Handle Data Backups Carefully – Issues To Consider
Data backups have been a central function with data centers for a very long time. They provide the life line in the event the systems and data are destroyed at the primary data center. And, although tape as a backup media will eventually be replaced with remote vaulting and redundant SAN units, it is still the main media in use today. Therefore, we should be very careful on how data is backed up and how the tapes are handled and stored. It is not a good scenario to find out at recovery time that what you thought was there really isn’t.
Given all of that, there are three issues that all data centers and any remote data centers should address when reviewing how data is backed up, sent offsite and stored.
Issue 1: Is all of the data really backed up?
Data centers now usually contain a number of computers such as servers, midrange, mainframes, etc. Easily some contain over 100. How do you know that all are backed up on a regular basis? Are all new servers immediately added to the backup procedures? What is usually the case is that people generally assume that all the data is backed up. Unfortunately, it is all too frequent that some data is missed. What is called for is a detailed analysis of all units that contain data. Has one of these been done recently?
Issue 2: When do the backup tapes go offsite?
Sounds like a reasonable question doesn’t it. The best answer is when they are created they immediately go offsite. That would be the maximum level of protection. Unfortunately, what frequently happens is not the best case. Often backup tapes are kept on site daily and sent offsite once a week. The exposure is simple. If tapes are sent offsite each Friday and the disaster happens on Thursday, a week’s worth of data has been lost. Can any organization recreate a weeks worth of lost data? Probably not. What is really called for is a daily pickup by a vendor that manages the tapes in a controlled and secure manner.
Issue 3: Is the offsite storage facility adequate?
Tape is a very sensitive media: sensitive to temperature, sensitive to humidity, sensitive to any magnetic source. Once a tape is compromised, the data is often lost for good. So, it is extremely important to store tapes in an approved, controlled location such as a offsite storage vendor. Frequently, in order to save costs, remote, company-owned locations (such production facilities) are utilized and on too often a basis, the trunk of the operations manager’s car. Yes, it does happen. What is called for is a controlled and very secure environment.
These three issues aren’t all of the issues to address, they are simply ones that are frequently missed. The good news is that fixing any one of them is pretty straightforward if you have a set of steps to follow.
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Jan Persson is the author of the GO.RECOVER-Data Center Disaster Recovery Template – a powerful yet easy-to-use tool for under $100. It includes a specific procedure to audit if all data is backed up and a checklist for offsite storage locations.
Tags: data center disaster recovery, I.T. DIsaster Recovery, off-site storage
