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Multiple Redundant
Application Servers
Live backup computers that take over when another computer fails
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The main computers that host your website can fail at any time. This
is a fact of life. Multiple identical copies of the backup computer run
together. When one fails, several others take over flawlessly. Your visitors
never see a computer fail.
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Multiple Redundant Load Balancers
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In the rare event that a load balancer itself may fail, there is a secondary
load balancer on standby.
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24/7 System Checking
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Special computer programs are setup to automatically check the health
of servers 60 times an hour on each service. If a failed server is detected,
an automatic repair routine is run to bring the server back online. In
the event that the server cannot be brought back, a technician is automatically
notified. Note that in the even of a failure other servers have taken
over the duties of the failed server and users will not notice a difference
in service.
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Secondary/Backup Mail Server
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In the event that a mail server fails, it will automatically be restarted.
In the meantime, a secondary mail server will automatically take over
duties of the primary mail server. The result is that users will never
see a failed mail server.
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Backup Database Server
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The database server where most of the information for the website is
stored has a backup. In the event that the primary database fails, the
backup database can take over the duties of the failed database server.
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Every 4 hour on-site backup
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Backups are made to other servers on-site every three hours to protect
important information.
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5 days per week off-site backup
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Backups are taken off-site 5 days per week to protect data in a catastrophe.
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RAID (multiple backup hard drives
within a server)
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RAID stands for “Redundant Array of Independent Drives” and means that
important information is stored on at least two hard drives simultaneously.
In the event of a drive failure, the surviving drive automatically takes
over the duties of the failed drive. The server operates as if the drive
never failed. A new drive is then swapped in and the data is automatically
rebuilt.
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Enterprise class hard drives
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All hard drives carrying important data are in RAID format and are also
stored on enterprise class drives. An enterprise class drive costs two
to four times that of a desktop class drive (i.e. the ones typically used
in offices and homes) but have much higher MTBF. MTBF stands for mean
time between failures and is a manufacturer rating that estimates the
average time between hard drive failures.
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Backup firewall
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In the event that the firewall fails, a backup firewall is ready to
take over the duties of the failed firewall.
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Backup file servers
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In the event that a file server fails, a backup file server is ready
to take over the duties of the failed file server.
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Redundant cooling
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Backup air conditioning systems take over in the event of a cooling
failure.
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Dedicated server facilities
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Chilled server room dedicated to housing servers
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Backup power
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All servers are protected with backup power units.
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Power generators
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For extended power outages, an on-site backup
power generator is available. |
