PCA's Hudson Valley computer technology support blog discusses how technology impacts businesses, business owners and their support staff. New articles are posted every Tuesday.

Business Recovery: Backups that Get Your Business Back Up

14 April, 2009 09:23

Business owners aren't concerned about backing up data on their computer - they care about getting back up and running after a hardware crash or major disaster.  Does your business have a continuity plan?  If not, what should that plan look like? Backing up business data is essential, but only one part of the continuity equation.

Recovering from a Computer Crash

How long does it take to find and recover data on a tape backup or CD?  Even if you have all of your files properly stored on a tape backup or CD, your new computer has to be reformatted and have all of your software re-installed. This can take a day or more.

Is the backup file error free? Unfortunately, most tape backups aren't complete, and not all backup software will let you know that your backup isn't completely finished. If you are using the same tape to back up your system each night, eventually recording and re-recording over the same media will cause it to fail.

Where is your backup file? Is your backup at your office in your desk? If there's a fire or other disaster that damages both computer and backup, then your data will be unrecoverable. Do you take it home with you every night? Transporting the media has its risks, but it could be disastrous should your backup be lost or stolen.

Are you familiar enough with your backup software to be able to restore data from it if you need to? At least two people at your company should be familiar enough with the backup system to pull either one file or a complete backup, without it being too much of a hassle.

Is there a better solution than tape or CD?

As technology continues to progress, offsite or remote backup solutions are now the recommended backup solution. Not only does the system make a copy of the individual files on your computer, but it also captures exactly how your individual computers or full network is set up, complete ready to go - including even your productivity software.

After the backup system (Remote Vault Pro Enterprise) has archived your system for the first time, it backs up new data as often as every 15 minutes. Every 24 hours, the archived files are securely transferred offsite to two different secure locations for archival purposes.

If you need a file recovered, even if you overwrote, deleted or lost it 15 minutes ago you can recover it easily. If your full computer crashes, the complete system can be mirrored and you can be up and running within an hour or less. Should you experience a complete disaster, your company can be up and running within a day at any location, including from your staffs individual homes.

Sounds expensive doesn't it? It doesn't have to be. PCA offers monthly Business Continuity Packages to make sure your business can afford a solid and secure backup and continuity plan. And your company always has an experienced technician who can help you recover the data you need, quickly and easily.

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