Cloud, co-location, on-premises and hybrid disaster recovery solutions: Pros, cons, and a cost comparison.

The hype surrounding cloud-based disaster recovery (DR) continues to gain steam - and with good reason. That said, due to cost, compatibility and/or organisational restrictions, cloud-based DR is not necessarily the best fit for all systems. This paper presents case studies and a structured approach to evaluate the various options, including public/private cloud DR, DR as a service (DRaaS) and hybrid solutions. For example, the pay-per-use model for cloud DR saves money while the cloud environment is dormant, but results in higher run-time costs than co-location or on-premises solutions when DR is executed. Similarly, organisations need to understand the range of DRaaS options to make an informed decision. Where cloud is not a good fit for all systems, a hybrid solution can satisfy conflicting requirements while leveraging the benefits of cloud where appropriate. Finally, organisational constraints can tip the balance away from what may appear to be the best fit on paper.