Server Maintenance Procedures; Source Server Failure Scenarios; Establish Backup Procedures - M86 Security IR Web Filter User Manual

Server Maintenance Procedures

Source Server Failure Scenarios

In the event that the source Web Filter unit should fail, the
target servers will continue to run using the last known
configuration loaded from the source server. However, all
dynamic authentication-based profiles will eventually time-
out, since the source Web Filter server can no longer verify
user credentials. When this occurs, the information on the
server can no longer be trusted. In most cases, the failure of
the source server can be quickly repaired, though it is
possible the source server will be down for an extended
period of time due to detailed troubleshooting that needs to
be performed, or that the source server will need to be
replaced due to hardware failure.
In cases in which the source Web Filter server is out of
commission for an extended period of time, this server
should be replaced as soon as possible so that individual
user authentication can be executed, and the ability to
control the filtering cluster is continually enabled. In cases in
which the Web Filter will not be immediately replaced, one
of the target Web Filter servers should be designated as the
new source server.

Establish Backup Procedures

To prevent down time during a source server failure, M86
recommends establishing backup and restore procedures.
It is important that regular backups of the source Web Filter
server are saved using the Backup/Restore window in the
System section of the Web Filter console. Once a backup is
created, it can be downloaded to another machine for safe-
keeping. A backup should be created and downloaded
whenever a change is made to filtering settings on the
source Web Filter.
M86 S U G
ECURITY SER UIDE
I S
NTRODUCTORY ECTION
C 3: S
HAPTER YNCHRONIZING
M U
ULTIPLE NITS
47