Cohesity SiteContinuity

Cohesity SiteContinuity is disaster-recovery software for organizations protecting mission-critical VMware workloads and Cohesity NAS Views. It suits teams that need coordinated recovery across sites or to AWS, with a choice between managing the infrastructure themselves and using Cohesity’s DR service. Its broad recovery and automation toolkit is compelling, but workload support is specific and pricing is custom.

Overview

SiteContinuity brings backup and disaster recovery under one management interface and a shared, SLA-driven policy framework. Recovery can range from a single file or business application to an entire data center, giving teams options beyond a full-site failover when an incident is limited in scope.

Continuous data protection, asynchronous replication, and instant mass restore support recovery across sites. Customers can build plans, orchestrate failover and failback, and run non-disruptive recovery tests. That combination is suited to organizations that need to rehearse recovery without disrupting production, though its stated VM support centers on VMware versions 6.5 and 6.7.

Key features

Recovery planning and automation

A DR plan builder and automated failover and failback reduce reliance on manual recovery steps. Teams can also integrate workflows through a RESTful API, PowerShell, or Python SDK. These are useful options for operations teams that want recovery processes to fit existing automation; they do require the capacity to manage and maintain those workflows.

Data protection and security

SiteContinuity supports continuous replication, immutable backups and recovery points, scheduled backup frequency, custom retention, and application-consistent recovery. It also supports file and folder, VM, database, and virtual server backup, plus persistent-volume backup and cross-cluster restore. AES-256 encryption in transit and at rest applies to both deployment options. ML-based anomaly detection is specified for customer-managed deployments.

Customer-managed deployments list multi-cluster single sign-on, role-based access control, multifactor authentication, and a global dashboard. Cohesity also says it conducts regular external penetration testing and applies CIS benchmark and US Department of Defense STIG hardening standards. Its support service operates around the clock, with a one-hour initial response target for P1 errors.

Pricing

SiteContinuity is paid software with custom pricing; Cohesity offers a 30-day trial and no free plan. The datasheet directs buyers to Cohesity for pricing, so organizations should expect to discuss their deployment and workload needs rather than select a published tier.

SiteContinuity (customer-managed)

Custom pricing covers VMware Standard or above (versions 6.5 and 6.7), VMware VM workloads and Cohesity NAS Views, deployed on physical or virtual clusters. This option fits teams that want to run clusters at both primary and disaster-recovery sites. Its tradeoff is the responsibility of operating that infrastructure.

SiteContinuity DRaaS (Cohesity-managed)

Custom pricing covers VMware VM workloads with Amazon EC2 as the failover target. The managed service includes automated VMware-to-AWS-EC2 conversion, making it the more direct fit for VMware customers seeking AWS-based recovery without managing the recovery service themselves. Its stated workload scope does not include Cohesity NAS Views.

Platforms

SiteContinuity lists API, Linux, self-hosted, web, and Windows platforms. The deployment choice is more consequential than that broad platform list: customer-managed deployments use physical or virtual clusters at both sites, while the Cohesity-managed service fails over to the customer’s AWS account. The VMware targets specified are Standard edition and above, versions 6.5 and 6.7; the managed service lists VMware VMs.

Who it's for

SiteContinuity is best suited to organizations with supported VMware workloads that need planned, repeatable recovery and either have the capacity to operate DR clusters or want a managed service. Its combination of granular restore, site failover, testing, and automation can serve teams with more than one recovery scenario. It is a less natural fit for buyers whose needs center on other VM platforms or whose workload scope does not align with its stated VMware and Cohesity NAS support.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Recovery spans files through entire data centers, so teams can respond at a scale suited to the incident.
• Pros: Non-disruptive testing and automated failover and failback support rehearsed, repeatable recovery rather than plans alone.
• Pros: Self-managed and Cohesity-managed deployment choices accommodate different appetites for operating DR infrastructure.
• Cons: The stated VMware targets are versions 6.5 and 6.7, a narrow version range for buyers evaluating current or different VMware estates.
• Cons: Custom pricing and no free plan make cost comparison and small-scale evaluation less straightforward than with a published free tier.
• Cons: Cohesity NAS Views are listed for customer-managed deployment, not the DRaaS workload scope, which is limited to VMware VMs.

Alternatives

For a broader comparison, browse Cloud Disaster Recovery Software.

• Veeam Recovery Orchestrator is worth considering if a free plan matters: it offers free NFR and evaluation licenses, though the NFR license is not for commercial use.
• Acronis Cyber Disaster Recovery Cloud may suit buyers seeking a disaster-recovery option spanning mobile, desktop, Linux, web, and self-hosted platforms; it has a free trial but no free plan.
• Amazon Elastic Disaster Recovery is an alternative for buyers who prefer usage-based pricing, listed at $0.03 a month and billed hourly per actively replicating source server.
• Unitrends Disaster Recovery as a Service offers a Premium DRaaS plan with a one-hour RTO SLA, full failover, and weekly Recovery Assurance testing.
• Zerto is another paid disaster-recovery option.
• SIOS Protection Suite is a paid alternative with a free trial and Linux, self-hosted, and Windows platforms.
• Quorum onQ is an alternative built around appliances configured to the customer's environment.

Verdict

Choose Cohesity SiteContinuity if your organization runs the supported VMware workloads and needs managed planning, testing, and failover with a choice of customer-operated clusters or Cohesity-managed recovery to AWS. Its strongest case is the breadth of recovery actions and orchestration in one platform. Look elsewhere if you need a free plan, transparent pricing, or support for workloads beyond its stated VMware and Cohesity NAS scope.