Windows Server 2016 Datacenter Edition includes significant enhancements to Failover Clustering, a key technology that supports disaster recovery (DR) and high availability by allowing you to combine multiple servers to form a fault-tolerant cluster on physical hardware or in virtual machines. A major enhancement is Storage Replica, Microsoft's first native solution for zero-data-loss disaster recovery, Storage Replica allows organizations to configure separate sites within a metro area to mirror data with crash-consistent volumes in order to ensure full data recovery in the event of a site outage. Windows Server 2016 includes a number of other important new and enhanced features for Failover Clusters, offering significant benefits in areas including availability and fault tolerance, Hyper-V virtualization, storage and infrastructure costs, ease of deployment, manageability, security, scale, performance, hybrid cloud support, health monitoring and audit reporting.
Windows Server 2016 is a cloud-tested platform that takes technology proven in Microsoft's vast Azure public cloud, including Azure's software-defined data plane, and makes it available for on premises deployments. As hybrid networks have become the norm, the migration of cloud technology to private data centers has made enterprise-class disaster recovery solutions practical for organizations of virtually any size.
Progent's team of disaster recovery consultants and certified Windows Server experts have the knowledge and experience to help you plan, deploy, test, maintain and troubleshoot a disaster recovery solution based on Windows Server 2016 that aligns with your business goals and IT budget. Progent's information assurance experts can help you prove compliance with regulatory requirements for disaster recovery, and Progent's business continuity consultants can help you integrate your disaster recovery strategy into a broader plan to keep your business operating at an acceptable level in the event of a predictable widespread catastrophe. By showing you practical and affordable ways to deploy Windows Server 2016 to improve your Recovery Point Objective (RPO) and Recovery Time Objective (RTO), Progent can help ensure that your investment in current disaster recovery and clustering technology adds maximum business value to your information network.
Windows Server 2016 Storage Replica
The headline disaster recovery feature of Windows Server 2016 is Storage Replica, Microsoft's first foray into zero-data-loss DR. Storage Replica allows you to mirror data between sites located within metro distances by using synchronous replication over a low-latency (5 ms or better round trip) TCP/IP or RDMA network using an SMB3 transport. If a protected site (also called a source or primary site) suffers a complete shutdown, you can switch quickly to the recovery site (also called destination or secondary site) without losing any data written to disk storage. Storage Replica can also be used for disaster avoidance, where users are seamlessly switched over to a recovery site in expectation of an imminent catastrophe such as a flood, wildfire or hurricane. For sites separated by longer distances or otherwise subject to higher latencies, Storage Replica supports an asynchronous replication mode that provides minimal data loss.
Storage Replica uses block-level replication between clusters or servers. This means that protected applications write data to at least two locations before the completion of any write operation. Because Storage Replica operates below the file level, it avoids the restrictions of technologies like DFS Replication, which requires that files be closed before replication and is subject to issues like files locks and open handles. Progent can help you upgrade from low-end disaster recovery solutions like DFS Replication to a zero-data-loss DR solution based on Windows Server 2016 Storage Replica.
For higher latency networks that span longer distances, Storage Replica supports asynchronous replication. Since Storage Replica asynchronous replication is continuous, not checkpoint based, the amount of data at risk of being lost is far lower than DR solutions based on snapshots. In addition, Storage Replica works at the partition layer, so it replicates all Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) snapshots, allowing application-consistent data snapshots for point-in-time recovery.
Topologies supported by Storage Replica include stretch clusters, cluster-to-cluster, and server-to-server. These configurations can run on physical hardware or VMs based on Hyper-V, VMware, Citrix XenServer, or other leading virtualization platforms. Stretch cluster configurations allow you to orchestrate and automate the failover process for workloads like Hyper-V private cloud clusters and SQL Server Failover Cluster Instance (FCI) and can be managed with Failover Cluster Manager. Storage Replica with stretched clusters can use Storage Spaces, SAN, iSCSI, and RAID through persistent reservation and can be run with two or more nodes.
The cluster-to-cluster configuration utilizes uses two distinct clusters and allows administrators to control the failover process manually. This topology is suited for environments where the secondary site set up solely for disaster recovery rather than as an active data center. With a cluster-to-cluster configuration, Storage Replica supports the cost-saving Storage Spaces feature of Windows Server 2016 and can be run with four or more nodes.
If your hardware does not support clustering, you can run Storage Replica in a server-to-server configuration. In this case the failover process must be performed manually. This can be a cost-effective DR solution between branch offices and data centers, and with asynchronous replication can support significantly better RPO than can be achieved with DFS Replication.
Progent can help you determine which Storage Replica topology makes the most sense for you business and can also help you plan, deploy, manage and troubleshoot your Storage Replica solution. For other zero-data-loss disaster recovery platforms supported by Progent, see VMware Site Recovery Manager consulting and NetApp MetroCluster disaster recovery consulting.
Additional Features of Windows Server 2016 for Failover Clustering
Important new and enhanced features of Windows Server 2016 include:
When you create volumes from the storage pool, Storage Spaces Direct automatically generates a virtual disk and takes care of partitioning, formatting, and adding it to your Failover Cluster so it can be accessed by any node as a CSV. These shared volumes can tolerate drive, server, or component failures with uninterrupted availability, and you can replace failed hardware without downtime or complex management intervention. Performance can exceed 150,000 mixed random IOPS per server thanks to an integrated read/write cache and support for NVMe drives mounted directly on the PCIe bus. Storage Spaces Direct automatically utilizes the fastest storage available, such as SSDs, for its always-on cache.
System Center 2016 Virtual Machine Manager supports two models for configuring and managing Storage Spaces Direct clusters. In a converged deployment, also called disaggregated, compute and storage resources run on different clusters. This provides administrators with the flexibility to scale compute resources independently from storage and is suitable for enterprises with larger environments and the skills to manage complex deployments. With a hyper-converged deployment model, Hyper-V compute and storage share the same cluster. This model, which minimizes hardware costs and is easier to configure and manage, is appropriate for smaller organizations or branch offices.
Health Service can automate workflows in the disk retirement/replacement cycle by reporting a failed disk, copying data from the retired disk to the remaining disks to restore full resiliency, indicating a failed disk by blinking its disk or slot indicator light, verifying a replacement disk against a Supported Components Document, and substituting the replacement disk into the storage pool previously occupied by the retired disk.
Cluster Operating System Rolling Upgrade utilizes a new mixed-OS mode that allows nodes with different host operating system versions to run within the same cluster. This allows you to pause, drain, evict, and reformat any node in the cluster, install Windows Server 2016 on the node, and bring the node back online. The Failover Cluster continues operating during this procedure as it would during any node outage. You can then use Failover Cluster Manager or PowerShell to add the upgraded node back into the cluster. All nodes operate at the older Windows Server 2012 R2 functional level until every node in the cluster has been upgraded. When all nodes have been migrated to Windows Server 2016, the entire cluster can be upgraded at once to the new functionality level with a single PowerShell cmdlet.
Progent can guide you through the Cluster Operating System Rolling Upgrade process following best practices, help you load balance the upgraded cluster, and show you how to take advantage of the new features provided by Windows Server 2016.
Progent's information assurance consultants can help you achieve and prove compliance with regulatory and industry data security requirement such as SOX, ISO 27001, PCI DSS 3.2 and FedRAMP by showing you how to configure the powerful new security tools available with Windows Server 2016 including Windows Containers, Shielded Virtual Machines, Credential Guard, Remote Credential Guard and Just In Time (JIT) Privileged Access Management. (For a description of these security enhancements, see Windows Server 2016 integration consulting.)
Progent's information assurance consultants can help you deploy new security feature like Windows and Hyper-V Containers, Shielded Virtual Machines, Credential Guard, Remote Credential Guard and Just In Time (JIT) Privileged Access Management to make it easier for you to comply with regulatory and industry data security requirement such as SOX, ISO 27001, PCI DSS 3.2, and FedRAMP. Progent's roster of Cisco CCIE-certified network infrastructure consultants is one of the largest of any independent IT services firm in the U.S., and Progent can help you design, deploy and manage a hybrid network ecosystem that fully delivers the high-availability and disaster recovery capabilities of Windows Server 2016. To streamline the management of your Windows Server 2016 Failover Clusters, Progent can provide expertise with PowerShell scripting, Failover Cluster Manager, Hyper-V Manager, System Center 2016 migration, System Center 2016 Operations Manager (SCOM 2016) integration and Virtual Machine Manager 2016 (VVM 2016) hybrid cloud management consulting.
To help you protect critical Microsoft workloads with Windows Server 2016's disaster recovery solutions, Progent offers services that include Exchange 2016 integration consulting, SQL Server 2016 consulting, and SharePoint development and integration. For hybrid environments that use public cloud services, Progent offers Office 365 Exchange Online consulting, Amazon AWS integration, and Google Cloud integration consulting.
Progent's Online Consulting and Troubleshooting Expertise
Progent is a pioneer in delivering online consulting and troubleshooting expertise and has provided remote solutions to organizations in every state in the U.S. (See Progent's Customer Testimonials.) Progent also offers onsite consulting services in major metropolitan areas across the United States and parts of Canada. Progent can provide as-needed guidance to help you resolve occasional technical issues or full project management outsourcing or co-sourcing services to make sure your Windows Server 2016 initiative is successfully completed on time and within budget.
If you need immediate online help from a Progent consultant, visit Progent's Online Technical Response Center.
Contact Progent for Windows Server 2016 Expertise
For more information about Progent's consulting and troubleshooting support for Windows Server 2016, call
Zero-Downtime Technologies Provided by Progent's Consultants
Progent's Microsoft and Cisco consulting experts can help your business to build an efficient, fault-tolerant environment that addresses key challenges covering a broad array of networking solutions and operations such as:
Business Continuity Planning
Progent's disaster recovery consultants can show you how to design a disaster recovery plan so you can restore network functionality in the event of an information system disaster. Progent can help you to define a complete disaster recovery plan that includes scheduled disaster recovery evaluations and drills. Progent's Microsoft and Cisco-authorized engineers can also show you how to build an affordable, non-stop system architecture that addresses reliability issues involving a wide array of infrastructure technologies and processes. For more information, go to Business Continuity Expertise.
CRISC-Certified IT Risk Mitigation
The Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control (CRISC) certification program was initiated by ISACA in 2010 to verify an IT professional's ability to plan, implement, and support information system controls to mitigate risk. Progent can provide the services of a CRISC-certified consultant to help your company to develop and execute a workplace continuity plan that follows leading practices promoted by CRISC and crafted to align with your company's risk tolerance, business objectives, and IT budget. For details, visit CRISC-Certified IT risk control specialists.
Microsoft Server 2019 High Availability Failover Clustering
Microsoft Windows Server 2019 introduced significant enhancements in capacity, performance, management, security and compliance, app compatibility, Linux co-existence, Kubernetes networking, and hybrid combinations of on-premises and cloud-hosted assets. Headline enhancements of Microsoft Windows Server 2019 are Windows Admin Center for centralizing the management of hybrid local/cloud deployments, System Insights for utilizing modern predictive analytics to manage on-premises networks, Windows Defender ATP Exploit Guard for host-intrusion defense, container networking using Kubernetes, Cluster Sets for deploying and administering massive high-availability scale-out clusters, and Storage Migration Service for streamlining the upgrade process from legacy editions of Windows Server. For details, see Microsoft Server 2019 Fault-tolerant Failover Clustering Support.
VMware Site Recovery Manager (SRM) Disaster Recovery Solutions
VMware's Site Recovery Manager (SRM) is an extension to VMware vCenter that lets you define, automate and verify a repeatable process for recovering applications and services rapidly after a breakdown. Site Recovery Manager supports centrally controlled and automated recovery, application mobility, and non-disruptive site relocation, failback and site re-protect. Site Recovery Manager also supports non-disruptive testing for site recovery, upgrades and fixes and can generate reports to confirm complete service restoration, validate Service Level Agreements and demonstrate DR compliance. Progent offers the skills of a VCDX certified VMware SRM consultant to help your organization to plan, configure, test and manage a disaster recovery solution powered by VMware SRM.
NetApp MetroCluster High Availability and Disaster Recovery Technology
NetApp MetroCluster is a high-availability and disaster recovery platform that combines array-based storage clustering along with synchronous replication to deliver rapid, zero data loss disaster recovery (DR) between datacenters located up to 185 miles (300km) away from one another. Progent can provide the skills of a NetApp MetroCluster expert who can help you to design, deploy, administer, update, test and repair a disaster recovery solution based on NetApp MetroCluster. Progent can help you to select an architecture for your MetroCluster deployment that aligns with your technical requirements and IT budget. Progent can ensure you adhere to leading practices for configuring your MetroCluster solution by providing help with procedures like assigning disk pools, arranging plexes layout, setting up volumes, setting up Data ONTAP configuration replication service, installing switches, designing a tiebreaker mechanism, designing a TCP/IP configuration replication network, and testing your MetroCluster DR system to prove compliance with information assurance standards and government requirements.
Fault Tolerant Load Balancing
Progent offers fault tolerant load balancing consulting covering network load balancing, load balanced applications, LAN/WAN backbone routing, and content delivery technology such as F5 Networks 3DNS. Fault tolerant load balancing products for which Progent can provide consulting services include Windows 2003 and 2008 Server Network Load Balancing Manager, Citrix Access Suite and Access Gateway, Cisco Content Services Switch, Cisco Content Engine and Cisco CDN Software, and F5 Networks 3-DNS. To learn more, see High Availability Load Balancing.
High-Availability Internet Data Centers
Progent's Data Center engineers can help you identify high availability data centers that meet the particular requirements of your business. High availability Internet Data Centers are particularly appealing to small and mid-size organizations due to of their low cost and simplified logistics in comparison to taking a do-it-yourself approach. Attempting to build an on-site data center with even a basic level of fault tolerance is too costly for the majority of small companies. Progent is ready to help you get all the advantages of non-stop colo centers by offering a complete range of consulting and maintenance services. For more information, visit High-Availability Colocation Expertise.
24x7 Branch Office Connectivity
Progent's inter-site network infrastructure engineers can help companies create zero-downtime multi-site connectivity via fully redundant system architectures featuring automatic failover. Progent's Cisco-premier CCIE network engineers can design and deploy ultra-reliable Inter-office connections supported by fault tolerant EIGRP routers or zero-downtime OSPF deployment of Cisco routers. Progent can show you how redundant connections and transparent fail-over can provide economical 24x7 interoffice networking. To find out more, go to Failsafe Interoffice Connectivity.
High Availability Internet Access
Progent's Cisco-certified network consultants can show you how to create an affordable, fault tolerant Internet connection architecture that can achieve 24x7 Internet connectivity via a broad range of fault tolerant Internet access technologies including high availability BGP, transparent fail-over, and multiple Internet Service Providers. Progent offers CCIE professionals to help you apply the most advanced technology for high availability Internet connections to build an economical, fully redundant Internet interface with automatic failover and other features to deliver zero-downtime Internet connections. For details, visit High Availability Internet Access Architecture.
Backup and Restore Solutions Consultants
Progent offers affordable remote access to IT engineers with expertise in a broad array of products and services that deliver solutions for protecting Windows, Mac, and Linux/UNIX servers and desktops as well as notebooks and handhelds. Progent can provide expertise for all major data protection products such as Acronis, Symantec Backup Exec, BackupAssist Software, HP Data Protector, Double-Take, Mozy, Retrospect, Time Machine, vSphere Data Protection, and FLARs. Progent's consultants can assist your company to deploy, upgrade, or maintain data backup solutions for a range of architectures such as local, edge to datacenter, cloud, or hybrid. For details, see Backup and Restore Technology Consulting and Support Services.
System Center Data Protection Manager (SCDPM) Backup and Recovery Consultants
Progent's certified Microsoft SCDPM consultants can assist you to develop a practical disaster recovery plan, implement a cost-effective high-availability IT infrastructure, deploy a Microsoft SCDPM-based backup and restore solution, thoroughly validate your DPM system, train your administrative staff or local service providers how to manage Microsoft SCDPM, or provide extensive IT outsourcing services such as off-site housing of virtual or physical SCDPM machines in Progent's world-class data center facility. To read more, go to Microsoft SCDPM Consulting Services.
Barracuda Backup Local, Offsite and Cloud Data Backup and Disaster Recovery
Barracuda Backup is a low-cost, subscription-based backup/restore service for small and medium-size businesses. A Barracuda Backup deployment can incorporate a custom-designed hardware appliance built by Barracuda or a software-based appliance with similar features but which uses your existing storage infrastructure. Barracuda Backup protects critical company data produced on-premises, at one or multiple remote sites, or in the cloud. For disaster preparedness, you can replicate data to the Barracuda Cloud, to Amazon AWS, or to any site with a Barracuda appliance. Progent is a Barracuda partner and Progent's Barracuda Backup consulting experts offer a wide range of consulting services to assist you to plan, integrate, manage and repair a BDR solution built on Barracuda Backup. For more information, visit Barracuda Backup and disaster recovery consultants.
ProSight DPS Altaro VM Backup Software for Backup and Disaster Recovery
Altaro VM Backup software provides small organizations a reliable and budget-friendly platform for backing up and recovering Hyper-V and VMware-based virtual machines (VMs). Altaro VM Backup can be deployed in local, remote, distributed, and cloud-hosted architectures and also enables cost-effective cloud backup to Azure storage. Altaro VM Backup includes advanced features such as Immutable Cloud Storage for enhanced recoverability from ransomware. Progent is an Altaro partner and can provide a broad range of remote or onsite services to assist you to plan, install, optimize and troubleshoot a modern backup/restore solution powered by Altaro VM Backup software. With ProSight DPS Altaro VM Backup, Progent offers a managed backup/recovery service powered by on Altaro VM Backup software. To find out more, see Altaro VM Backup certified consultants.
ProSight DPS 365 Total Backup Solutions for Microsoft 365
Microsoft 365 provides rudimentary archiving but does not have integrated support for vital data protection capabilities such as Exchange backups or long-term point-in-time data recovery for OneDrive for Business or SharePoint. Hornetsecurity's 365 Total Backup provides a full-featured platform for automatic backup and rapid restoration of all your organization's M365 mail, Microsoft Teams Chats, SharePoint sites, OneDrive data, and content on Windows desktops and laptops. Progent is an authorized Hornetsecurity/Altaro partner and offers ProSight Data Protection Services 365 Total Backup to provide comprehensive managed services for Hornetsecurity's 365 Total Backup product. ProSight Data Protection Services 365 Total Backup delivers a budget-friendly backup-as-a-service solution that guards M365 apps against data loss or corruption resulting from human or software mistakes, malevolent corruption, and cyber attacks such as ransomware. To read more, visit ProSight DPS 365 Total Backup solutions for Microsoft 365.
Fully Managed Cloud Backup: ProSight Data Protection Services ECHO
ProSight Data Protection Services ECHO from Progent provide small and mid-sized organizations an affordable and fully managed solution for reliable backup/disaster recovery. Available at a fixed monthly rate, ProSight Data Protection Services ECHO automates your backup activities and enable rapid restoration of vital files, apps and virtual machines that have become unavailable or damaged as a result of component failures, software glitches, disasters, human mistakes, or malware attacks like ransomware. ProSight DPS ECHO can help you back up, retrieve and restore files, folders, applications, system images, plus Hyper-V and VMware virtual machine images. Critical data can be backed up on the cloud, to an on-promises device, or mirrored to both. Progent's cloud backup consultants can deliver advanced support to configure ProSight Data Protection Services ECHO to to comply with regulatory standards like HIPAA, FINRA, and PCI and, when necessary, can help you to recover your business-critical information. Find out more about ProSight DPS ECHO managed backup and recovery.
ProSight Data Protection Services 360 Backup Solutions
Progent can help you to create, implement and debug a backup/restore plan based on MSP360 software. MSP360 enables file/folder or image-based backup/recovery for VMs and physical computers, supports all popular public clouds, and allows businesses to create a data protection solution with a low Recovery Time Objective (RTO) and a granular Recovery Point Objective. With ProSight DPS 360 Backup, Progent can provide end-to-end monitoring and remote management of your backup environment to protect against data loss resulting from human mistakes, computer glitches, malicious users, and external assaults such as ransomware. For more information, visit ProSight DPS 360 Backup solutions.
Consulting Services Double-Take Solutions for Data Backup
Double-Take Software publishes a family of products designed to deliver small businesses a variety of cost-effective alternatives for replicating and recovering vital applications such as Microsoft Exchange Server, SQL Server, RIM Blackberry, and Microsoft Office SharePoint. Progent's business continuity planning experts have extensive backgrounds integrating Double-Take Software technology into small business information networks to create a high state of fault tolerance and disaster recovery capability at a budget-friendly cost. To read more, see Consulting for Double-Take Software for Data Backup.
Why Choose Progent for Disaster Recovery/Business Continuity Planning Solutions?
Because Progent is a Microsoft Certified Partner and provides high-level application consulting for a wide variety of small business software programs, Progent is able to help clients to arrive at complete information technology solutions that optimize the business value of your information system. As a Registered Partner for Cisco, Progent can provide the services of premier engineers and specialists with experience in architecting, installing and troubleshooting networking solutions built on Cisco technology. The extent of Progent's IT know-how and Progent's familiarity with the requirements of small companies make Progent the perfect partner for building and running an affordable, fault-tolerant information system.