Seven tiers of disaster recovery
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
SHARE originally defined seven tiers of disaster recovery to help identify various methods of recovering
mission-critical computer-systems as required to support business continuity.[1] IBM also aided in the
development of the model.[2]
Although the original published concept dates back to the 1990s, specialists in business continuity planning
(BCP) and in disaster recovery as of 2015 continue to use the seven tiers to illustrate continuity capabilities and
costs at a very high level.[3] The definitions for the various tiers have been updated as technology has evolved in
support of business requirements and their associated Recovery Time Objectives (RTOs) and Recovery Point
Objectives (RPOs).[4]
Contents
1 Tier levels
1.1 Tier 0: No off-site data – Possibly no recovery
1.2 Tier 1: Data backup with no hot site
1.3 Tier 2: Data backup with a hot site
1.4 Tier 3: Electronic vaulting
1.5 Tier 4: Point-in-time copies
1.6 Tier 5: Transaction integrity
1.7 Tier 6: Zero or near-zero data loss
1.8 Tier 7: Highly automated, business integrated solution
2 Other schemes
3 References
4 External links
Tier levels
When the SHARE Technical Steering Committee, working with IBM, described the levels of service for disaster
recovery in the late 1980s, it produced a model that used Tiers 0 through 6. As a result of the introduction by
IBM of their Geographically Dispersed Parallel Sysplex (GDPS) system, which allowed for an organization to
manage end-to-end application and data availability across multiple geographically separate sites, an additional
seventh tier was added to represent the industry's highest possible level of service availability.[5] The seven tiers
of business continuity solutions offer a simple method to define current service levels and associated risks.[6]
Tier 0: No off-site data – Possibly no recovery
Businesses with a Tier 0 business continuity solution have no business continuity plan. There is no saved
information, no documentation, no backup hardware, and no contingency plan. The time necessary to recover in
this instance is unpredictable. In fact, it may not be possible to recover at all.
Tier 1: Data backup with no hot site
Businesses that use Tier 1 continuity solutions back up their data and send these backups to an off-site storage
facility. The method of transporting these backups is often referred to as "PTAM" - the "Pick-up Truck Access
Method." Depending on how often backups are created and shipped, these organisations must be prepared to
accept several days to weeks of data loss, but their backups are secure off-site. However, this tier lacks the
1 of 3
systems on which to restore data.
Tier 2: Data backup with a hot site
Businesses using Tier 2 business continuity solutions make regular backups on tape. This is combined with an
off-site facility and infrastructure (known as a hot site) in which to restore systems from those tapes in the event
of a disaster. This solution will still result in the need to recreate several hours or even days' worth of data, but
the recovery time is more predictable.
Tier 3: Electronic vaulting
Tier 3 solutions build on the components of Tier 2. Additionally, some mission critical data is electronically
vaulted. This electronically vaulted data is typically more current than that which is shipped via PTAM. As a
result there is less data recreation or loss after a disaster occurs. The facilities for providing Electronic Remote
Vaulting consists of high-speed communication circuits, some form of channel extension equipment and either
physical or a virtual tape library and an automated tape library at the remote site. IBM's Peer-to-Peer VTS and
Oracle StorageTek Virtual Storage Manager (VSM) Clustering are two examples of this type implementation.
Tier 4: Point-in-time copies
Tier 4 solutions are used by businesses that require both greater data currency and faster recovery than users of
lower tiers. Rather than relying largely on shipping tape, as is common on the lower tiers, Tier 4 solutions begin
to incorporate more disk based solutions. Several hours of data loss is still possible, but it is easier to make such
point-in-time (PiT) copies with greater frequency than tape backups even when electronically vaulted.
Tier 5: Transaction integrity
Tier 5 solutions are used by businesses with a requirement for consistency of data between the production data
center and the recovery data centers. There is little to no data loss in such solutions; however, the presence of
this functionality is entirely dependent on the application in use.
Tier 6: Zero or near-zero data loss
Tier 6 business continuity solutions maintain the highest levels of data currency. They are used by businesses
with little or no tolerance for data loss and who need to restore data to applications rapidly. These solutions have
no dependence on the applications or applications staffs to provide data consistency. Tier 6 solutions often
require some form of Disk mirroring. There are various synchronous and asynchronous solutions available from
the mainframe storage vendors. Each solution is somewhat different, offering different capabilities and
providing different Recovery Point and Recovery Time objectives. Often some form of automated tape solution
is also required. However, this can vary somewhat depending on the amount and type of data residing on tape.
Tier 7: Highly automated, business integrated solution
Tier 7 solutions include all the major components being used for a Tier 6 solution with the additional integration
of automation. This allows a Tier 7 solution to ensure consistency of data above that which is granted by Tier 6
solutions. Additionally, recovery of the applications is automated, allowing for restoration of systems and
applications much faster and more reliably than would be possible through manual business continuity
procedures.
Other schemes
Some authorities have developed alternate DR tier schemes, also called Recovery Classes. For example,
Computer Network Technologies (CNT) has developed a scheme by categorizing RTOs and RPOs into different
2 of 3
classes.[7][8] Class 1 is the lowest level, where acceptable recovery times range from 72 hours to one week, and
the most up-to-date data can be from a weekly backup. A class 4 recovery environment contains the most
stringent requirements. With Class 4, the recovery time must be immediate and the data recovered must be less
than one second old. The following table illustrates this Recovery Classes 4-tier scheme:
Class 1 Class 2 Class 3 Class 4
0
RTO 72 Hours - 1 Week 8 - 72 Hours Less than 8 Hours
Minutes
Last full backup - Less than 1 Last Backup - less than 24 Less than 15 Min. before the 0
RPO
Wk Hrs Event Minutes
References
1. SteelStore Cloud Storage Gateway: Disaster Recovery Best Practices Guide. (https://splash.riverbed.com/servlet
/JiveServlet/downloadBody/3897-102-2-5505
/Best%20Practices%20Guide%20-%20SteelStore%20DR%20Replication.pdf) Riverbed Technology, Inc. October
2011. Retrieved 26 March 2013.
2. Disaster Recovery Levels. (http://www.ibmsystemsmag.com/mainframe/administrator/backuprecovery/Disaster-
Recovery-Levels/?page=2) Robert Kern and Victor Peltz. IBM Systems Magazine. November 2003. Retrieved 26
March 2013.
3. Disaster Recovery Levels. (http://www.ibmsystemsmag.com/mainframe/administrator/backuprecovery/Disaster-
Recovery-Levels/?page=2) Robert Kern and Victor Peltz. IBM Systems Magazine. November 2003. Retrieved 26
March 2013.
4. Business Continuity: The 7-tiers of Disaster Recovery. (http://recoveryspecialties.com/7-tiers.html) Recovery
Specialties. 2007. Retrieved 26 March 2013.
5. Disaster Recovery Levels. (http://www.ibmsystemsmag.com/mainframe/administrator/backuprecovery/Disaster-
Recovery-Levels/?page=2) Robert Kern and Victor Peltz. IBM Systems Magazine. November 2003. Retrieved 27
March 2013.
6. Continuous Operations: The Seven Tiers of Disaster Recovery. (http://storagecommunity.org/forums/t/326.aspx)
Mary Hall. The Storage Community (IBM). 18 July 2011. Retrieved 26 March 2013.
7. Alternate Site Recovery Techniques. CNT White Paper. 2003.
8. iSCSI-based Storage Area Networks for Disaster Recovery Operations. (http://etd.lib.fsu.edu/theses/available
/etd-04082005-134722/unrestricted/01_mrm_thesis.pdf) Matthew R. Murphy. Florida State University. College of
Engineering. 2005. Page 4. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
External links
The tiers of Disaster Recovery and TSM. (http://www.redbooks.ibm.com/redbooks/pdfs/sg246844.pdf)
Charlotte Brooks, Matthew Bedernjak, Igor Juran, and John Merryman. In, Disaster Recovery Strategies
with Tivoli Storage Management. Chapter 2. Pages 21–36. Red Books Series. IBM. Tivoli Software.
2002.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Seven_tiers_of_disaster_recovery&
oldid=702116278"
Categories: Computer backup Business continuity and disaster recovery
This page was last modified on 28 January 2016, at 15:14.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may
apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered
trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.
3 of 3
