Double-Take Software has announced that it is extending its GeoCluster offering to support failover clustering and the hypervisor-based virtualization in Windows Server 2008. GeoCluster is a software-based replication solution designed to integrate seamlessly with failover clustering, removing the requirement for shared storage and enabling customers to easily create geographically disparate clusters.

GeoCluster extends the clustering capabilities provided as part of Windows Server by making it possible to build a failover cluster without the need for shared storage, allowing cluster nodes to be in different physical locations. Removing the requirement for shared storage also eliminates it as a single point of failure for clustered applications. By extending the capabilities of Windows Server 2008 failover clustering, available with the Enterprise and Datacenter editions of Windows Server 2008, GeoCluster offers added data protection, enhanced disaster recovery, and provides continual access to data and applications across sites.

The latest release of GeoCluster is a complement to the failover clustering capabilities of Windows Server 2008 for mission-critical, high-availability Windows applications. With the launch of Microsoft Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V, for example, IT administrators have the ability to move virtual machines between Hyper-V hosts using the quick migration feature in combination with failover clustering. This capability comes with every license of Windows Server 2008 Enterprise and Datacenter editions, along with expanded virtualization use rights of each of these editions. Adding GeoCluster to this scenario allows organizations to cluster Hyper-V workloads even if they don't have access to a storage area network. In addition, customers can move virtual machines not just within a data center but to any node in a cluster, regardless of geographic location.