---
canonical: "https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/best-worst-use-cases-high-availability/"
llms_index: "https://safekit.eviden.com/llms.txt"
llms_section: "Product Overview"
topics: "Best and Worst High Availability Use Cases: A SafeKit Implementation Guide, When to Use SafeKit Software Clustering vs. Traditional Hardware Solutions, Best use cases of SafeKit high availability, Worst use cases of SafeKit high availability, SafeKit High Availability Limitations, 🔍 SafeKit High Availability Navigation Hub"
---

# Best and Worst High Availability Use Cases: A SafeKit Implementation Guide

## When to Use SafeKit Software Clustering vs. Traditional Hardware Solutions

[🧑 Contact us](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/contact-us-for-safekit/)

[🎁 SafeKit free trial](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/safekit-free-trial/)

[🏅 Free certification](https://training.my.evidian.com/mod/page/view.php?id=712)

[💰 Perpetual license cost](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/get-a-quote-safekit-en/)

## Best use cases of SafeKit high availability

### OEM Software

A software publisher uses [SafeKit as an OEM software](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/application-clustering-software/) for high availability of its application

[![Application Clustering Software for a Software Publisher](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg'%20viewBox='0%200%20300%20166'%3E%3C/svg%3E)![Application Clustering Software for a Software Publisher](https://safekit.eviden.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/application-clustering-software-3.png)](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/application-clustering-software/)

### Distributed Enterprise

A distributed enterprise deploys [SafeKit in many branches](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/business-continuity-software/) without specific IT skills

[![High Availability Software in a Distributed Enterprise](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg'%20viewBox='0%200%20300%2073'%3E%3C/svg%3E)![High Availability Software in a Distributed Enterprise](https://safekit.eviden.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/distributed-enterprise-1.png)](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/business-continuity-software/)

### Remote Sites

[SafeKit is deployed in two remote sites](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/high-availability-disaster-recovery-hadr/) without the need for replicated bays of disks through a SAN.

[![Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery without a replicated SAN](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg'%20viewBox='0%200%20300%20127'%3E%3C/svg%3E)![Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery without a replicated SAN](https://safekit.eviden.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/remote-datacenters.png)](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/business-continuity-and-disaster-recovery-software/)

## Worst use cases of SafeKit high availability

## SafeKit High Availability Limitations

### Why a replication of a few Tera-bytes?

Resynchronization time after a failure ([step 3](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/file-replication-byte-level-with-failover-mirror-cluster/#mirrorcluster))

* 1 Gb/s network ≈ 3 Hours for 1 Tera-bytes.
* 10 Gb/s network ≈ 1 Hour for 1 Tera-bytes or less depending on disk write performances.

#### Alternative

* For a large volume of data, use [external shared storage](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/san-vs-nas-shared-storage-for-a-failover-cluster/).
* More expensive, more complex.

### Why a replication < 1,000,000 files?

* Resynchronization time performance after a failure ([step 3](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/file-replication-byte-level-with-failover-mirror-cluster/#mirrorcluster)).
* Time to check each file between both nodes.

#### Alternative

* Put the many files to replicate in a virtual hard disk / virtual machine.
* Only the files representing the virtual hard disk / virtual machine will be replicated and resynchronized in this case.

### Why a failover ≤ 32 replicated VMs?

* Each VM runs in an independent mirror module.
* Maximum of 32 mirror modules running on the same cluster.

#### Alternative

* Use an external shared storage and another VM clustering solution.
* More expensive, more complex.

### Why a LAN/VLAN network between remote sites?

* Automatic failover of the [virtual IP address](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/how-a-virtual-ip-address-works/) with 2 nodes in the same subnet.
* Good bandwidth for resynchronization ([step 3](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/file-replication-byte-level-with-failover-mirror-cluster/#mirrorcluster)) and good latency for [synchronous replication](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/synchronous-replication-vs-asynchronous-replication/) (typically a round-trip of less than 2ms).

#### Alternative

* Use a [load balancer for the virtual IP address](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/how-a-virtual-ip-address-works/) if the 2 nodes are in 2 subnets (supported by SafeKit, especially in the cloud).
* Use backup solutions with asynchronous replication for high latency network.

## 🔍 SafeKit High Availability Navigation Hub

Explore SafeKit: Features, technical videos, documentation, and free trial

| Resource Type | Description | Direct Link |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Key Features** | Why Choose SafeKit for Simple and Cost-Effective High Availability? | [See Why Choose SafeKit for High Availability](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#why-choose-safekit-for-ha "Discover SafeKit features for simple and cost-effective high availability") |
| **Use Cases** | Explore How SafeKit Ensures the High Availability of Critical Infrastructure | [See All Use Cases (OEM Software, Edge Servers, SCADA, and more)](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-use-cases "Explore SafeKit high availability use cases") |
| **Deployment Model** | All-in-One SANless HA: Shared-Nothing Software Clustering | [See SafeKit All-in-One SANless HA](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#all-in-one-sanless-ha "Learn about all-in-one SANless high availability with shared-nothing software clustering") |
| **HA Strategies** | SafeKit: Infrastructure (VM) vs. Application-Level High Availability | [See SafeKit HA & Redundancy: VM vs. Application Level](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-ha-redundancy-choices "Compare VM-level redundancy with SafeKit application-level high availability strategies") |
| **Technical Specifications** | Technical Limitations for SafeKit Clustering | [See SafeKit High Availability Limitations](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-ha-limitations "Technical requirements and limitations for SafeKit application clustering") |
| **Proof of Concept** | SafeKit: High Availability Configuration & Failover Demos | [See SafeKit Failover Tutorials](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-failover-tutorials "Step-by-step videos on SafeKit high availability, from installation to automated failover") |
| **Architecture** | How the SafeKit Mirror Cluster works (Real-Time Replication & Failover) | [See SafeKit Mirror Cluster: Real-Time Replication & Failover](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-mirror-cluster "See technical architecture and failover mechanism of SafeKit Mirror Cluster") |
| **Architecture** | How the SafeKit Farm Cluster works (Network Load Balancing & Failover) | [See SafeKit Farm Cluster: Network Load Balancing & Failover](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-farm-cluster "Technical overview of SafeKit Farm Cluster architecture with network load balancing") |
| **Competitive Advantages** | Comparison: SafeKit vs. Traditional High Availability (HA) Clusters | [See SafeKit vs. Traditional HA Cluster Comparison](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-ha-comparison "Detailed comparison of SafeKit software vs traditional hardware-based HA clusters") |
| **Technical Resources** | SafeKit High Availability: Documentation, Downloads & Trial | [See SafeKit HA Free Trial & Technical Documentation](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-ha-technical-resources "Access SafeKit free trial, technical documentation, and high availability white papers") |
| **Pre-configured Solutions** | SafeKit Application Module Library: Ready-to-Use HA Solutions | [See SafeKit High Availability Application Modules](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/#safekit-ha-application-modules "Browse the library of pre-configured SafeKit modules for automated application failover") |

[🧑 Contact us](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/contact-us-for-safekit/)

[🎁 SafeKit free trial](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/safekit-free-trial/)

[🏅 Free certification](https://training.my.evidian.com/mod/page/view.php?id=712)

[💰 Perpetual license cost](https://safekit.eviden.com/products/high-availability-software-for-application-clustering/get-a-quote-safekit-en/)