With an increasingly mobile workforce on multiple devices, backup disaster recovery for your network is more important than it’s ever been to protect your company’s data.
It wasn’t so long ago that backing up your data involved tape cartridges put in an external drive. You could pretty much leave it alone because the backup might take overnight.
Now companies like Seagate, Western Digital, Toshiba and others make slim external drives that plug into a desktop or laptop computer and can hold one-4TB of data and fit into a pocket of a laptop bag or a woman’s purse. A USB 3.0 connection and, depending on the amount of data, well, let’s just say, the backup is quicker than overnight. Flash drives are another miniature form of saving.
The explosion of mobile devices and other technology has put a much stronger emphasis on not only backing up valuable information, but Backup Disaster Recovery (BDR). Notice the “Disaster” modifier. The work force is becoming more mobile, able to work on laptops, tablets or smartphones while on a train or plane. People can work from home or other remote sites, logging into the business network. This means more data like documents, spreadsheets, and Power Point presentations are saved on more devices and platforms. Even some e-mail communications, contact lists, and text messages may be important. While flash drives and external hard drives are still a good solution for individuals, larger small and big businesses need more far-reaching managed solutions.
Mike Monacello, editor-in-chief of Business Solutions.com notes that their annual reviews of BDR solutions have been the most read material on their site. “Not only is BDR the central service of most MSPs (managed Services Providers), but also the reviews have been loaded with great insights from our tester…Many established and would-be MSPs have told us that they find the product reviews to be valuable resources in evaluating new products or confirming their decision to use the products they do.”
A post on The Talkin’ Cloud blog is geared toward how managed service providers should talk to businesses about the need for a Backup Disaster Recovery plan, but it is certainly educational for businesses seeking a solution.
- Define Disaster: “…For a business, a disaster is more likely to be something small–like an accidentally deleted file, crippling malware or the always-pervasive hardware failure. When discussing disaster recovery, it’s important to make the distinction between a site-destroying event and the failures that are likely to happen…It’s the small things that bring business to a standstill.”
- Disaster Recovery vs. Backup: The blogger says the difference between the two is essential for the business to understand. The keywords in disaster recovery are being able to be back online quickly. “…Disaster recovery involves creating redundancies that can reduce or even eliminate downtime…”
- Downtime: Depending on equipment, downtime could mean different things to different businesses. A company that is down for a couple of days can have catastrophic economic consequences. The goal of a managed service provider — and the goal of a business looking for a managed service provider of BDR solutions — is to be back up in a few hours or less. A small monthly fee prevents the thousands of dollars that can be lost during downtime.
- Service Delivery: A MSP knows there are different types of services and deliveries. They should be able to recommend the best affordable solution for a specific business. Will it be simple or advanced? Will it involve hardware? The cloud? Will it be remotely off site or on site or both? Businesses can educate themselves, too, so they can have a frank discussion.
- Showing Continued Value: Businesses should be shown or ask to see how the backup recovery works. Since, most backups are conducted remotely and in the background, this is a good idea, as are regular e-mail reports and occasional visits to the business site.
Contact us to discuss your BDR needs.