Successful Disaster Recovery Test Held in November

CIT’s hot-site test on November 12 and 13, 2002, was a very useful learning experience for all participants. For this test, CIT continued its recovery testing for Titan, South, and EOS systems and, for the first time, tested both firewall installation and HP-UX system recovery procedures in support of special customer requirements. CIT also managed the recovery procedures from a different location this time.

At the start of preparations on November 12, CIT encountered several problems with the vendor’s initial set up of the systems and network, which delayed by several hours our ability to start our recovery procedures. Once the problems were fixed, restoration of the systems ran smoothly, and the systems were prepared for customer testing. CIT will follow up with the vendor to ensure that the problems are not repeated for the next test or for an actual disaster.

Customer testing on Titan, South, and EOS went smoothly with only minor problems that were easily resolved. Mostly, customers had problems because jobs were referencing files on public volumes that are not restored. The recovery team easily rectified the problem so customers could complete their tests. Customers reported that the test was a very useful learning experience—one that helps them improve their disaster recovery preparedness.

Next Test in July

CIT schedules two hot-site tests each year so that critical application owners can verify their recovery procedures. The next test is scheduled for July 22, 2003.

If you wish to participate in the NIH Computer Center’s disaster recovery program or to discuss your critical application requirements for the South and Titan (OS/390) or EOS (Unix) systems, please call the TASC help desk at (301) 594-6248 and ask to speak to the disaster recovery coordinator.