What Is Business Continuity Planning?

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It’s not just your data, it’s your business

Business Continuity is all about reducing the impact of a catastrophic data loss. Sure, you can restore individual files, but the ability to restore an entire server or the environment in the cloud in minutes, so you can reduce the impact of a catastrophic loss – that’s where the real value is.

WheelHouse Solutions has two levels of business continuity. Both share similar benefits such as local and cloud storage of your backup images and the ability to recreate your environment, in the cloud, in case of a catastrophic disaster. Our premium level business continuity solution utilizes a local appliance that allows for the quickest possible recovery time, for when seconds count.

How Does the Backup and Disaster Recovery (BDR) Appliance Work?

  • The BDR software periodically creates image-based backups of the backed-up server at pre-configured intervals (Usually every 15 minutes)
    The backup images are automatically backed up locally to the on-site BDR appliance.
    The backup images are then transferred automatically to the WheelHouse Solutions Storage Cloud.

Accidental File Deletion

In addition to full images, it can recover individual files, folders, and Exchange items (emails, attachments, mailboxes) in moments.

Server Hardware Failure

The on-site BDR appliance is leveraged for on-site virtualization of the impacted servers which allows restoring full operation to the business within minutes.

Catastrophic Fire or Flood

Multiple recovery options exist. One such option is the WheelHouse Solutions Continuity Cloud which allows servers to be virtualized, in WheelHouse Solutions’ cloud, for continued business operations even in the face of total disasters.

WheelHouse Solutions provides Business Continuity Planning to all types of businesses. We invite you to click here or call us at 314-492-2506 to request additional information about our Business Continuity Planning services. We’ll work with you to develop a solution that will meet your needs now, as well as provide for future growth and flexibility.

Move Your SQL to the Cloud With Microsoft Azure SQL

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Move Your SQL to the Cloud With Microsoft Azure SQL When anyone refers to Azure SQL, they’re actually referring to SQL in the cloud. There are three main deployment options when it comes to Azure SQL.

The first type is an Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) solution which consists of SQL server running on an Azure Virtual Machine. Azure will manage the infrastructure and the host, while the customer manages the OS and the SQL server instance.

This is a good option for customers with expiring hardware contracts, or older versions of SQL 2008 R2. It’s an option that allows the customer to select the version of SQL that they need on the OS that they want. By moving to an Azure Virtual Machine, you also get free, automatic security updates, and can set up automated backups, as well as have point-in-time restore.

The second option is Azure SQL Server Managed Instance, which moves one more level towards a Platform as a Service (PaaS) offering. Azure manages the infrastructure and the OS, while the customer manages the server. Azure SQL Managed Instance is a step further towards cloud migration. Its main benefit is to remove management overhead regarding infrastructure, Server, and Database. Also, this benefits customers that have a need for instant scope features like service broker, SQL server agent, Machine Learning, and CLR.

One of the key features of Managed Instance is getting a SQL server instance with the full feature set, but with additional PaaS managed capabilities. Online Migration allows you to do a fairly seamless migration from your on-premise environment by using backup and restore and log shipping technology.

The Third offering is Azure SQL Database, wherein Azure manages the infrastructure, the OS and the SQL server and the customer is responsible for administration of the database. Azure SQL Database is built to develop modern cloud apps and Software as a Service applications. It can help customers quickly and easily scale their computing capabilities and storage. With Azure managing the SQL server, customers can focus on database management, using features like elastic pools, which lets you manage groups of shared databases. Hyper scaling can provide the maximum size and performance for large scale applications. Serverless computing also lets you pause SQL server and pay only for usage. It provides the most flexibility out of the managed service capabilities, allowing it to easily interact with other Azure managed services.

With Microsoft Azure SQL, you get a unified experience across your entire SQL portfolio and a full range of deployment options, from edge to cloud. Intelligent and secure Azure SQL database services make it easy to:

  • Migrate your SQL workloads with SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines.
  • Modernize your existing applications with Azure SQL Managed Instance.
  • Support modern cloud applications with Azure SQL Database.
  • Use your existing SQL skills in the cloud on the same SQL Server engine.
  • Keep making the most of your current license investments.

If you would like more information on Microsoft Azure SQL, fill out the form on this page and one of our Microsoft Azure specialists will get back with you to discuss your options and how Microsoft Azure SQL can enhance your business operations and improve your bottom line.