If you make a backup of several files every day, this does not mean that you can quickly resume your work in case of a disaster. For that, you really need Disaster Recovery.
WHAT IS A BACK-UP?
Shortly put, a backup is nothing more than a copy of your data (or those of your customers) in another location. For example, on another computer or in the Cloud. Thanks to a backup, data is protected in case of, for example, accidental deletion of files, theft or technical problems (think of a hard drive crashing). Thanks to a backup, there is always data to fall back on. Basically, the more secure the better. An important rule you can use for this is the 3-2-1 backup rule. This means making 3 copies of your data, which you then store on 2 different types of media and in 1 different location.
Did you know that you are ‘only’ four steps away from a rock-solid backup strategy? Read more about it here.
BACKUPS DO NOT ALWAYS GO WELL
Due to human or software errors, for example, a backup may not be performed correctly. This may even go unnoticed. In addition, if the backup is not checked, organisations can be in for a bad surprise. Imagine the following situation: an organisation has set up a daily backup of a certain set of data. Due to circumstances, their production environment has gone down and they want to use the latest backup to recover all the data they lost. They now discover that an update to the backup software has resulted in no backup being made for the past few months. The old copies are kept for only 30 days. This organisation now has no data.
BACK UP WITH RECOVERY IN MIND
If you know what data you might want back, then you also know what data to put in your backup. It sounds pretty logical, yet it regularly happens that not all essential folders are put in a backup. In an actual recovery, organisations then find out that they want other files or software back as well. So, always try to make an accurate assessment of all essential data.
BACKUP IS JUST THE FIRST STEP
Having a proper backup at a location other than your own is merely the first step in business continuity. Step two is having the right recovery systems in place. That means having the right servers, storage, and operational systems to use for data recovery. The recovery environment should mirror the production environment, so to speak.
Step three is making sure the right tools, processes and people are in place at the time when a Disaster Recovery is needed. At Fundaments, we have Disaster Recovery as a Service solutions for this, and our Cloud Experts ensure that you never have to stand still in the event of a disaster.
DISASTER RECOVERY
Disaster Recovery is somewhat similar to a backup, but takes it a step further. With Disaster Recovery, a copy is made of not just a few folders, but of an entire environment. The recovery environment is mirrored to the production environment. This allows faster switching from one environment to another, without having to set up a new environment and copy all files from one location to another.
To see exactly how this works, we will show it in our Zerto demo. Click the button below to watch it. You can also download our free whitepaper in which we tell you why Disaster Recovery is the must-have for every entrepreneur.
