Basic Backup Tips
Plan Ahead
If a fire destroyed your office computers today, how long would it take you to recover your business information? Where are your company's backups stored and are you sure they contain everything you need? Do you have a copy of all the software to restore these backups? What are the procedures for restoring your company's information? How long would it take to reinstall all the applications you need to get back up and running? These are some fundamental questions that a good backup and recovery strategy should address.
Backup Everything
Selectively backing up only those files that you think are needed for your business is risky and tends to make recovery more complex: for example, if you only backup user documents and data files, you may find one day that you don't have all the application installation CDs on hand (or all the proper versions or patches for your apps). Backup Data storage is cheap compared to the cost of lost productivity if your business operations grind to a halt; so why take the chance that you may overlook something?
Test and Monitor Your Backups
I've met several clients over the years who have found out the hard way that backups should be regularly tested and monitored: magnetic media and tapes fail, network and backup configurations change, and (not so surprisingly) users make mistakes. An effective backup strategy addresses these issues and incorporates running periodic restores of data (individual files, entire drives, email, databases, etc.) to verify backup operations.
Automate Your Backups
A myriad of automated data backup solutions are available to cover your data: find one that fits your company's needs and implement automated daily backups that run reliably. You don't want to lose a day's work because an employee forgot to run backups or was out sick the day before. In some cases (e.g. a high-volume production database) you may consider running incremental backups every one or two hours as well.
Store Your Backups in a Safe Place
In the event of a system failure or environmental disaster, the well-being of your backups will largely determine whether you face a smooth recovery process or an exercise in total frustration. Treat your backup media like precious cargo: store it in a cool, dry, and safe place where it won't be subject to theft or harsh environmental conditions. It's also a good idea to keep backup copies off-site as well on a regular basis; using a reputable remote backup service might be a good option for this depending on your needs.
Archive Your Data
In addition to a consistent daily backup schedule, keeping long-term, off-site well-documented archives of your company information is also an important part of an effective backup strategy. This ensures that you can recover legacy data (e.g. old contact lists, emails, databases or other files) that may not reside on your systems anymore.
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