Do you have a clear procedure in place to back up your files and system? Protect your productivity, data, and resources with Teltek's thorough Backup and Disaster Recovery plan.
Computer hardware inevitably fails, and cyber attacks are growing in frequency and sophistication (including malware and ransomware). Human error and natural disasters put you at risk as well.
If you’ve never encountered an issue, it can be too easy to assume that you’re already safe, or that if a problem hasn’t occurred yet it likely never will. Unfortunately, we know that it’s not a matter of if you’ll experience compromised data and systems, but when.
The threats against your data are growing on a near daily basis, leaving 55% of today’s small-to-medium-sized businesses feeling vulnerable. Thankfully, the technology and tools designed to protect you are constantly advancing as well.
As a long-standing technology solutions integrator, we’ve served our clients through the technological evolution that has taken place since we opened our doors in 1996. Our best advice is to be fully aware of the hazards, and put a clear plan in place to protect you from avoidable loss.
In basic terms, backup and disaster recovery encompasses the tools, team, and procedures you have in place for restoring lost or damaged files and systems.
“Backup” refers to copying and storing individual files, and “disaster recovery” refers to the comprehensive plan you have in place to recover data and resume operations in the event of an emergency.
During your daily operations these files will of course always be changing, so the specific plan you have in place will dictate how often these duplicate files need to be created and stored. The ultimate goal is to ensure that if a file is lost, or a whole system goes down, you have a contingency plan in place.
As a simple example, have you heard of the 3-2-1 rule? You should have at least 3 copies of your data, saved across 2 forms of media, and 1 backup offsite. The concept is a good one, and battle-tested, but you still need to be careful that the implementation is correct. For example, saving 2 different copies of your data is good, but saving both copies in the same system? That defeats the purpose, as both copies will be lost if your system goes down.
It’s all about being proactive rather than reactive, implementing a plan that reduces your downtime to zero, or as close to zero as possible, without losing your critical data. After all, business continuity is essential.
File level backup refers to saving individual copies of your files, while image level refers to saving an “image” of your entire system and associated data.
Saving files is well and good, but when you need to reconstruct an entire system, working file-by-file is incredibly labor-intensive.
THINK OF IT THIS WAY
File level backup would be like rebuilding a city brick by brick, while image level backup is like having a duplicate city on reserve.
At Teltek, we use image level backup. It requires more storage space, but the benefits are invaluable, especially when you need to access and restore compromised systems as quickly as possible. As an additional benefit, image level backups can also be used to pinpoint specific files you need to restore, making them extremely effective for both broad and highly-targeted needs.
As we mentioned above, ransomware is one of the largest threats to your overall data integrity.
A single mistake or careless download by an employee can spell disaster. Security measures and training/awareness are certainly on the front lines of protection, but so is an effective backup and disaster recovery plan.
With image level backup, you can simply revert to an earlier “snapshot” (if you will) of your system, taken prior to the virus, ransomware, or malware infiltration. This way you only sacrifice a small amount of data, as opposed to potentially catastrophic losses to your finances, productivity, and data.
Reach out to schedule a free evaluation of your current data backup solution, and/or cybersecurity scan.