Redundancy (or Disaster Prevention)

The 4Projects infrastructure has been designed with redundancy in mind so that there can be no
single point of failure which can affect the system.

All hardware in the 4Projects hosting centre has dual network connections and dual power supplies.
In the event of a server crashing the load will immediately be taken up by the standby servers whose
sole purpose is to take over should a problem occur with the primary system(s). This is of course done
automatically and offers significant protection and access to systems in the event of hardware
failure.

In addition to this, a Database Mirroring process is also in place as the final solution to data loss. With
the level of redundancy built into the 4Projects infrastructure, it is there purely as a last resort should
the hosting centre suffer a major catastrophe rendering it completely unavailable for a protracted
period of time. Mirroring is the process of continually streaming data in the primary hosting centre to
a secondary location.

Data Security and Integrity

Hosted at BT’s premier Data Centre in Glasgow, the security and hosting environment is world class.

• Manned 24×7, on-site security, covered by CCTV, Bio-metric and PIN security passes
• Gas, fire, heat and flood detection with Argonite fire suppression
• Guaranteed heat, power and humidity service levels
• Battery and generator backed UPS enable 100% power Service Guarantee
• The data centre is certified as ISO 27001 compliant

Identifying a Hardware or Software Failure

The infrastructure at the BT hosting centre in Glasgow is extremely resilient with dual paths and
redundancy built in at each point of failure. Lose a switch, web server, or even a database server
and the system will automatically continue on its redundant spare whilst the faulty item is being
repaired.

A comprehensive set of alert conditions have been drawn up that identify both failures and potential
failures. These alerts notify 4Projects staff should any of the system components (hardware or
software) fail and also if any of the pre-defined performance thresholds are exceeded.

The monitoring and notification process allows pro-active support to be given without the need for a
device or server to fail before an alert condition is generated. This means that a problem should
have been identified and in the process of being fixed before it becomes a serious issue to the users
of the system.

Arching Projects

4Projects believe most value is gained by leaving your data online after completing the project in a
read-only state. This contributes to the organisational knowledge-base. However, should the client
prefer, we also provide a full archive solution.

This facility enables all documents associated with a project to be made available to the client
locally. Clients may want to do this at regular specific stages in a project’s life cycle, providing
peace of mind that all information used to date is readily available come what may.

Data Archives are made up of the information relating to a project. This includes all documents,
drawings, photos, discussions and all other components that are part of the 4Projects solution.

We can provide a disk comprising of all files on a project – an entire archive solution capturing all of
the original project information. Any member of the team can have a copy – they will only see what
they were originally entitled to see using their 4Projects login.

4Projects Data Archive is priced separately from the 4Projects hosted solution, with details available
on request.

Archive Platform

The archive solution is effectively a standalone and self-contained Microsoft Windows machine
acting as a server, with all of the necessary components required to present the same interface to
the data as the client would have used when the data was in active use. The technology employed
comprises the following:

- Windows 7 Professional x86
- SQL Server 2008 R2 Express Edition
- Internet Information Services 7.5
- Brava Enterprise 7 (for viewing various filetypes and their markups).
- TrueCrypt drive encryption technology
- Oracle VirtualBox

Licensing and Limitations

The cost of a 4Projects Archive includes the appropriate licenses for the software required. The
physical file data are stored as FILESTREAM objects, which does not count towards the 10GB limit
imposed on the size of a single database in SQL 2008 R2 Express. Therefore, only the metadata
actually contributes to the overall size of the database and for the vast majority of customers, it will
not be necessary to purchase a SQL Server license. 4Projects will calculate the total size of the
metadata prior to the production of an archive, informing the client of any additional licensing
requirements as appropriate.

Delivery to the Client

The entire archive platform along with the client’s data and appropriate software licensing is
supplied as a single preconfigured virtual machine appliance compatible with Oracle VirtualBox, in
Open Virtualization Format (OVF). The virtual appliance is delivered on an external USB hard disk,
inside an encrypted partition employing strong 256-bit AES encryption technology with a 25-
character randomly-generated key. The key to the encrypted partition holding the virtual appliance
is delivered to the client via a separate transmission medium to the archive itself (email, telephone,
or a separate paper delivery)