I'm looking for a way to synchronize network shares across multiple offices, but here's the catch: we want to keep everything on-premises without relying on the cloud. We have several sites connected via site-to-site VPN, and the data includes large image files (1-5 GB) along with smaller accompanying files. Each site generates new images almost daily, and it's crucial that these images are replicated quickly to all other sites (ideally under 2 hours). Currently, we use Microsoft AFS, but it's becoming too costly with cloud storage fees and inefficient data transfers. We've experimented with other tools like Resilio Sync and DFS-R, but they either didn't meet our needs or failed unexpectedly. We're seeking a reliable, supported vendor that can handle this kind of two-way sync for our Windows file shares without any cloud components. Any recommendations?
5 Answers
What about having all your workers connect to VM workstations at your core site? This could streamline things and eliminate the need for file copying altogether.
From my experience, DFS-R has been reliable for years for keeping file servers in sync. However, I understand your concerns about conflicts since your setup is a bit more complex. You could set it up for one-way sync with exceptions to manage potential data overlap effectively.
I've had great results with Tiger Bridge—it offers a similar approach to AFS but is more flexible with different storage options. It could be worth investigating for your needs. Here's a link to their multi-site data synchronization features: [Tiger Bridge](https://kb.tiger-technology.com/multi-site-data-synchronization-with-tiger-bridge-and-the-cloud).
Have you thought about using rsync? You could also configure robocopy with a task scheduler, but you'll need a local managed service provider for reliable support. It might be tricky to maintain two-way sync with those options, though, especially with all the data you have.
Two-way sync might be challenging with those tools given the volume of data, but I'm open to suggestions!
Have you looked into Storage Replica in synchronous mode? It’s part of Windows Server, though you might need to upgrade to Datacenter for the full features. It's worth checking out, as it might meet your needs better than traditional sync tools.
I think Storage Replica is only active/passive, though, right? That wouldn’t work for our two-way requirement.
The issue is we don't have a 'central' site. Each location handles its imaging, and the doctors need immediate access to files across all sites.