General

A computer backup system that uses tape can be reliable, but requires a high level of ongoing maintenance to guarantee reliability. CoreVault Secure’s online data backup uses completely redundant systems, meaning we maintain two separate backups of your data in geographically separated locations. With CoreVault Secure 100% of your backups are stored on redundant, fault-tolerant servers.
Even if you choose not to use our offsite backup services and continue using tape make sure your tapes are safe and working with the following procedures:

• Clean your tape drives once a month
• Replace tape media regularly
• Rotate your backup tapes off-site every night via a bonded vaulting provider, while keeping them close enough that they are easily accessible
• Test and restore once a month
• Keep at least a 20 backup rotation
• Have easy access to your backup software if you have to re-install it
• Make sure your data is fully encrypted before being written to tape

The main risk of using tape systems is that they can malfunction, but appear to be working. All indications are that backups were successful . . . until you try to restore.
If you want to continue to use tapes as your primary backup, consider using offsite backup services as a secondary backup solution just in case your primary backup system fails. Remember, redundancy is the key to data protection!

No. Mirrored hardware only protects you from a hardware failure. Since 90% of data loss is due to data corruption or user error, mirrored equipment offers no protection. This is because corrupt data is instantly written to the mirror equipment. The only way to protect your data is by having a backlog of backups to restore from.

CoreVault Secure's computer backup system uses agentless technology, so you do not have to install software more than once to protect your entire LAN. Our online backup software is also completely client controlled. We do not and cannot access your data. All backup schedules, files choices, and options are in YOUR control. The data is compressed and encrypted BEFORE it is sent offsite and you are the only one with a key.

One of the most basic rules when using a computer is routinely backing up your files. Most users do not backup their files as often as they should and, even if they do, they do not store their data safely offsite. Offsite backup services eliminate the hassle of backing up because there are no additional hardware components required, and you have the added security of having your files backed up offsite to our CoreVault facility. You can sleep better at night knowing all your data is properly protected.

Just contact us with a simple call or email and we will get you set up right away.

CoreVault Secure is designed so that each instance of the Client backup software can backup as many computers as you like. The limiting factor is hardware performance and the backup window.

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Installation and Setup

The CoreVault Client is our backup software that resides on your network and performs the disk to disk backups and remote backup service.

At installation the CoreVault Secure Administrator Console software is installed on as many or as few workstations as required and will require a valid logon, ensuring no unauthorized access. The Administrator Console acts as your interface with CoreVault Secure and enables the configuration of all backups and restores.

The CoreVault Secure solution is totally agentless, requiring no additional software to be installed on any machines to enable backup and recovery, be it Novell® NetWare, Microsoft® Windows®, Microsoft SQL or Exchange.

From the Administration Console when a new backup set is created you must provide a username and password to connect to a server or workstation. CoreVault Secure fully integrates with Microsoft’s Active Directory, Trusts and Novell® NDS trees.

No, but a dedicated user is recommended and it should be set for no password expiry for obvious reasons. In a domain, or NDS environment, a user on each machine isn't necessary as one central user can be created with access to all the resources that require backing up.

This user is responsible for backing up and restoring all the data on your network, it is essential that access permissions are of administrative equivalence. CoreVault Secure can only backup data that this user can access. A less privileged user may be restricted, causing data to be missed.

CoreVault Customer Support Personnel install the Client software via a remote connection and provide the necessary training. If the installation is particularly complex or remote sites are involved, additional days on site support are available at a daily rate.

Only individuals with a user ID on the CoreVault Client will be able to administer its functions.

Multiple user accounts can be created for use on the CoreVault Client and access permissions can be set per backup set. These permissions can be any combination of Backup, Restore, Delete or Modify, so a particular user could be given access to backup and restore only their own machine.

The online server backups can be configured as often as every hour or as infrequently as once a year. More advanced schedule options include the last working day of the month or even one off backups on a particular date.

An online backup set can include a full system, share/volume, directory or even a single file. The backup set could even include just a registry, should you desire.

There are literally hundreds of different priority levels that can be assigned, ensuring maximum flexibility when organizing your online backup schedules.

Yes, the online backup software is designed to fit specific backup windows. Our online data backup service can be told what time to stop at, for example at 8:00am when employees are starting to arrive or maybe by 5:00am if there is an important batch process to run.

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Backing up

CoreVault Secure has several ways for you to be sure your online data backup service ran. Most of our clients prefer to have the systems Email them an alert when the remote backup was completed, however, you can also be notified by pager notifications, Windows event log entries, SNMP or network broadcast.

Most users backup their data daily. If you have mission critical applications you may choose to back them up twice a day. Each “backup set” will have its own schedule. CoreVault Secure has the ability to perform online backups on an hourly, daily, weekly or monthly schedule.

As often as you wish, because you set up and administer your online server backups for a schedule that works best for your company.

When the CoreVault Client is initially configured, you set the default number of generations that are retained. Unlike a tape backup, where the routine is to rotate tapes in a cycle, our online data backup service will only backup a new version of a file when it has changed, guaranteeing that the customer is not wasting space backing up exactly the same version more than once. For example, if a file only changes once a month and seven generations are retained, we will have 7 generations / versions of that file. The number of generations stored can be configured on an individual backup set basis. Online backup sets can be configured to include just a single file if desired, giving you the ability to maximize the efficiency of the storage.

Backups are extremely fast. Our technology backs up only the changed portions of files during each backup session. Exactly how long that takes depends on the size of your backup, speed of your Internet connection, and amount of "changed" data.

Because the initial backup requires transmission of all data, it takes the longest and may require multiple sessions to complete. The service will "chip away" at the initial backup until it's complete with no user intervention required. After the initial backup is complete, nightly online server backups are significantly smaller and result in a faster backup.  Should the customer’s initial data size be of sufficient size, CoreVault will ship a mobile vault to the customer’s location for seeding at LAN speeds with subsequent backups performed via the internet.

As many as you require! You can customize a retention scheme that works best for your company.

None! Once you schedule the time and frequency of your backups during installation, the backups run automatically. With our online backup service there are no more tapes to replace or rotate eliminating the opportunity for human error in your data protection strategy.

If a transmission is interrupted in the middle of a backup, the CoreVault Client will stop your backup at that point, and if configured to do so, will notify the administrator that the backup failed. It will try again on the next scheduled backup.

If the online backup is stopped, for whatever reason, it will simply continue onto the next backup in its schedule. It will not revisit the failed backup set until the next time it is set to run, e.g. the following night, at which point it will pick up where it left off. If however the problem has been rectified and backup window allows, the backup can be restarted manually, immediately. CoreVault Secure has a dedicated team who monitor the progress of backups. If a problem occurs, it will be escalated through the appropriate channels.

CoreVault Secure employs Common File Elimination Technology, which eliminates the need to back up common operating systems and software application files that are already stored in our remote vaults. This is accomplished by assigning a digital signature unique to the contents of that file, comparing that signature with all the files in our Data Store and only transmitting your unique files. This means that common files will not be counted against your backup storage, which reduces your backup account size and saves you money. These files will, however, be available if needed during a restore.

No. Your online backup service can backup only the data files if you wish. Select only the files, directories, or drives that you wish to backup. Of course, CoreVault Secure can only restore the data you schedule to backup. Make sure you are backing up all your critical files, and have your programs and operating systems offsite. For your online backup, full systems or data only, CoreVault Secure is a reliable and cost effective way to protect your data.

As much as you want, you will be charged on the amount of actual compressed data you store.

Not in the traditional sense. Every backup is in effect a full backup. Our computer backup system does this by cataloging all included files each backup session then transmitting only the changed or new files. From a restore standpoint, each backup is a full, complete image of the data that was selected at the time of each backup. If you need to restore, simply select the backup you wish to restore from and restore the files you need.

We use a variety of software packages in the backup, monitoring and reporting functions of our service. These components are a compilation of internally developed software and assembled packages – both proprietary and non-proprietary - from industry-leading developers.

Yes, for Windows NT on NTFS volumes CoreVault Secure can backup both Permissions and Streams. The Permissions and Extended NetWare Attributes can be backed up for NetWare. This is a configurable option in both NetWare and NT environments. For UNIX servers, ACL properties can be retained.

Microsoft® developed SQL and Exchange with the backup requirement in mind. Both products can respond to API calls requesting the services to dump their data, while online, to an external destination. In CoreVault Secure’s case the product simply asks the specified MS SQL or Exchange server to stream the data to the CoreVault Client where it is delta blocked and transmitted offsite. This process is a totally supported Microsoft function and guarantees compatibility with your existing MS systems. This adhesion to Microsoft standards does however prevent us from restoring individual Exchange mailbox, as this is not a function Microsoft supports.

Yes, even though CoreVault Secure is an agentless solution, it is still capable of running commands on remote servers, be it Linux, NetWare or Microsoft Windows. For example, shutting down a database or application running on a server to back it up correctly and restart afterwards, or perhaps interact with some overnight batch processing.

Open files are an issue in most backup environments. If a file is open exclusively on a workstation, it is the server's responsibility to stop anyone else, including a backup package, accessing that file.

To help counteract these issues CoreVault Secure has a range of options which attempt to handle open files. These options, combined with use of the Pre and Post commands, should enable the backup of almost any file. More complex environments may require the use of open files managers which can be provided.

In addition to transmitting data to our vaults, the CoreVault client has the ability to retain locally all the data required to complete a restore of the most recent generation of data at LAN speeds. In the event of a restore request, the CoreVault client first attempts to retrieve data from local storage, and if it is not available requests the data to be transmitted from our data vault.

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Restores

The data is available for restore immediately after the online backup has completed.

A restore may involve anything from a single file to an entire system. The CoreVault Secure graphical user interface lets you select individual files or folders for restoration. There is also a search utility that allows you to scan an entire catalog using a file specification mask that may include wildcards. If you have a catastrophic loss and no operating system, you must first install your base o/s, and network drivers. Once this is done, you can use the CoreVault Secure Client and proceed to initiate a full system restore back to the state prior to the system loss.  Should the restore data be large or require quick restore, CoreVault can load your data to a mobile vault and overnight your data to you for loading at LAN speeds.  **Mobile Vault for restore operations requires a separate fee.

Yes, you can select easily which files/directories/servers you wish to restore. There is no need to restore non-essential data until a later time if desired.

Yes. In the event that a restore requires data that does not exist in the CoreVault Client’s local storage, CoreVault Secure can write your data to DVD’s or USB drives, or for very large volumes, to a mobile vault for next day delivery.

Yes! If you choose to backup the System State, our software will restore all applicable System State and Active Directory information.

Assuming that the machine in question has had a full backup of all files and registry and the data is being restored to a machine of similar hardware, then a full disaster recovery of that machine is very simple. After installing the operating system, there is no need to apply service packs, configure domain security or install additional software to the new machine, as all this information will be included in the restore.

Yes.

Yes, CoreVault Secure will display all the files that were backed up on any given day, providing the backed up files have not been deleted by an administrator or overwritten by more recent versions, then it is possible to restore from any given date.

Data restored from either the local storage of the CoreVault Client or data restored over the Internet from the vault is considered an online restore. Data restored using some form of removable physical media, which has been transported to the site, is considered an offline restore. Any restore may be initiated online, but if the data does not exist in local storage and the quantity of data is such that the restore time would be too great, clients have the option of having data placed on removable physical media and sent to them.

There is never a charge to restore your data online. If you require us to generate physical media and courier or mail it to you, there may be additional charges. Please contact us for details.

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Connectivity & Bandwidth

Our offsite backup services require a reliable, dedicated Internet connection. This connection could be cable modem, DSL, T1 or T3. The faster your connection, the faster your online backups will run.

Only new and unique data will get backed up. Duplicate or unchanged files will not be transmitted.

The data is backed up in real time, so when the administration console indicates that the backup is complete - it is also an indication that the data has been CoreVaultly stored offsite.

Delta blocking is an advanced logic that divides all files into 2K blocks. When the file is detected to have changed, the Checksum of each 2K block is compared against the last known Checksum for the same block of the same file (stored in the database on the CoreVault Client). Any blocks that are different are pulled out to be re-transmitted. These delta blocks will also be compressed and encrypted before transmission.

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Encryption

There are several available encryption algorithms and key strengths up to 256-bit AES. The confidentiality and security of your data is a top priority. That's why our automated offsite encryption backup service employs the top encryption algorithms.

Lost passwords cannot be recovered. We have NO WAY of getting them back. CoreVault Secure recommends keeping multiple copies of your encryption password(s) in safe, CoreVault remote locations such as a fire safe or a bank safety deposit box.

Yes. All data is encrypted before it leaves your site, only you have the key.

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Security

Yes. Your data files are safe at every step of the backup process due to CoreVault Secure's state-of-the-art encryption and security methods. Only you can access your data.

CoreVault Secure understands the value of high quality equipment. All of our equipment is state of the art, fully redundant, power-protected and fault-tolerant. Our tier one data center facilities are CoreVault with high-level security systems, 7 days a week 365 days a year.

The two primary security measures CoreVault Secure employs are (1) limiting access to your data to authorized users by password authorization; and (2) encrypting your data prior to transmission and storing it in an encrypted state.

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Operating Systems

• Windows NT v4 with SP6
• Windows 2000 Professional
• Windows 2000 Server
• Windows 2000 Advanced Server
• Windows 2000 Data Server
• Windows XP Professional
• Windows Server 2003
• Windows Small Business Server 2003
• Netware 6.0 & 6.5
• Red Hat Linux 9.0 / RHEL& AS / Fedora Core
• SUSE Linux SuSe 9 & 9.1
• AS400 OS/400 V5R1M0/V5R2M0/V5R3M0
• UNIX - File system backup and restore of UNIX derivatives with SSH daemon and
  Perl 5

• Windows 2000 Professional
• Windows 2000 Server
• Windows 2000 Advanced Server
• Windows 2000 Data Server
• Windows XP Professional
• Windows Server 2003
• Red Hat RHEL & AS 3 & 4
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 9 & 10
• Mac OS X

• Microsoft SQL 7, 2000, 2005
• Oracle 9i, 10g
• DB2 8.1
• Microsoft Exchange 5.5, 2000 & 2003
• Lotus Domino 6.5
• Novell Groupwise 6.5
• MySQL - any version as long as OS supports mysqldump
• postgreSQL - any version as long as OS supports pg_dump

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