What does the 60-minute expectation for system availability indicate?

The 60-minute expectation for system availability refers to the Recovery Time Objective (RTO). RTO is a critical metric for businesses as it defines the maximum acceptable time that a service can be down after a system failure or disaster occurs. In this case, the 60 minutes indicates that the system should be restored and operational within that timeframe to minimize the impact on business functions. Establishing a clear RTO allows organizations to plan their disaster recovery and business continuity strategies effectively, ensuring that they can resume operations swiftly after disruptions.

While other terms also relate to system availability and recovery, they focus on different aspects. Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF) measures the average time between system failures, emphasizing reliability, while Mean Time to Repair (MTTR) defines how long it takes to repair a system after a failure has occurred. Recovery Point Objective (RPO) relates to the amount of data that can be lost, indicating the maximum tolerable period during which data might be lost in the event of a system failure.