SriLankan Airline slashes backup windows up to 64% and enhances business continuity.
Commvault® Cloud helps SriLankan Airlines improve data management efficiency by 33% and meet compliance requirements.
Slashes backup windows up to 64%
Improves data management efficiency by 33%
Met compliance requirements
33%
data management efficiency gain64%
reduction in the daily backup window120TB
of data protectedCHALLENGES
- Labor-intensive data recovery from tapes and failure to quickly respond to a critical safety audit
- Need for a modern data management solution to support long-term data retention requirements
- Backup performance improvements required for the complex environment to minimize IT team workloads
SOLUTION
- Deployed Commvault® Cloud Backup & Recovery Software for rapid on-premises data recovery, including Microsoft Exchange and Oracle Database
- Engaged Commvault Partner South Asian Technologies (Pvt.) Ltd and V S Information Systems (Pvt.) Ltd. to support the implementation
RESULTS
- Up to 64% reduction in the daily backup window for Microsoft Exchange
- 33% data management efficiency gain
- Timely response to safety audits by automating backup and recovery processes
- Enabled the IT team to focus on driving business value instead of managing tapes
- Automated tiering of long-term data retention to comply with regulatory requirements
Overview
As the ground handler for Bandaranaike International Colombo Airport and Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport, SriLankan Airlines needed to manage large volumes of data for itself and other airlines operating at these airports. In addition, it runs separate business units that provide cargo and catering services to all airlines at both airports.
“After evaluating various products, Commvault Cloud was the best fit for our environment because of its backup technology, storage, and cloud integration capability.”
Ensuring business continuity for critical airline operations
“Data is like jet fuel for business continuity in the aviation industry. Protecting our precious data with real-time backups is one of our prime interests that evolves continuously with an advanced and industry-leading backup solution,” said Chamara Perera, Group Head of Information Technology at SriLankan Airlines.
“After evaluating various products, Commvault was the best fit for our environment because of its backup technology, storage, and cloud integration capability.”
Enabling timely responses to safety audits
Before deploying Commvault Cloud, SriLankan Airlines used a legacy solution for backups and stored backup tape copies offsite. It was labor-intensive to recover data from tapes – collecting and transporting them between locations involved multiple steps. In addition, when safety audits from the parliament or cabinet required timely response, this manual process created significant challenges.
“As a heavily governed entity, we were exposed to many audits and compliance deadlines. For example, the investigative commission could ask for business data dating back ten years, and we had to provide the information in two or three days,” said Darshana Palliyaguru, Chief Network Engineer at SriLankan Airlines. “With the data volume we had from different business units, it was a nightmare to recover data from tapes and meet the given timeframe.”
By integrating Commvault Cloud with its Hitachi storage system, the airline gained a high-performance backup solution to ensure data availability for the workloads across the on-premises environment. This helped eliminate the tape operations and allowed SriLankan Airlines to respond to safety audits quickly.
“With Commvault, we now have a modern data management solution so we know our data is in a secure environment and can be recovered at any time,” said Palliyaguru.
Chamila Weerakoon, Manager, IT Business Systems at SriLankan Airlines added: “Now we have improved recovery time to meet business demand through automation of backup processes and minimization of human errors.”
Improving backup windows and compliance
Through the Commvault solution’s automation, Chamara and his team freed up their time to focus on driving more value for the airline’s business instead of managing tapes.
“By using Commvault Cloud, we saved 33% of the time spent in backup operations. We expect to drive further efficiency up to 70% with further fine-tuning, cloud integration, and expansions,” said Palliyaguru.
Another surprising benefit was efficiency gains in backup performance. “Thanks to Commvault, we have reduced our daily backup window for Microsoft Exchange servers by 64%. It was a massive improvement,” said Amali Hemachandra, Lead Systems Engineer at SriLankan Airlines.
The airline industry also must comply with strict data retention rules. For example, SriLankan Airlines had to retain financial data for up to 11 years and some other data for nearly as long. Using Commvault Cloud automates the tiering of long-term data retention, enabling the airline to meet regulatory requirements.
Transforming data management and supporting future growth
With the complexity of over 100 applications and tight regulations in the airline industry, Commvault Partner South Asian Technologies (Pvt.) Ltd (SAT) and V S Information Systems (Pvt.) Ltd. (VSIS) worked with the Commvault team to simplify implementation.
“This project was a totally new environment for SAT and VSIS, but they learned it quickly,” said Hemachandra. “We were delighted with SAT and VSIS as they helped us maximize the features of the Commvault solution and get the most out of the implementation.”
“Commvault has transformed the way we manage our data. We have confidence that Commvault will deliver further efficiency and financial savings for the airline for years to come,” said Perera.
