Shared and Replicated Content Storage
If the content volume is on a shared or replicated volume, both Web sites must point to the same shared or replicated volume and folder. The primary and backup servers must contain the same content files for the active and standby web servers/sites to be identical. However, if the content volume is not shared or replicated, the content may come from any location on either system.
To ensure data availability on a failover we suggest that you configure the Home Directory on the primary server as a folder on a shared or replicated disk and configure the Home Directory on the backup server identical to the primary server. You then have only one copy of the content files to maintain.
Non-Shared Storage
Your configuration should utilize shared storage or replicated storage. If your configuration does not utilize shared or replicated storage, the content must be synchronized between local volumes on each server. While the LifeKeeper Microsoft IIS Recovery Kit does not contain any specific features to synchronize the content between two servers, the following are a few suggestions:
- Use SIOS DataKeeper to automatically replicate the data volumes on each active server to the standby server(s).
- Use a content replication tool such as Microsoft Site Server 3.0. You can also use the utility Robocopy as a content replication tool. Microsoft Site Server is the preferred solution.
- If you have a tape backup system, make a tape backup of the files on the primary server and then restore them to the backup server, as needed.
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