Failover moves a protected workload from the original machine to a recovery server running in the cloud. A recovery point is selected and the cloud virtual machine is started with the predefined recovery-server configuration.
Business Continuity • Acronis
Acronis Disaster Recovery for Critical Business Workloads
Prepare critical servers for cloud failover, test recovery without disrupting production, and move workloads back when your primary environment is ready.
Recovery Servers
Cloud Failover
Test Failover
Failback
From Backup to Business Continuity
When Restoring Data Is Not Fast Enough
Backup gives you recoverable copies. Disaster Recovery adds cloud recovery infrastructure so protected workloads can be started in the cloud when the original environment is unavailable.
Acronis uses recovery servers based on protected machine backups. During a production failover, the selected workload is started as a cloud virtual machine using a chosen recovery point. When the primary environment is ready again, failback moves the workload back to a local physical or virtual machine.
Already using Acronis Cloud Backup?
Disaster Recovery builds on protected backups and adds recovery servers, cloud networking, failover and failback.
Review Acronis Cloud Backup
Disaster Recovery builds on protected backups and adds recovery servers, cloud networking, failover and failback.
Review Acronis Cloud Backup
Recovery Workflow
How Acronis Disaster Recovery Works
Protect the Workload
Create image-level backups for the physical or virtual machine that will be protected by Disaster Recovery.
Create Recovery Server
Configure a cloud recovery server with networking and compute settings for the protected workload.
Fail Over When Needed
Select a recovery point and start the recovery server in the production cloud network when the original workload is unavailable.
Fail Back
After the local environment is ready, transfer the workload back to an appropriate physical or virtual target.
Core Capabilities
Plan, Test and Execute Recovery
Production Failover
Move a protected workload to its recovery server in the cloud when the original system is unavailable.
Isolated Test Failover
Start recovery servers in an isolated test network to validate recovery procedures without replacing the live workload.
Failback
Return a workload from the Acronis cloud to an appropriate physical or virtual machine at the local site.
Cloud Networking
Use available cloud networking, VPN and public-IP options to connect recovery servers with users and protected environments.
Runbooks
Document and orchestrate multi-step recovery procedures for environments containing multiple dependent workloads.
RPO Monitoring
Recovery-point objectives can be monitored and thresholds configured for protected recovery servers where supported.
Backup vs. Disaster Recovery
Choose the Right Recovery Layer
| Capability | Cloud Backup | Disaster Recovery |
|---|---|---|
| Main objective | Maintain recoverable copies of data and systems | Resume critical workloads using cloud recovery infrastructure |
| Recovery target | Files, disks, applications or restored systems | Recovery servers running in the cloud |
| Test environment | Restore testing depends on backup workflow | Dedicated isolated test failover environment |
| Networking | Not normally the core function | Cloud networks, VPN and optional public access |
| Return to primary site | Restore from backup | Structured failback workflow |
| Best fit | Data protection and recoverability | Business-critical workloads with continuity requirements |
DR Planning
What Should Be Defined Before Deployment?
A useful disaster recovery design starts with the business requirements, not with a generic promise of “instant” recovery.
Recovery Time Objective (RTO)
How long can each critical workload remain unavailable?
How long can each critical workload remain unavailable?
Recovery Point Objective (RPO)
How much data loss, measured in time, can the business tolerate?
How much data loss, measured in time, can the business tolerate?
Protected Workloads
Which servers and applications are important enough to require cloud failover?
Which servers and applications are important enough to require cloud failover?
Network Design
How will users, offices and dependent systems reach recovery servers?
How will users, offices and dependent systems reach recovery servers?
Compute Requirements
What CPU and RAM configuration is required while workloads are running in the cloud?
What CPU and RAM configuration is required while workloads are running in the cloud?
Testing Schedule
How often should test failovers and recovery runbooks be validated?
How often should test failovers and recovery runbooks be validated?
Testing Matters
Validate Recovery Before a Real Disaster
Acronis supports test failover by starting recovery servers in an isolated cloud network. This allows the recovery environment to be checked without taking over the production workload.
Automated test failover can also be scheduled in supported configurations. Acronis documentation describes weekly or monthly automated testing that starts a VM from the latest recovery point, checks whether the operating system boots, and reports the result.
Important:
DR testing can consume cloud compute resources. Production failover, test failover and other Disaster Recovery operations are governed by the quotas and service options enabled on the account.
DR testing can consume cloud compute resources. Production failover, test failover and other Disaster Recovery operations are governed by the quotas and service options enabled on the account.
Acronis Disaster Recovery FAQ
Common Disaster Recovery Questions
What is failover?
What is failback?
Failback moves the workload from the cloud back to a physical or virtual machine on the local site after the production environment is ready again.
What is the difference between Backup and Disaster Recovery?
Backup maintains recoverable copies. Disaster Recovery adds cloud recovery servers and networking so selected workloads can continue operating from the cloud during a major outage.
Can I test disaster recovery without affecting production?
Yes. Acronis supports test failover in an isolated test network so recovery servers can be started and evaluated separately from the live workload.
Does Acronis guarantee a specific RTO or RPO?
Actual RTO and RPO depend on the protection plan, backup frequency, recovery point availability, workload size, network design, compute configuration and enabled service quotas. These targets should be defined during DR planning rather than assumed from a generic marketing figure.
Do I need my own secondary data centre?
Acronis Disaster Recovery provides cloud recovery infrastructure, so a separate customer-owned recovery data centre is not required for workloads using the Acronis cloud recovery service.
What networking options are available?
Acronis supports cloud networking options including site-to-site connectivity, point-to-site access and optional public IP addresses, depending on the enabled service and recovery-server configuration.
How is Disaster Recovery priced?
Pricing depends on the protected workloads, recovery-server compute configuration, cloud resources, networking and the Disaster Recovery service quotas required. Contact Systron for a design and quotation.
Plan Disaster Recovery Around Your Business
Tell us which workloads are critical, your target RTO/RPO, approximate data size and network requirements. Systron can help scope an Acronis Disaster Recovery design.