Data Backup and Disaster Recovery: Connected, but Not the Same

Data backup is a critical part of any successful business, and, because it’s so simple, it may actually be overlooked. This week, we’ll walk you through the proper steps for making sure your organization has a successful data backup solution so if a situation arises and you need it, you’ll have it ready to recover and not be exasperated to find out that your business is in deep trouble. 

Data Backup vs Disaster Recovery: What’s the Difference?

Many business professionals use data backup and disaster recovery as if they are interchangeable, but this is simply not the case. The practices of data backup and disaster recovery are very different. Each targets specific parts of an organization’s business continuity process.

Data backup is the act of creating a separate physical copy of your data that can be restored at a later date, whereas disaster recovery includes the act of actually restoring the data using the data backup. In other words, one can’t happen without the other existing, so they are both integral to the continuity of a business’ successful restoration.

Thoughts on Data Backup

In particular, you should be focused on which data (and how much of it) you want to back up. It’s important to remember that not all data will be as important as the rest, so it’s critical that you think about what data will be necessary to keep your organization functional during operational troubles. As a rule, you should try to back up as much as you can without it affecting your ability to restore later on. The ideal data backup process will happen automatically without any resource dedicated to running it, as user error has sunk more than a few businesses in need of a data backup.

Thoughts on Disaster Recovery

On a related note, disaster recovery deals with the process of restoring your data following a disaster. The main way of measuring effectiveness of disaster recovery is speed; how fast can you get back into a comparable situation where you’re not operating at a loss. You should also consider where you’re trying to restore from; best practices dictate that you have at least three copies of your data; two copies onsite on two different devices and one stored offsite in the cloud. Furthermore, you need to consider running automated tests to ensure the disaster recovery process will work the way you want it to when you need it most.

Does your business need a hand with implementing data backup and disaster recovery? Our all-in-one Backup and Disaster Recovery (BDR) service can provide you with a powerful preventative solution to ensure your organization doesn’t fall into unexpected disasters. To learn more, give us a call today at (415) 246-0101.