Pure Storage Introduces Protect //DRaaS 1.1

By Matt Bradford, director, technical marketing, digital experience team, Pure Storage, Inc.

The upcoming release of version 1.1 of Pure Protect //DRaaS marks a milestone moment for Pure Storage – the1st major update to our on-demand DRaaS solution.

Since its launch last October, the feedback from users has been positive, underscoring an urgent need for a cost-effective DR solution. Customers can protect their VMware environments and recover them in the public cloud, using native AWS EC2 instances. Now, with the upcoming release of version 1.1, we unveil new features and enhancements designed to fortify your DR strategy further. Let’s delve into the latest advancements and explore how they can benefit your organization.

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Protect those large VMs
One of the biggest challenges in DR has always been managing large VMs. These monstrous VMs require substantial file transfers and consume vast amounts of storage at the recovery site. Thanks to the innovative use of VMware’s vSphere Storage APIs – Data Protection (VADP) by Pure Protect //DRaaS, user can reduce the data transfer volume to the cloud by syncing only the storage blocks that have changed since your last replication. On the AWS end, your data is efficiently stored as EBS Snapshots, optimizing costs without compromising on your DR needs.

With Pure Protect //DRaaS 1.1, you’re now equipped to safeguard VMs with disks (VMDKs) up to 10TB. This enhancement is a game-changer for businesses needing to protect extensive user shares, large-scale databases, media repositories, and archives, for example. Moreover, the introduction of multi-threaded uploads means your data syncs to the cloud faster, minimizing potential data gaps and ensuring your DR is as up-to-date as possible.

Auto-protection based on vSphere tags
Imagine the following scenario: Disaster strikes, and amidst the chaos, you discover that a number of critical VMs were left unprotected. This nightmare scenario is all too real with manual DR processes. Constant auditing of your DR plans and systems is a must, especially for those leveraging automation for VM deployment. With Pure Protect //DRaaS 1.1, we’re introducing auto-protection for your VMs. By utilizing industry standard vSphere Tags, VMs can be automatically included in protection groups, ensuring that no critical asset is left behind without the need for manual intervention. This feature is a safety net for both your peace of mind and your organization’s resilience.

Improved monitoring and reporting
The enhanced monitoring and reporting features in Pure Protect //DRaaS 1.1 offer you a clear view of your DR landscape. The new RTO summary report is particularly noteworthy, providing detailed insights into VM failover status, job start and end times, execution duration, VM size, and both estimated and actual RTOs. This level of detail empowers you to fine-tune your recovery strategies, ensuring you can meet or even exceed your RTO targets.

Figure 1: New RTO summary report in Pure Protect //DRaaS 1.1
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Ready to upgrade?
The Pure Protect //DRaaS 1.1 update is poised to set a new standard in DR, blending technology with user-friendly automation and reporting. If you’re ready to elevate your DR capabilities to the next level, our team is here to help guide you through the upgrade process. Reach out to your Pure Storage account team today, and let’s make your data protection strategy more robust, responsive, and resilient.