Availability Guide for Problem Management

Planning for Disasters
Availability Guide for Problem Management–125509
8-12
Backup Site Alternatives
Mutual Backup Site May be least expensive way
to establish a backup site.
Requires less capital
investment.
Realistic recovery plan can
be tested.
During nondisaster periods,
site may be shared by
participants for development
work.
You do not have total control of
hardware and software, security issues,
system configuration and contractual
matters. Since the system
configuration is negotiated among
participants, the configuration might
not be ideal for any participant.
It might be difficult to find partners.
Each partner must keep more than 50
percent of the capacity in reserve to
ensure that enough backup capacity
remains for the other partners.
Third-Party Backup
Site
Provides faster turnaround
than a cold site.
Third parties have
experience in disaster
planning and can help you
develop an effective plan and
test your plan.
May be less expensive than
some of the other
alternatives.
Site choices are limited. It is difficult
to find fully compatible systems. It
might be difficult to run your
operations at a distance. The vendor
might be a source of management and
response problems.
It the site is already occupied, your
company may not be allowed to use it.
Time limits are imposed on usage.
You must transport supplies to the site.
Software and applications might have
to be downloaded to the third-party
site. You must perform frequent tests
to ensure compatibility of hardware
and applications.
Table 8-1. Backup Site Alternatives: Advantages and Disadvantages (page 2 of 2)
Backup Site Advantages Disadvantages