FEATURE
FEATURE
In South Africa, the Protection of Personal
Information PoPI Act, is adding to the
pressure to govern data as it drives data
compliance and availability. Companies
are required to have an effective disaster
recovery and business continuity plan in
place to safeguard data from loss, theft,
or compromise.
Complying with the Protection of
Personal Information, PoPI Act results in
a knock-on effect for business operations.
Companies must not only ensure that its
systems are up and running as quickly as
possible, but that its operational plans are
cognizant of how data, specifically that of
customers, is stored and recovered.
Gregg Petersen is Regional Director of Africa, Middle East, SAARC at Veeam;
Nabih Maroun is Executive Vice President at Booz Allen Hamilton MENA; Rosa Donno is Senior Associate
at Booz Allen Hamilton MENA; Claude Schuck is Regional manager for Africa at Veeam.
Veeam’s recently launched Microsoft
Azure appliance called Veeam PN, allows
end-users to connect various physical
networks and endpoints into one virtual,
dedicated-private company network,
bringing connectivity to workloads.
Veeam PN is a small Linux appliance
that can be easily installed directly from
the Azure Marketplace. It features an
intuitive web interface that simplifies
management, configuration and
monitoring. It also leverages OpenVPN
and SSL technologies, allowing an
administrator to implement Site-to-Site,
and Point-to-Site, connectivity scenarios.
One possible use case for Veeam PN
is when it is organised around the
network hub as the main point of all
endpoint communication. The network
hub could be installed in the Azure
cloud or on-premises. Assume that in
a small business the server managing
the SQL based POS applications
fails, paralysing the customer facing
operations around the POS terminals.
This is typically the worst-case scenario
when both customer service and day-
to-day sales transaction are directly
impacted. If the IT administrator
has backed up the SQL server virtual
machine to Microsoft Azure using
Direct Restore to Microsoft Azure and
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Veeam PN, there is a possibility of the
operations continuing with
minimal delay.
The virtual machine on Microsoft Azure
can now be accessed through any
laptop connected on the same network
as the POS terminals, through Veeam
PN. This brings back the customer
facing operations through the POS
terminals as if the original server were
operational again. While in reality the
original server is now offline and under
maintenance or replacement. This is
typically how real-life disaster recovery
scenarios can be planned for and
reacted to operationally.
“The nice thing about Veeam Cloud
Connect is, you can as a Veeam partner
provide cloud services to your customer
without having to build a datacentre,
replicate to a Veeam Cloud Service
Provider, and facilitate the transaction,
while maintaining the customer
relationship,” states Petersen.
Drivers and inhibitors
The disaster recovery landscape
has changed irrevocably following
the arrival of always-on and digital
transformation. Companies in Africa are
The prevalence
of connectivity
across the
continent
remains a
challenge in
terms of disaster
recovery,
especially in
outlying areas
located beyond
the main
hubs. Smaller
companies on
the continent
may experience
bandwidth
issues, but this is
part of the cost of
doing business.
embracing digital transformation with
its associated benefits.
www.intelligentcio.com
Veeam has developed a Microsoft Azure appliance called Veeam PN, that allows
end-users to connect various physical networks and endpoints into one virtual,
dedicated-private company network, bringing connectivity to workloads.
“The prevalence of connectivity across the
continent remains a challenge in terms
of disaster recovery, especially in outlying
areas located beyond the main hubs.
Smaller companies on the continent may
experience bandwidth issues, but this is
part of the cost of doing business and
does not mean the responsibility should
go away. Bandwidth will be the most
consistent challenge for organisations to
fully implement business continuity for
complete datacentre availability,” says
Veeam’s Schuck.
“In Africa, all they would need is an
Internet connection and to choose any
service provider where they want to
replicate to. There is no limitation in
terms of why they should not be doing
it”, supports Veeam’s Petersen.
But Petersen points to an initial setback
that often happens in the African
technology environment. “The biggest
challenge is the initial replication,” he
says. During the process of building the
initial virtual machine image on a remote
network site, the entire data has to be
Veeam enhances transformation at
South Africa’s IDC
Bringing in Veeam solutions helped remove data
silos, improve recovery point objectives, use legacy
systems better and align with digital transformation
at Industrial Development Corporation.
In 1940, the South African Parliament established the Industrial
Development Corporation to advance industrial policy and ease the
disruption of trade between Europe and South Africa during the Second
World War. Today Industrial Development Corporation essentially drives
progress by financing development projects, promoting national and
international partnerships across industries, and supporting regional
economic growth.
Gert Prinsloo is Infrastructure
Manager at Industrial Development
Corporation in South Africa.
www.intelligentcio.com
The Industrial Development Corporation’s IT infrastructure was expected
to be agile so it can respond quickly to changes in the economy while
staying on track for long-term growth. In an effort to maintain this agility,
the Industrial Development Corporation set up solutions for backup,
replication and monitoring, but also created silos in its administration.
Managing the silos became so time-intensive that recovery time and
point objectives was 48 hours, which was unacceptable for an always-on
organisation. In an effort to maintain agility, the Industrial Development
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