Disaster Recovery to a different site

Question

Hello everyone,

Sorry if I am asking a question that may have been answered already. I searched the Forum and did not find what I was looking for. Here is the scanerio:

Site_A has a Networker server running with 5 Networker clients. Data has been saved to tape along with the bootstrap of Site_A backup server. These (3) LTO3 tapes have been sent to Site_B to test the Disaster Recovery process. The business wants to simulate a disaster and document how long will it take to get the backup server along with the 5 clients up and running at Site_B. The servers at Site_A are in production so I cannot use the same names and IPs in Site_B. In Site_B, I would have to create a backup server with a different name and IP address. Also, the 5 clients would have to be restored to different named servers.

I was thinking about building a backup server at Site_B and then using the scanner command to scan all the client indexes. This will take a very long time for 5 clients. Also, this process is not really testing the DR process. The real process would be be build a backup server, build the Bootstrap of the backup server, build the client indexes and then restore clients. I looked through the 7.6 DR guide and was lost as it is not the best technical guide out there.

Again, Site_A is still in production, DR at Site_B will have to use new server names and IPs.

Has someone gone through this process or have it documented somewhere? I would really appreciate the assistance.

Thanks.

Jumbo1 · Answer

Hi Bill,

You are correct the Prodcution site can see the DR site. Licensing is not an issue as I have licenses for both sites. As far as setting up a separate LAN, that would be nice and isolated. But, the DR site needs to be accessed from our network so that that Management in the Production site (Site_A) can verify that servers can be accessed at the DR site (Site_B).

Thanks for the feedback.

masonb · Answer

Jumbo,

I assume the Production site can also see the DR site - is this correct? If so your tests would also have to consider the licensing as if your using same licenses on two different servers and they see each other both will stop running the software.

It would be easiest given the number of servers your talking about to set up separate in the SR site with small network hub linking the clients and NWS together which is separate from Corporate LAN and then use local hosts files for name resolution. This if course would mean you have to attend the DR site for the duration but is a lot simpler and should give you good timings.

Regards,

Bill Mason

masonb · Answer

Jumbo,

It's unusual a Customer would by two sets of licenses one for Prod and one for DR - are you sure the enabler codes are different for each site and that you have not been given two authorisation codes for the different hostid's for the NetWorker servers from each site?

Regards,

Bill Mason

Jumbo1 · Answer

Hi Bill,

I support 12 Networker servers across the US and EMEA. All my servers are licenses including the (2) DR servers in my environment. I have in Virginia and one in Illinois, where I am testing the DR process.

networker___ · Answer

I would set everything up on a separate network, get everything installed, restored and tested. Then it's a much easier task to change the IP address on the 5 clients and attach them to the production network.

Your still going to have some issues depending on the app's that are installed on the 5 clients. At least this will separate Networker troubleshooting from client issues.

mridul_singh · Answer

I would sugegst the following, considering that both the sites can see each other.

We need to ensure that, both the networker servers are having the same client id and so does the clients. Make a note of the client id for the backup server and all the clients in the production site

1. Set up the DR site, with the new name for the NetWorker server and all the clients.

2. Install the Networker server, and then change the client id of the networker server, to the client of the production server.

(This will requuire renaming of the networker server on the DR site. Please refer to the article which talks about how to move the networker server.

3. Copy the res and mm from the production server to DR site.

4. With the NetWorker services stopped delete the base enabler, to avoid any licensing conflict

5. After, starting NW services, you will have to delete the existing devices and create the new devices as required.

6. Delete the clients with the old names from the production site

7. create the new clients on the DR site using the new name and the old client id from the prod site.

eg: for A_prod with client id 123 create B_prod with client id 123

Do the same for all the clients.

8. Copy and replace the indexes from production to DR site

9. Do a nsrck and nsrim

NetWorker

Disaster Recovery to a different site

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