How are you simulating disaster recovery?

[Brian_Nordmann]

I am attempting to simulate a disaster recovery using BE10.1 and IDR.

I have a machine named "sharepoint" that is a prod machine on the network and I am trying to do an IDR of this machine to a test box.

The problem I am running into is getting the error "unable to establish connection with the media server" during the IDR process. I am told the test server cannot be on the same domain as the prod server as when it comes up it will have a duplicate name.

My question is: how do I simulate a restore of a prod machine to a test server while the prod server is still online? AND how am I still able to connect to the media server that is on the same domain as the prod server?

Veritas came back to me with: "You will have to re-create the IDR CD again for this server in the test domain."

I do have a test domain I could use - but since the prod server is in the CORP domain, the IDR tries to add the test server to the CORP domain as well, correct?

I know I have options like: take the prod server offline at night to do the test restore. Or maybe I could hook the test server and the media server to a hub?

If anyone has any ideas, let me know! Thanks!

[Brian_Nordmann]

Some of you must be doing disaster recovery simulations! I guess I could be hardcore and do it at midnight and take the prod server down to do testing... what are other people doing?

[Hywel_Mallett]

We do a disaster recovery of the entire domain, including a domain controller and all our application servers. The DR simulation takes place on a separate network, so it can be done while the production network stays online.
We have spare hardware for this purpose, which is kept at a separate site (where our backup tapes are taken to each day).
This allows us to simulate a total disaster, plu if we expand our DR preparations to include off-site replication, we already have the hardware.

[Sharvari_Deshmu]

Hello,

As mentioned in the earlier thread you will have to simulate the environment in a different network.

Thanks,

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[Jason_Eisel]

We physically haven't tested a DR restoration of a server. Although we do perform DR backups of each server in the domain every Sunday night. In case of a disaster, restoration of a server from our backup tapes should work, theoretically. Sorry I couldn't help you out any further; just figured I'd put my 2 cents in.

[Brian_Nordmann]

My "unable to establish connect with the media server" was unrelated to the fact that it was on the network with another machine with the same name.

I kept playing around with the combination of how I was entering the field data. I eneded up putting the fqdn in the top box and the domain in the second box and it worked fine.

As far as disaster recovery, we took the prod machine down and did a restore to a test box.

Warning to all, you really should test your DR processes with backup exec. There are lots of little kinks and it doesn't always really work as slick as they advertise it should!!!