Unlocking the Power of Tessell Availability Machine: Understanding Why, What, How?

Introduction

As organizations increasingly recognize the value of migrating their databases to the cloud, there has been a surge in demand for cloud-based database solutions. While most Database-as-a-Service (DBaaS) offerings focus on mundane tasks like provisioning, backup and restore, and high availability management, they often fall short in addressing diverse data management needs. Consequently, many organizations resort to using disparate applications to manage their various data requirements, placing additional burdens on database administrators who must juggle operational tasks alongside data management and protection duties.

Availability Machine, an integral application within Tessell, aims to eliminate these data management silos by offering a unified solution for data management needs, streamlined automation for heavy lifting operations, and robust data protection — all without any extra cost. At the heart of Tee’s data management architecture lies The Availability Machine (AM). When provisioning a database service in Tessell, an Availability Machine is associated with it, encompassing every aspect of data management related to the database service.

With the Availability machine, users can:

• Protect the associated Database Service (SLA)
• Capture data (snapshots, backups, logs)
• Transform data (data masking, data sanitization, DB exports)
• Manage the data for all environments using access-policies

Data Protection

The primary purpose of an Availability Machine is to protect the data that’s stored in the database service. Users can assign a data protection Service Level Agreement (SLA) to the database service during creation, with the flexibility to modify it later. Tessell provides pre-defined SLA templates, allowing customers to choose from them or create custom SLAs according to their requirements.

At a high level, the Availability Machine SLA helps define:

• Point-in-time recoverability: Specifies the number of days for daily recoverability, with the option to specify snapshot capture times.
• Discrete recoverability: Specifies the number of days for daily recoverability, with the option to specify snapshot capture times
• Automated Snapshots: Tessell automatically captures database service snapshots according to the specified SLA, ensuring data protection. These snapshots are automatically deleted when no longer required, based on the SLA. Optionally, users can share snapshots across different cloud regions or with other users.

Automated Log Backups

To ensure zero data loss, Tessell continuously backs up transaction logs, providing peace of mind to users.

Point-in-Time Recovery (PITA) or Discrete Recovery

With Tessell’s zero data loss guarantee, users can restore their database to the last committed transaction. Additionally, customers can also restore their database service using discrete snapshots.

Data Management

The Availability Machine maintains a catalog of different kinds of data: snapshots, archive logs, database dumps, sanitized data, traditional backups, and more.

Manual Snapshots

Users can take snapshots at any time with a single click. These snapshots are managed by the Availability Machine unless users choose to delete them explicitly. Additionally, manual snapshots can be shared across different cloud regions or with other users.

Sanitized Snapshots

Tessell provides a mechanism to sanitize or mask users’ database service data and make it available to specified target cloud regions and users. Users can bring their own masking scripts to create sanitized snapshots on demand or set up schedules for regular sanitization.

Data Access Policy (DAP)

The Availability Machine allows users to define data access policies to control the availability of database snapshots and sanitized snapshots. DAPs enable data owners to manage who can access what data and under what conditions.

Sharing and Access Controls

Availability Machines can be shared across users with different access levels, such as co-owner or read-only. Co-owners have full control over the Availability Machine, while read-only users can view but not modify settings.

Dataflix

Dataflix is the consumer’s view of the data, complementing the producer’s view provided by the Availability Machine. Dataflix provides users with intuitive insights into available data, including snapshots, recoverability, and more., allowing them to make informed decisions about data consumption and cloning.

In summary, the Availability Machine in Tessell offers a comprehensive solution for data management, protection, and access, empowering organizations to maximize the value of their cloud-based databases while minimizing operational complexities.