Introduction to NonStop Operations Management

Contingency Planning
Introduction to NonStop Operations Management–125507
10-13
Determining Which Type of Backup Site Best Meets
Your Needs
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.
If the site is already occupied, your
company might 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 10-1. Backup-Site Alternatives: Advantages and Disadvantages (page 2 of 2)
Backup Site Advantages Disadvantages