Security copies in the cloud

Computers in the office and laboratory

The dispersion of business-critical data between different locations is a challenge faced by almost all modern organizations. Despite the use of solutions that allow centralized storage and management of data (e.g. file servers), in operational practice it is very difficult to guarantee that 100% of data is stored in a single location for which a regular security copy.

PozLab, which provides research and development and chemical and pharmaceutical analytical services, also faces a similar problem. Due to its distributed office structure and computerized laboratory, data – sometimes critical – is or potentially can only be stored on end stations. This is largely due to the specific functionality of the laboratory equipment, which stores analytical results as files on cooperating workstations.

Proposed solution

Based on the analysis of PozLab’s specific IT environment and business needs for data backup storage, BCC prepared a test environment (Proof of Concept), built on EMC Avamar backup system, provided as a service All for One Data Centers. By using the service in the BRaaS (Backup and Recovery as a Service) model, the need for implementation work on the customer’s side was eliminated, and the entire solution was operational in a very short time.

System validation

The test environment prepared by BCC, which backed up data from several designated PozLab workstations, was validated. The client’s restrictive requirements contained in a document containing about 100 detailed conditions, grouped into 15 categories, were the basis for functional evaluation of the system. Maintaining the highest standards and unambiguous evaluation criteria, including in the IT area, is a decisive condition for quality and security in the industries in which PozLab operates – pharmaceutical, food, cosmetics and veterinary.

Such a strong emphasis on the verification of work is a direct result of the legal requirements applicable to these industries, including the Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP, Good Manufacturing Practice) standards, which are mandatory in the pharmaceutical industry and define requirements related to the production and distribution of drugs. In the pharmaceutical industry, these standards are mandatory and regulated by numerous legal acts. Quality assurance systems require that IT solutions comply with GMP, and that this can be proven and documented at every step of each of the company’s processes.

Stefan Malycha, Manager of the Technology Department, PozLab Ltd.

Backups – fast and convenient
The results of research and development work on medicinal products, cosmetics or dietary supplements, as well as the results of laboratory analysis of quality control of such products, are not only a value that can be converted into money, but also a responsibility for the safety of users – patients and consumers, as well as a responsibility of a legal nature. Acting in accordance with current GMP requirements, we are obliged to maintain the full integrity of the test results generated in electronic form, in a way that makes it possible, on the one hand, to reproduce the result of each individual analysis, and on the other hand, to guarantee the full security of this result. At the same time, the confidentiality of the generated and stored data is critical to us.
The cloud backup system ensures that all the above-mentioned requirements are met, and at the same time has proven to be quick to implement and convenient to use. Performing validation of the system gives us confidence that the data stored in the backup environment is secure, reproducible and inviolable – this ensures compliance with GMP requirements. At the same time, the system secures the continuity of the company’s business in the – admittedly extremely rare, but in today’s digital world at any time possible – cases of problems with the IT environment that threaten this continuity.
Stefan Malycha, Manager of the Technology Department, PozLab Ltd.

Implementation and operation

Positive verification of the backup system for compliance with the User Requirements Specification enabled a production deployment, including both office staff workstations and specialized laboratory equipment and systems. At this stage, the backup system was integrated into the Active Directory (AD) domain and backup policies were implemented in accordance with PozLab requirements.

All stations are backed up automatically on a scheduled basis, as long as the station has connectivity to a backup cloud built on the All for One Data Centers’ secure infrastructure. Thanks to the deduplication mechanism, each backup takes only a few tens of seconds, during which only the data blocks modified on the workstation are sent over the network.

Each user has the ability to restore his files, directories or the entire backup by himself, and thanks to the web interface and single login – the whole operation requires only a few clicks. The long data retention period allows you to restore data from a selected date or track the variation of files over time.