I currently own my own computer business that services on the east coast, its just me so finding extra ways to earn revenue is a concern.
I came up with the idea of offering an offsite data backup service.
What I would like to offer:- multi-platform file backup ability
- automated bi-hourly backups of all data
- a web interface to monitor files backed up and add new directories
- the ability to connect from any computer on the net and download/upload files ( basically FTP )
- Support at least 4 TB of drives' mirrored in raid 1 for security
- Support at least 20 simultaneous users backup up files
Ideas thus far:
I was thinking as a beginning testbed I would impliment an FTP on a server 2003 platform. The user account i would setup per customer would be tied to the NT login (allowing me to set disk quotas) and simultaneously work as the ftp login cridentials. i could install apache or IIS to be a frontend for the FTP login, however i would need a configurable client/server program that allows for adding files to be backed up.
Another idea was to install a VPN network and an automated backup software on each customer machine and have it connect to a mapped drive through the vnp and transfer data on a bi-hourly basis. The problem with this is interoperability between windows platforms and linux platforms.
Server & Connection:
The computer I would begin with would be either a:
- AMD AthlonFX52 - 2GB ram
- 3x P4 Dell Dimensions clustered with 2003 enterprise edition
Would it be advisable to purchase a NAS? or a seperate storage medium? Should i drop the cash on a quad core 8gb system with 4TB non raid immediately? The computer would host All services, such as web interface, ftp and remote file management. i also have avalable a server 2003 cluster running 3 old p4 dells. Could i find use in their redundancy? I am also currently running on verizon business, where the ip is no static. Should i look to get Comcast highest speed i can get and pray the IP stays static?
Questions I have are:- should i go with Linux or Windows as my platform
- should i trust all the open source programs and try those to lower overhead?
- Is it possible to impliment Hamachi as my VPN or is that too unsecure and slow?
- The program "Cobian Backup" has been a very nice data backup program thus far, but is there one better suited to my needs?
I am very (and i mean very) open to suggestions on what you think would work well. The only idea im not open to is a "give up, other people offer that service already" schtick.
Software I've tested for this:
Hamachi - VNP program
Cobian - backup software