Are You Sure That’s Being Backed Up?

Data backup is a crucial part of any business operation, but many employees within an organization might not necessarily know or understand how data backup actually works, or even what gets backed up during the process. Today, we want to demystify how data backup typically works and why it’s important to know what gets backed up, and when.

What on Your Computer Gets Backed Up?

Most employees, when they think of data backup, assume that their entire computer will get backed up by the system.

This is not necessarily true.

More often than not, the big part of your infrastructure that gets backed up is the server, which looks a bit different depending on the organization. For some businesses it might be on a network drive or some other shared location.

In any case, the important consideration here is that any documents that are not stored on the server might not be backed up properly if your solution is not configured to do that. This means that any users who store files on their desktops rather than in the cloud or on a shared network drive will likely be disappointed following a disaster.

This also goes for files stored in My Documents or Downloads. It’s a common misconception that individuals expect documents stored in this folder to be backed up, but this is not necessarily the case. The same goes for your Desktop (but really, you shouldn’t be keeping files stored on your desktop in the first place).

When in doubt over your organization’s backup policies, always ask an IT administrator or your service provider. They can shed light on what’s backed up.

Consider Your Business Apps and Their Data

One final piece of advice we’d like to offer: make sure you know how your business apps are being backed up, especially if they are offered in-house.

Sometimes employees will download applications to use in the day-to-day (an idea known as shadow IT), but this can be dangerous if your IT department does not know they exist. Furthermore, if the solution is not hosted on your company’s server and is instead installed on your users’ desktop, the data on it likely won’t get backed up.

So, do yourself a favor and ensure that you know how business app data is backed up, as well as where that backup is stored. You’ll be glad you asked.

Don’t Limit Your Knowledge of Your Data Backup Solution

Understanding your data backup system will not only encourage you and others within your business to partake in appropriate file storage practices, but also aid in your ability to manage your business appropriately. Don’t wait any longer; contact us today to get an IT consultation so we can talk about your backup systems. Get started today at (415) 246-0101.