It seems like everything has the “as-a-Service” designation after it these days. As-a-Service products are changing the way companies procure and manage their IT.
Two of the newer entrants to the as-a-Service scene aim to keep your important company data safe and available to you, no matter what. Backup as a Service (BaaS) and Recovery as a Service (RaaS) both serve in these functions, but, according to an IT Business Edge interview with Bluelock’s CTO Pat O’Day, BaaS and Raas are very different indeed.
Here are the two major distinctions between BaaS and RaaS:
1. Recovery Time
The first major distinction lies in recovery time. The recovery point objective (RPO) and recovery time objective (RTO) are different for each, with RaaS being the fastest. Also, BaaS lacks the infrastructure on which to recover, while RaaS has both the data and the infrastructure from which to recover.
2. Applications
Since BaaS lacks infrastructure, it isn’t really a continuity plan. RaaS recovers entire applications, but BaaS only recovers data.
Most companies want the assurance that their running applications will be safe, even if there is a disaster or other service interruption. For that kind of peace of mind, BaaS simply won’t cut it; you really need to acquire an RaaS plan.
Consider that backups do not provide protection for your mission-critical applications. RaaS can recover server images and data, which are the abilities that allow it to recover your applications and help you get them up and running again.
For example, you can use BaaS to backup the data files from your SalesForce account so that your customer data can be recovered. However, the application can also be recovered with RaaS; there’s only so much you can do with recovered files without having your application online.
Here’s how RaaS works: It typically supports a combination or server image and production data backup to the service provider’s data center. If you require access to these things for plan exercising or to support live recovery operations, the backed-up images are activated inside the cloud. So, in essence, RaaS can also be referred to as Disaster Recovery as a Services (DRaaS) – yet another as-a-Service offering to consider!
Your options for keeping your data safe and accessible can get confusing, especially when so many new ones are being added on a regular basis. Your best bet is to shop around and ask vendors to help you match an as-a-Service solution with your company’s needs. Armed with this information, hopefully, this task will be a little bit easier.
–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
About CHIPS Computer Services
CHIPS Computer Services is an award winning Managed Services Provider specializing in help businesses increase efficiencies and profits by levering properly managed technology. To learn how CHIPS can help your business, email us at sales@chipscs.com to schedule no cost business technology assessment.
