StorageCraft  has announced the Australia/NZ  launch of ShadowControl ImageManager 5, software designed to help manage, customise and enhance the backup process.

ShadowControl ImageManager works in conjunction with StorageCraft’s  ShadowProtect  range of backup and disaster recovery software. It includes tools and services that allow users to replicate backup images to remote locations including the cloud, pre-stage backups as virtual machines, consolidate backup image files and monitor and manage backups created with ShadowProtect.

Greg Wyman, Vice President – Asia Pacific at StorageCraft says: “In Australia and New Zealand, the lack of decent Internet is a challenge for most companies wanting offsite or cloud disaster recovery. With ShadowStream, the ultra-fast replication technology in ShadowControl ImageManager 5, companies of all sizes are now able to reliably implement remote disaster recovery using just ADSL lines. Tests have shown that using the new ShadowStream technology over ‘normal’ Internet typically improves performance five-fold.”

“StorageCraft ShadowProtect backs up only the sectors that change – called incremental forever technology - and protects data and databases every 15 minutes, which means that only a small amount of data gets transferred every 15 minutes. Combined with ShadowControl ImageManager, the software delivers a complete solution for offsite or cloud based disaster recovery.”

ShadowStream technology transports ShadowProtect backup files off-site quickly and reliably by controlling bandwidth capacity.

intelligentFTP enables the user to filter files for replication locally, to the network or to an off-site location. The user can set parameters for the replication, whether it’s every incremental backup or just backup files that have been verified.

HeadStart Restore reduces the recovery window by proactively constructing the backup image as a virtual machine, allowing the user to restore the system in minutes, saving critical time.

In addition, ShadowControl ImageManager provides management tools that allow users to verify and re-verify backup image files over time to make sure they are still intact. ShadowControl ImageManager also consolidates backup image files and allows the user to set up retention parameters locally and in the cloud, saving valuable storage space both onsite and offsite. Users can set up email notifications to track the status of backup images as well.

New Zealand-based IT services provider Oxygen IT has developed a complete offsite disaster recovery solution leveraging StorageCraft technology.

“Time is a valuable commodity for any business today. Small, medium and large enterprises have a critical need for simplified, automated business continuity that takes the risk of data loss off their plate. Faster backups and faster recoveries are now possible with ShadowStream and HeadStart Restore. Every minute of time or data lost is unnecessary and can be avoided with the right tools,” said Stace Hema, Managing Director at OxygenIT.

ShadowControl ImageManager is included free with a ShadowProtect licence. Jobs using ShadowStream, intelligentFTP and HeadStart Restore require additional licensing fees, depending on the software the user selects.