specialists with experience in architecting, deploying and troubleshooting infrastructure environments based on Cisco products. The depth of Progent's technical experience and Progent's sensitivity to the needs of small and midsize companies make Progent the perfect partner for building and maintaining an affordable, high-availability network.
How You Can Access Progent's Consultants for Support for High Availability IT Systems
In order to ask Progent about technical expertise for non-stop infrastructure, call