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Main Sever & Mirror Server

  • 25-08-2006 7:31am
    #1
    godtabh
    Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 23,243 Mod ✭✭✭✭


    Is there a process or system where buy you can have a "main" server doing you genearl file sharing and printing with a "mirror" server which is an exact copy running in the background so that if "main" server crahes or fails that the "mirror" server kicks in seemlessly?

    I want to swap an exisitng sever (i.e just the "strage") to a new rig with better specs but the company that wants is doing it said that we would have 3 days down time which we couldnt afford to do and thought this might be a better way.

    Have googled it but cant find the answer I'm looking for


Comments

  • #2
    Kali
    Closed Accounts Posts: 6,601 ✭✭✭Kali


    The simple answer is to do the work over a weekend.

    If its just shares that you want mirrored then something like DFS (distributed file system) should do the job between two Windows 2000/2003 servers... if its applications and processes as well then I'd look into making a ghost image of the source server (which does mean downtime) and then using the above (or rsync).


  • #3
    Tom Dunne
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 23,212 ✭✭✭✭Tom Dunne


    A Windows clustered pair would do the trick.

    Briefly, two machines, A and B and a shared set of disks. A and B have their own IP addresses along with a cluster IP address, C. All clients connect via C and don't really care if they are talking to A or B, as long as they can get to their files/apps.

    If A is taken down, B steps in and because the clients are connecting via C, they shouldn't notice anything (apart from a brief pause while B is becoming the active node).


  • #4
    godtabh
    Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 23,243 Mod ✭✭✭✭godtabh


    The company that is doing the upgrade told us it would take 3-4 days to complete. They also said they were uncertain if there engineers would work sundays as we are based in Dublin and them Wexford.

    The last time somethnig like this was done we were with out a server for a day and a bit. I wasnt around then but I was told we were crippled and I just trying to figure out if this can be avoided full stop


  • #5
    SwampThing
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 944 ✭✭✭SwampThing


    Downtime can't be avoided if you don't have some high availability solution already in place.

    If you want to implement a cluster, like tom suggests, you're going to have downtime no matter what. Even if you build a new cluster now in parallel to the existing server(s) and you manage it well enought, you'll have to reconfigure clients to connect to a new cluster - that's the minimum downtime. You'd still have to migrate files, folders, shares etc. etc.

    But I'm guessing you've already spent your money on a new rig, so I think you've missed your opportunity this time round.


  • #6
    godtabh
    Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 23,243 Mod ✭✭✭✭godtabh


    We havent bought anything yet. Thats why I'm looking at the different options in order to minimise down time


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  • #7
    WizZard
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,762 ✭✭✭WizZard


    What services/applications need to be in place?


  • #8
    petes
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,382 ✭✭✭petes


    Can you use a different company to do the upgrade? Preferably closer so that Sundays could be worked.


  • #9
    godtabh
    Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 23,243 Mod ✭✭✭✭godtabh


    We have a sister office which is based in Wateford and an agreement with this company so that the service and supply both offices.

    Alot of out programes are networked based. Then you have the usually acesse to printers and jobs


  • #10
    mickoneill30
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 3,073 ✭✭✭mickoneill30


    I'm missing why it needs 3 days of downtime.


    On your prod server do a full backup on Friday. It might take a day or two.
    On Monday restore that full backup to your new server. It might take a day to restore.
    On Monday or Tuesday night do an incremental backup of your prod server. Take it off line. Restore this to your new server. Now the files on both prod and new are the same. Total downtime = the time it takes you to restore that incremental backup and swap the server name or DNS name or whatever.

    It gets more complicated if you've got DB servers or apps that lock files open but it still shouldn't be rocket science.

    As for your printers you can setup the shares for those on your new server at any time.


  • #11
    aFlabbyPanda
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,985 ✭✭✭aFlabbyPanda


    take a look at a product called Double Take (http://www.sunbelt-software.co.uk/). We just rolled it out for a customer as they wanted to add redundancy to their existing DC and exchange servers without any downtime.

    So far its worked a treat during testing. It recreates the shares, dns, ip details of the failed server on the new one. might be what your after.


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