10 reasons to choose SafeKit

An inexpensive, user-friendly software-only solution

SafeKit removes the need for costly dispatching boxes, shared disk bays and other specific hardware. It saves you the expense of deploying and maintaining complex hardware clustering solutions. SafeKit is a software-only clustering solution that you can deploy on your existing standard servers. It is much easier to deploy and far less expensive than a hardware cluster.

Many operating systems, one clustering solution

Most of the time, you have applications running on different operating systems. What if a new application on a new operating system needs to be made highly available? Are you ready to invest in a different clustering technology each time? With SafeKit, the technology is the same, no matter what the operating system: Linux, Windows, AIX or Solaris – so you do not need to re-train your administrators several times. You can manage all your clusters with the same tool, the same configuration, the same on-line commands and the same administration console!

For more details, read the white paper.

Three products in one

SafeKit combines three products in one. Traditionally, three different product types are required to create an application cluster with network load balancing, data availability and application recovery. With SafeKit, the same product provides application recovery with a farm solution for load balancing or with a mirror solution for data high availability, or with a combination of farm and mirror solutions on the same cluster, with common servers. This offer is unique on the market!

The 3 scenarios where SafeKit is the best solution on the market

There are three cases where SafeKit is the clustering solution clearly preferred by our customers. The first is in data centers, for making multiple applications on multiple OS highly available with the same clustering solution. The second is in distributed organizations, to cluster applications in local branches on standard hardware with a very simple solution. The third case is software publishing companies wishing to add a multi-platform high-availability option to their applications

A simple but complete clustering solution

The simplicity of SafeKit does not mean lack of functions. SafeKit is a simple but complete high-availability solution.

All the high-availability mechanisms are combined in the same product: network load balancing, real-time file replication, monitoring of applications with automatic recovery in case of failure, modules that can be customized with an application, execution of several application modules on the same cluster, farm clusters, mirror clusters, mixed of farm and mirror modules, mutual takeover between two servers, and N-to-1 clusters with one passive server backing up multiple active servers

A clustering solution you can try before you buy

Within 10 minutes of demonstration, you can understand how SafeKit works on very simple applications. Within 1 hour, you can deploy your first software cluster on these same applications, and you are ready to deploy software clustering on your own applications.

A solution that can adapt to network load balancing boxes

SafeKit provides software network load balancing mechanism and removes the need for network load balancing boxes. SafeKit can nonetheless be configured with network load balancing boxes. In this case, it can be used for automatic application failover and real time file replication.

A solution that can adapt to shared disk bays

SafeKit real time file replication is very suited to databases with less than 500 Gigabytes, 1 000 000 files. Larger databases are most often on shared disk bays with their internal replication systems. SafeKit can be configured with shared disk bays and used for automatic application failover and network load balancing.

Synchronous, fault-tolerant replication that doesn't lose data when a server fails

With synchronous replication, when a disk IO is performed by the application or by the file cache system on the primary server inside a replicated file, SafeKit waits for the IO acknowledgement from the local disk and from the secondary server, before sending the IO acknowledgement to the application or to the file system cache. This mechanism ensures that any data committed on a disk by a transactional application is on the secondary server. The bandwidth and the latency of a LAN between the servers is required to implement synchronous data replication, possibly with an extended LAN in two geographically remote computer rooms.

With asynchronous replication implemented by other solutions, the IOs are placed in a queue on the primary server but the primary server does not wait for the IO acknowledgments of the secondary server. So, all data that did not have time to be copied across the network on the second server is lost if the first server fails. In particular, a transactional application loses committed data in case of failure. Asynchronous replication can be used for data replication through a low-speed WAN, to back up data remotely.

For more details, read our white paper on choosing a high-availability solution.

Advanced software clustering technology

Designed and developed by clustering solution experts, SafeKit technology defines the state of the art. The same product integrates the following finely configurable technologies: multiple heartbeat channels, membership protocol to manage alive servers, split brain management in case of network isolation, multiple virtual IP addresses with a virtual MAC technology for transparent rerouting, process monitoring and automatic restart, checkers for network interface, external router and TCP services, customized checkers, dedicated replication channel, access in read-only mode to replicated data on the secondary server, non-replicated files in a replicated directory, customizable start-up scripts, virtual host names, disconnectable automatic recovery system, module dependencies....

All these are explained in a single configuration document for Windows, Linux, AIX and Solaris platforms.

More information:

Customer case studies


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SafeKit > Choice 10 reasons to choose SafeKit Competitive advantages Hardware vs. software clustering The 3 top scenarios Datacenter Distributed organization Software publisher SafeKit Home	Evidian > Products > SafeKit > Choice 10 reasons to choose SafeKit An inexpensive, user-friendly software-only solution SafeKit removes the need for costly dispatching boxes, shared disk bays and other specific hardware. It saves you the expense of deploying and maintaining complex hardware clustering solutions. SafeKit is a software-only clustering solution that you can deploy on your existing standard servers. It is much easier to deploy and far less expensive than a hardware cluster. Many operating systems, one clustering solution Most of the time, you have applications running on different operating systems. What if a new application on a new operating system needs to be made highly available? Are you ready to invest in a different clustering technology each time? With SafeKit, the technology is the same, no matter what the operating system: Linux, Windows, AIX or Solaris – so you do not need to re-train your administrators several times. You can manage all your clusters with the same tool, the same configuration, the same on-line commands and the same administration console! For more details, read the white paper. Three products in one SafeKit combines three products in one. Traditionally, three different product types are required to create an application cluster with network load balancing, data availability and application recovery. With SafeKit, the same product provides application recovery with a farm solution for load balancing or with a mirror solution for data high availability, or with a combination of farm and mirror solutions on the same cluster, with common servers. This offer is unique on the market! The 3 scenarios where SafeKit is the best solution on the market There are three cases where SafeKit is the clustering solution clearly preferred by our customers. The first is in data centers, for making multiple applications on multiple OS highly available with the same clustering solution. The second is in distributed organizations, to cluster applications in local branches on standard hardware with a very simple solution. The third case is software publishing companies wishing to add a multi-platform high-availability option to their applications A simple but complete clustering solution The simplicity of SafeKit does not mean lack of functions. SafeKit is a simple but complete high-availability solution. All the high-availability mechanisms are combined in the same product: network load balancing, real-time file replication, monitoring of applications with automatic recovery in case of failure, modules that can be customized with an application, execution of several application modules on the same cluster, farm clusters, mirror clusters, mixed of farm and mirror modules, mutual takeover between two servers, and N-to-1 clusters with one passive server backing up multiple active servers A clustering solution you can try before you buy Within 10 minutes of demonstration, you can understand how SafeKit works on very simple applications. Within 1 hour, you can deploy your first software cluster on these same applications, and you are ready to deploy software clustering on your own applications. A solution that can adapt to network load balancing boxes SafeKit provides software network load balancing mechanism and removes the need for network load balancing boxes. SafeKit can nonetheless be configured with network load balancing boxes. In this case, it can be used for automatic application failover and real time file replication. A solution that can adapt to shared disk bays SafeKit real time file replication is very suited to databases with less than 500 Gigabytes, 1 000 000 files. Larger databases are most often on shared disk bays with their internal replication systems. SafeKit can be configured with shared disk bays and used for automatic application failover and network load balancing. Synchronous, fault-tolerant replication that doesn't lose data when a server fails With synchronous replication, when a disk IO is performed by the application or by the file cache system on the primary server inside a replicated file, SafeKit waits for the IO acknowledgement from the local disk and from the secondary server, before sending the IO acknowledgement to the application or to the file system cache. This mechanism ensures that any data committed on a disk by a transactional application is on the secondary server. The bandwidth and the latency of a LAN between the servers is required to implement synchronous data replication, possibly with an extended LAN in two geographically remote computer rooms. With asynchronous replication implemented by other solutions, the IOs are placed in a queue on the primary server but the primary server does not wait for the IO acknowledgments of the secondary server. So, all data that did not have time to be copied across the network on the second server is lost if the first server fails. In particular, a transactional application loses committed data in case of failure. Asynchronous replication can be used for data replication through a low-speed WAN, to back up data remotely. For more details, read our white paper on choosing a high-availability solution. Advanced software clustering technology Designed and developed by clustering solution experts, SafeKit technology defines the state of the art. The same product integrates the following finely configurable technologies: multiple heartbeat channels, membership protocol to manage alive servers, split brain management in case of network isolation, multiple virtual IP addresses with a virtual MAC technology for transparent rerouting, process monitoring and automatic restart, checkers for network interface, external router and TCP services, customized checkers, dedicated replication channel, access in read-only mode to replicated data on the secondary server, non-replicated files in a replicated directory, customizable start-up scripts, virtual host names, disconnectable automatic recovery system, module dependencies.... All these are explained in a single configuration document for Windows, Linux, AIX and Solaris platforms. More information: Customer case studies	Abstract An inexpensive, user-friendly software-only solution Many operating systems, one clustering solution Three products in one The 3 scenarios where SafeKit is the best solution on the market A simple but complete clustering solution A clustering solution you can try before you buy A solution that can adapt to network load balancing boxes A solution that can adapt to shared disk bays Synchronous, fault-tolerant replication that doesn't lose data when a server fails Advanced software clustering technology QUESTIONS?

SafeKit > Choice