Application-specific
protection
Kasten K10 automatically discovers all the components of a Kubernetes application and provides the user with options to back up each of the components according to specified parameters. This option not only helps to secure data used by applications, but also helps to optimize backup storage utilization.
Policy-based backup automation and monitoring
Policies automate data protection workflows at scale. To achieve this, policies combine actions set by the administrator (e.g., take a snapshot), at a frequency or schedule for that action. Users can define a namespace, or a label-based selection criteria for the resources set for backup, to optimize protection.
Rapid service
restoration
One of the main goals of an effective Kubernetes backup solution is the non-invasive capture of a containerized application, coupled with its ability to restore it quickly and effectively to service. Kasten K10 restores applications through a palate of options, including selective restore, to maximize the use of stored data for integration with normal restore and disaster recovery operations.
New considerations for Kubernetes container technology
Backup and restore refers to a process or solution which generates a copy of an application in production and stores it to a separate infrastructure resource. Ideally, the backup location is isolated from the production platform to create independence, so that an infrastructure failure of the production system does not concurrently impact the stored copy, or “backup.”
Service restoration
is key
The backup can be used to return a service to operation from the point that the snapshot of the system was created. In a traditional model, the application is captured as a 3-tier model, which includes the user interface, executable software, and system data. More complex software applications access and store data that are not contained within the 3-tier structure.
Restore a microservice to live production
Virtualization and cloud technologies have triggered applications and services to outgrow the traditional model as a reference design. Kubernetes, a virtualized container platform, is an example of a new technology that requires new tools and support systems, including services such as backup and restore. The microservices framework is a new model that characterizes the structure of applications intended for cloud environments.
DR for a Modern Application
- A microservices architecture has many pods, data sources, and deployment variations that are not defined by hardware volumes.
- With backups encrypted and stored in offline and offsite locations, chances are improved that cybercriminals cannot impair the resilience of a protected Kubernetes application.
- In the case of polyglot data, each of the data sources for an application (including configuration, persistent and temporary data) does not reside in the same physical or virtual space as the application.
Critical K8s Backup Requirements
- Components can be returned to service in test or production environments, and from among clones, encrypted data, and immutable backups.
- If a full application restoration is needed, an ideal Kubernetes backup management solution provides an application Blueprint to sequentially restore an application to service and minimize impact to SLAs.
- Relaunch of operations can be performed directly on an existing virtual platform, or it can be mobilized to an alternative platform, for example, on-premises, public or private cloud, or a hybrid environment.
Application misconfiguration
When applications are misconfigured, the results may not be immediately detected upon release of new code or a software update. The misconfiguration is detected only after an expected service result is observed that is not in alignment with a service or application specification.
Standby clusters
Running redundant operations is a method to protect against a failure that may occur to a system in production. In Kubernetes applications, these are called “standby clusters,” and the tools that enable software clusters to be copied, migrated, or otherwise placed into service are important. A complete Kubernetes backup solution will have the capability to copy, restore, and move clusters, as well as the option to source a combination of offline and offsite protected data for service restoration.
Accidental data loss
Accidental data loss can occur throughout the development and production cycles. Even with tight development controls built into software production, dependent components such as data stores can become corrupted or accidentally deleted. Kasten K10 provides robust Kubernetes backup and restore solutions to prevent such losses.
Compliance
Kubernetes backup and restore capabilities as well as data protection practices are governed by a combination of internal policy and external regulatory control. Because the new microservices architectures embraced by the Kubernetes platform are not automatically compliant with traditional volume backup tools, only Kubernetes backup solutions can address Kubernetes container operations in compliance with most policies that govern production and backup software practices today.
Key Challenges
- Limited Kubernetes ecosystem. Companies that are slow to adopt emerging Kubernetes ecosystem support run the high risk of encumbering their production effort with high overhead.
Backup and Restore
- Application misconfiguration
- Accidental data loss
- Standby clusters
- Compliance
Disaster Recovery
- Ransomware attack
- Malicious data loss
- Unintentional failures
- Infrastructure or HW failure
Application Mobility
- Cross cloud portability
- Multi-cloud balancing
- Cluster upgrade testing
- Data management
