| Symantec research reveals IT spending more on | | | | - Disruption to employees (44 percent) |
| Disaster Recovery Symantec Corp. announced the | | | | - Budget (44 percent) |
| global results of its fifth annual IT Disaster Recovery | | | | - Disruption to customers (40 percent) Also a concern |
| survey, which demonstrates rising DR pressures on | | | | is that more organizations reported that disaster |
| organizations caused by soaring downtime costs and | | | | recovery testing increasingly impacts customers and |
| more stringent IT service level requirements to mitigate | | | | revenue over previous years. Forty percent of |
| risk to the business. The study also shows that while | | | | respondents reported that disaster recovery testing |
| DR budgets are higher in 2009, they are expected to | | | | will impact their organizations' customers and nearly |
| remain flat over the next few years – requiring IT | | | | one third (27 percent) reported that such testing could |
| professionals to do more with the same or less. that | | | | impact their organization's sales and revenue. |
| while recovery time objectives were reduced to 4 | | | | Symantec recommends that organizations implement |
| hours in 2009, disaster recovery testing and | | | | disaster recovery testing methods that can be run |
| virtualization are still major challenges for organizations. | | | | frequently and without disruption to business |
| Respondents report that DR testing increasingly | | | | operations. Symantec believes that people and |
| impacts customers and revenue, and one in four tests | | | | processes are the main reason tests fail, pointing to |
| fail. Nearly a third of organizations don't test virtual | | | | the need for more automation. |
| environments as part of their disaster recovery plans, | | | | Virtualization still a major challenge |
| and a slightly larger percentage of virtual environments | | | | Sixty-four percent of worldwide respondents reported |
| aren't regularly backed up – pointing to the need for | | | | that virtualization is causing them to reevaluate their |
| more automation and cross-environment tools. | | | | disaster recovery plans. This is up from 55 percent in |
| Downtime costs are significant | | | | 2008. Still, nearly a third (27 percent) of organizations |
| The average cost of executing/implementing disaster | | | | do not test virtual environments as part of their |
| recovery plans for each downtime incident worldwide | | | | disaster recovery initiatives. This number has improved |
| according to respondents is US $287,600. In North | | | | in the past year, lowering from more than one-third (35 |
| America, the median cost can climb to as high as | | | | percent) of organizations who did not test in 2008. |
| $900,000. Globally, this number is highest for healthcare | | | | Additionally, more than one-third (36 percent) of data |
| and financial services organizations. In North America, | | | | on virtualized systems is not regularly backed up, |
| the median cost for financial institutions is $650,000. | | | | showing no improvement in the past year (37 percent |
| This is alarming when one considers that one in four | | | | in 2008). Over half of the respondents cited lack of |
| tests failed and 93 percent of organizations have had | | | | backup storage capacity and automated recovery |
| to execute on their disaster recovery plans. | | | | tools as top challenges to protecting data in virtual |
| Respondents reported that it takes on average three | | | | environments. |
| hours to achieve skeleton operations after an outage, | | | | In addition, the study found that globally, more than half |
| and four hours to be up and running. This is | | | | of respondents cited: |
| dramatically improved over the 2008 findings, where | | | | - Lack of storage management tools as the top |
| only three percent of respondents reported that they | | | | challenge in protecting mission critical data and |
| could achieve skeleton operations within 12 hours, and | | | | applications in virtual environments (53 percent) |
| 31 percent believed they would have baseline | | | | - Resource constraints such as people, budget, and |
| operations within one day. | | | | space as the top challenges to backing up virtual |
| 2009 DR spending bucks trend | | | | machines suggesting a need for greater automation |
| The research shows that the annual median budget | | | | and the ability to leverage existing IT investments in |
| for disaster recovery initiatives, including backup, | | | | order to lower costs (51 percent) |
| recovery, clustering, archiving, spare servers, replication, | | | | Recommendations |
| tape, services, disaster recovery plan development | | | | As demonstrated over multiple years of this study, |
| and offsite costs at data centers surveyed is $50 | | | | lack of resources continues to be an issue, yet the |
| million. According to respondents, this number will | | | | costs of downtime are staggering. Organizations can |
| continue to grow throughout 2009, but more than half | | | | also do a better job at curbing the costs of downtime |
| (52 percent) of respondents believe that budgets will | | | | by implementing more automation tools that minimize |
| be flat in 2010, making it more challenging for IT | | | | human involvement and address other weaknesses in |
| management to better leverage their assets including | | | | their disaster recovery plans. |
| hardware, software and personnel. | | | | Because disaster recovery testing is invaluable, but |
| Executive involvement doubled in past year | | | | can significantly impact business – including |
| According to the 2009 disaster recovery survey, 70 | | | | customers and revenue – organizations should seek |
| percent of respondents reported that their disaster | | | | to improve the success of testing by evaluating and |
| recovery committees involved the CIO, CTO or IT | | | | implementing testing methods which are |
| director – a significant increase from last year's | | | | non-disruptive. |
| research where 33 percent of respondents indicated | | | | Finally, organizations should include those responsible |
| executive involvement. As budgets increased over the | | | | for virtualization into disaster recovery plans, especially |
| past year, disaster recovery initiatives have become | | | | testing and backup initiatives. Virtual environments |
| more of a competitive differentiator, and impact of | | | | should be treated the same as a physical server, |
| downtown on customers is greater than ever. Another | | | | showing the need for organizations to adopt more |
| reason for executive involvement is the increase of | | | | cross-platform and cross-environment tools, or |
| applications that are seen as mission critical. Sixty | | | | standardizing on fewer platforms. |
| percent of applications were deemed mission critical | | | | "This year's Symantec-sponsored research clearly |
| by respondents, and nearly the same amount is | | | | identifies key issues, hidden risks and best practices in |
| covered in disaster recovery plans. Any sort of | | | | implementing DR. While some aspects are trending |
| outage to these systems will have an enormous | | | | well, the impact of downtime is greater than ever |
| impact to the business. | | | | before," said Rob Soderbery, senior vice president of |
| Disaster recovery testing improves but still a major | | | | Symantec's Storage and Availability Management |
| challenge | | | | Group. "The surging cost of downtime places greater |
| This year, 35 percent of respondents reported that | | | | emphasis on business – which means more |
| they test their DR plans once per year or less | | | | pressure on IT. If organizations are not protecting virtual |
| frequently – a 12 percent improvement from last | | | | environments, not testing their DR plans and seeing |
| year. In addition, one in four tests still fail, showing a | | | | one out every four tests fail then something needs to |
| dramatic need for improvement in this area. Reasons | | | | change to better manage risk to the business. |
| most respondents cited for why organizations aren't | | | | Organizations should implement solutions that address |
| testing include: | | | | these needs while allowing them to leverage existing |
| - Lack of resources in terms of people's time (48 | | | | assets. |
| percent) | | | | |