The Reliability Backbone: How Astro Malaysia Keeps Millions Entertained Without Interruption

NEW YORK, NY – November 20, 2025

Astro Malaysia, a leading integrated content and entertainment company reaching over 5.2 million homes, has achieved 99.99% uptime for its critical SAP and Oracle operations in the AWS cloud. This milestone was attained through the implementation of SIOS LifeKeeper for Linux, a high availability (HA) solution specifically designed for mission-critical applications. The achievement underscores the growing importance of robust HA infrastructure in an increasingly cloud-dependent world, and how crucial even the smallest amount of downtime can be for businesses reliant on continuous service delivery.

Beyond Basic Cloud Resilience

While cloud platforms like AWS offer inherent resilience through redundancy and automated recovery, achieving true high availability – particularly for complex enterprise applications like SAP and Oracle – requires dedicated solutions. According to one industry analyst, “Cloud providers handle infrastructure issues, but they don’t guarantee application-level uptime. You need software that can proactively detect and recover from failures within those applications.” Astro Malaysia found that native AWS tools, while valuable, weren’t sufficient to meet the stringent uptime requirements for its core business systems. This led them to explore specialized HA solutions, ultimately selecting SIOS LifeKeeper for its proven track record and certification with both SAP and AWS. “We needed a solution that could guarantee continuous operation, even in the event of an underlying infrastructure failure,” explained a representative from Astro. “SIOS LifeKeeper provided that level of assurance.”

The Challenges of SAP & Oracle HA in the Cloud

Protecting SAP and Oracle workloads in the cloud presents unique challenges. Unlike stateless applications, these databases and business suites require consistent data integrity and rapid recovery in the event of a failure. Traditional clustering technologies can be complex to configure and maintain, and may not be fully supported in cloud environments. Furthermore, achieving true zero-downtime maintenance and upgrades requires sophisticated automation and orchestration. “SAP and Oracle are notoriously difficult to make highly available,” noted a cloud architect specializing in enterprise applications. “You need software that understands the intricacies of these applications and can automatically failover to a healthy instance without data loss or disruption.” SIOS LifeKeeper addresses these challenges by providing a comprehensive HA framework that monitors application health, automatically detects failures, and seamlessly fails over to a standby instance. The solution's SAP certification ensures compatibility and support for critical SAP functionalities, while its AWS compatibility simplifies deployment and management in the cloud.

Astro’s Cloud-First Strategy and HA Implementation

Astro Malaysia has been aggressively pursuing a cloud-first strategy for several years, migrating new services like its video OTT platform (Astro GO) and e-commerce site (Go Shop) to AWS. This strategic shift has enabled the company to scale rapidly, innovate faster, and improve customer engagement. However, migrating critical enterprise applications like SAP and Oracle required a more cautious approach. The company conducted a thorough evaluation of various HA solutions before selecting SIOS LifeKeeper. The implementation involved configuring the solution to monitor key SAP and Oracle components, defining failover policies, and automating the recovery process. “We worked closely with SIOS and AWS to ensure a smooth and seamless implementation,” said a spokesperson for Astro Malaysia. “The entire process was well-documented and supported.”

The Financial Impact of Near-Perfect Uptime

The financial benefits of achieving 99.99% uptime for critical SAP and Oracle systems are substantial. Astro Malaysia generates over RM3.4 billion in annual revenue. Even a few hours of downtime can result in significant financial losses, damage the company’s reputation, and erode customer trust. Industry analysts estimate that the average cost of downtime for a large enterprise can range from hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars per hour. “For a media and entertainment company like Astro, service availability is paramount,” said an industry consultant. “Any disruption to billing, customer data, or content delivery can have a significant impact on revenue and customer satisfaction.” Beyond avoiding direct financial losses, near-perfect uptime also enables Astro Malaysia to operate more efficiently, improve employee productivity, and focus on strategic initiatives. A spokesperson explained, “We can now focus on innovation and customer experience, knowing that our core business systems are always available and reliable.”

Looking Ahead: Building a Resilient Future

Astro Malaysia’s success with SIOS LifeKeeper underscores the growing importance of proactive HA solutions in the cloud era. As businesses become increasingly reliant on cloud services, ensuring the availability and resilience of critical applications is more important than ever. The company plans to continue investing in HA technologies and best practices to build a more resilient future and deliver a seamless entertainment experience for its millions of customers. The company has a broader initiative to modernize it’s media playout and disaster recovery capabilities, ensuring long-term reliability of it’s services. The implementation of SIOS LifeKeeper is a significant step in that direction.