Is it really SCR vs. Double-Take?
[blogger's note: Yeah, I phoned it in this week due to the holiday =) This is a duplicate to my blogging at the Double-Take Software official site (doubletakesoftware.wordpress.com). More original content will be coming soon.]
With the release of Exchange 2007 SP1, Microsoft finally released the long-awaited server to server log shipping systems for the Exchange platform. Standby Continuous Replication (SCR) – or Server Continuous Replication, depending on who you ask – is the idea that log files can be transmitted to another Exchange 2007 server, where they are played into a copy of the databases from the production system. That allows you to perform database portability in the event of a loss of the production server, and resume services as quickly as possible with little lost email. This technology is an extension of the Cluster Continuous Replication (CCR) and Local Continuous Replication (LCR) tech that was included in the RTM release.
So, one would think that Microsoft appears to be squeezing out 3rd party Disaster Recovery (DR) tool players, but nothing could be further than the truth. SCR is an incredible tool, but as with all the other tools included for free with Exchange, it has its limits. First is the restriction to one Store per Storage Group. This generally isn’t a true limitation for most organizations, as you can have up to 50 Storage Groups, but if you were already planning out your Exchange 2007 implementation and were planning on more than one Store per Group, you will have to change that configuration without the help of a 3rd party tool like Double-Take (see disclaimer at the bottom of the page).
Also, SCR contains no methodology for restoration and failback of the data and users. There are manual ways to use the SCR tools to accomplish this, but not in a bandwidth and time-effective manner. I wouldn’t go so far as to call this a shortcoming of SCR, as the tool was designed more for DR and not for immediately switching users back and forth, but it is a bit of a hindrance in an overall Business Recovery Plan, and does nothing to get you closer to Dynamic Infrastructure.
3rd party solutions like Double-Take can open up even more options when it comes to DR protection for Exchange Server 2007 - and all other supported versions as well. As a matter of fact, that may be the best case for the use of 3rd party tools; SCR only protects 2007 mailbox databases. If you are in a hybrid environment or have heavy reliance on Public Folders and don’t wish to rely on Public Folder replication, you will be unable to use SCR as a sole method of High Availability for non-clustered Exchange environments.
All said, SCR is a huge step forward for Microsoft, but in many environments it may still need a little help to meet robust DR goals.
With the release of Exchange 2007 SP1, Microsoft finally released the long-awaited server to server log shipping systems for the Exchange platform. Standby Continuous Replication (SCR) – or Server Continuous Replication, depending on who you ask – is the idea that log files can be transmitted to another Exchange 2007 server, where they are played into a copy of the databases from the production system. That allows you to perform database portability in the event of a loss of the production server, and resume services as quickly as possible with little lost email. This technology is an extension of the Cluster Continuous Replication (CCR) and Local Continuous Replication (LCR) tech that was included in the RTM release.
So, one would think that Microsoft appears to be squeezing out 3rd party Disaster Recovery (DR) tool players, but nothing could be further than the truth. SCR is an incredible tool, but as with all the other tools included for free with Exchange, it has its limits. First is the restriction to one Store per Storage Group. This generally isn’t a true limitation for most organizations, as you can have up to 50 Storage Groups, but if you were already planning out your Exchange 2007 implementation and were planning on more than one Store per Group, you will have to change that configuration without the help of a 3rd party tool like Double-Take (see disclaimer at the bottom of the page).
Also, SCR contains no methodology for restoration and failback of the data and users. There are manual ways to use the SCR tools to accomplish this, but not in a bandwidth and time-effective manner. I wouldn’t go so far as to call this a shortcoming of SCR, as the tool was designed more for DR and not for immediately switching users back and forth, but it is a bit of a hindrance in an overall Business Recovery Plan, and does nothing to get you closer to Dynamic Infrastructure.
3rd party solutions like Double-Take can open up even more options when it comes to DR protection for Exchange Server 2007 - and all other supported versions as well. As a matter of fact, that may be the best case for the use of 3rd party tools; SCR only protects 2007 mailbox databases. If you are in a hybrid environment or have heavy reliance on Public Folders and don’t wish to rely on Public Folder replication, you will be unable to use SCR as a sole method of High Availability for non-clustered Exchange environments.
All said, SCR is a huge step forward for Microsoft, but in many environments it may still need a little help to meet robust DR goals.
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