I contacted Double-Take. The great news is that their Availability software does exactly what I want; that is create a mirror machine so if one fails the other continues seamlessly on. The bad news is that it is extremely expensive; the "retail" cost for the required software for my two servers would be as much as adding the two additional hardware servers to make a hardware mirroring system. They offer it through resellers, and the salesman indicated that "substantial discounts" were available, but unless it is discounted about 90% it is not really in the running for a rational solution. He pointed with great pride that they had been in business since 1990-something, which always causes me great amusement when dealing with computer folks. For most businesses, a 15 year longevity is just getting started!

Their backup program, which does a continuous backup but does not automatically switch servers is about 1/4 the price, but still more than the cost of a basic laptop. He indicated he would send an evaluation package, and I'll have my IT guys look at it, but I was really floored by his quote; I thought he had misread by a decimal place. Frankly, with the cost of hardware being what it is, I don't know why anyone would go this route. I'll report further after I see what he sends.

David Grauman MD, FACP
Flagstaff, Arizona