At this point, we all know the importance of ensuring that we backup all our data, and do so often. But, few of us follow the standard and best practice of backing up individual machines weekly, and servers daily. Take today (World Backup Day) as a friendly reminder to double-check your backup strategy to ensure that data loss doesn’t dramatically impact your business.
World Backup Day?
World Backup Day (March 31st) serves to promote awareness about the importance of backing up your data. The idea is simple -- don’t wait for disaster to strike before it’s too late. Backing up your data means systematically keeping copies of your files in multiple locations to prevent losing them due to theft, hardware failure or cyberattacks.
Why it’s important
Without backups data loss can result in severe consequences – lost client contracts, critical business documents or irreplaceable photos. Frequently we find that while many companies have some backup planning, those protocols are either inadequate or don’t include individual machines. And, while having a disaster recovery plan in place is standard, it’s always best to ensure that the disaster never occurs to begin with. Ensuring that all of your company’s data endpoints are redundant eliminates the stress of trying to recoup unrecoverable files.
Why high-performing teams have rigid backup policies:
- Peace of Mind: Knowing that every component of your organization’s data is securely backed up means you don’t have to worry about losing it.
- Financial Loss Prevention: In the instance of disaster, recovering lost files is incredibly costly. While your MSP should have the tools to restore data, this process results in lost time and money. It’s estimated that approximately 64% of companies experience financial expense or downtime as a result of data loss.
- Business Continuity: Having backups in place allows for quick recovery and minimizes downtime in the event of data loss, ensuring that business operations can continue without major disruption.
- Compliance requirements: Many industries have regulations that require companies to have backup and recovery plans in place to protect sensitive data and ensure its availability.
Implementation Steps:
- Follow the 3-2-1 Rule: Keep at least three copies of your data — two on different types of storage (e.g., an external hard drive and a separate local device) and one stored off-site (such as in the cloud).
- Set Up Automatic Backups: Schedule regular backups so you don’t have to rely on remembering to do it yourself. Your MSP can advise on the most appropriate times and places for your organization.
Testing Your Backups:
Simply having a backup policy in place isn’t enough to protect your organization from disaster. Your head of IT or MSP should also be sure to regularly test that backups are working as expected. Here’s a simple test plan to follow:
- Verify that the backup process was completed without any errors or warnings. Check the backup logs for any indications of failures or issues.
- Perform a test restore of the backup data to ensure that it can be successfully recovered. This can be done by restoring a small subset of data or files from the backup to a test environment.
- Check the integrity of the backup data by running data validation checks or using tools to verify the integrity of the backup files.
- Monitor the backup storage to ensure that the backup data is being stored correctly and securely.
- Conduct regular backup audits to review the backup process, verify that backups are being performed as scheduled, and ensure that all necessary data is being backed up.
By following these steps, you can confidently determine whether a company backup is successful and reliable for data recovery in case of emergencies.
We take data security seriously, from automated backup solutions to secure cloud storage, we help businesses and individuals safeguard their data, making sure you're never caught off guard by a data disaster.
Data is more valuable than you might think and keeping it safe shouldn’t be an afterthought. This World Backup Day, make sure your important files are backed up properly -- before it’s too late. Let us help you with secure, reliable backup solutions.
Ready to backup your data the right way? Contact us today to learn more about our backup services and how we can keep your data safe and sound.