News

posted on 19 February 2008 06:50

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Symantec's Backup Exec 12 is the first Windows 2008-certified backup product and brings a host of new features to users. The associated Backup Exec System Recovery product is also Windows 2008-certified.

Backup Exec is Symantec's premier backup product for Windows. Net Backup is aimed more at Unix/Linux users. Backup Exec offers disk-to-tape and disk-to-disk-to-tape backup. As well as supporting Windows Server 2008 it also supports WS2003 and 2000. Backup Exec System Recovery (BESR) is a bare-metal server recovery product that stores a complete image of a server and offers server recovery in minutes to similar or dissimilar hardware, to virtual servers as well as physical ones, and in remote and/or unattended locations.

New Backup Exec features
- Backup Exec 12 (BE12) has been integrated with Symantec Enterprise Vault so that its archive can be protected.
- BE12 has been made (more) application-aware concerning SQL Server, SharePoint, Active Directory and Exchange.
- BE12 has had links added to Symantec's Endpoint Protection and its ThreatCon security threat rating such that users can specify backups be triggered automatically of selected applications' files if the ThreatCon rating rises to a certain level. ThreatCon ratings run from 1 (green) to 4 (red).
- BE12 has improved granular recovery, meaning data can be restored from a single pass backup without having to run separate Mailbox backups to restore lost/deleted Exchange e-mails. Symantec says this extended granular recovery makes it easier to restore SharePoint, SharePoint Services, SQL Server and Active Directory data in seconds rather than (many) minutes.
- BE12 can backup to removable storage across a LAN, such as a USB-connected disk, Dell ProStor RD1000 removable disk, and also network-attached storage (NAS).
- BE12 can now protect Apple Macintosh systems and Lotus Domino servers. It has support for IBM N series storage devices, oem'd by IBM from Network Appliance. It also supports LTO4 tape drives, with their drive-level encryption.
- There is a small business version called BE12 for Windows Small Business Server, available in standard and premium editions.

New Backup Exec System Recovery features
- BESR8 has been made (more) application-aware concerning SQL Server, SharePoint, Active Directory and Exchange.
- BESR8 administrators can copy recovery points to a remote server, via FTP, or to an external drive or a network share.
- A similar granular resore option to that in BE12 enables the recovery of Exchange items such as mailboxes, folders, messages and attachments, and individual SharePoint documents.
- BESR8 has the same ThreatCon integration as BE12, meaning system recovery points can be captured immediately if a raised ThreatCon level is reached.
- BESR8 is integrated with the Altiris Notification Server to enable administrators to manage backup task using that management facility.
- BESR8 can work with external USB drives and run backup jobs to the given device, even if Windows changes its drive letter.
- BESR8 offers seamless physical to virtual and virtual to physical conversions for VMware's ESX server, VMware Server, VMware Workstation and Microsoft Virtual Server formats.

Services
A Remote Expert Installation Service (REIS) uses remote access technology to help small businesses deploy BE12 for one Windows Media Server over the Internet.

SaaS
Symantec will offer its Protection Network service in the USA, and only the USA at first, with backup and restore facilities supplied over the Internet as a utility in a software-as-a-service (SaaS) model. This capability has been under development for some little time and its geographical scope wil be extended.

Pricing
BE12 starts at $995 per server, either physical or virtual. BESR8 starts at $1,095 per server, either physical or virtual, and $69 per workstation. All products are available now through Symantec's network of distributors and resellers.