Backups: Do you have them? And are you sure?

If your hard drive fails tomorrow, are you ready? Do you have a backup of your data? And if not, can you do without it?

Attempting to recover data from a failed hard disk is always difficult. The effort varies depending on the failure mechanism, but even the simplest repairs will require a trained technician and require a fair amount down-time for the affected machine. All this translates to lost money, both in materials and time. In addition, despite all the cost and time outlays, the data may still be unrecoverable due to excessive damage. How about if the hard disk is lost due to theft, fire, or other catastrophe? Then, there's no hope of recovery without backups.

Let's say you do have backups - do they actually work? Often, when we first visit a client site, we find the backup software has not been setup properly and/or doesn't actually store the desired files. Or, the files fail to meet system requirements for one reason or another, such a file locked by an open applications (did you remember to close your mail file before the backup?). How old is the media used in backup? All disks and tapes do degrade over time and should be replaced periodically. This may involve moving backup data to new media, or at least periodically replacing re-usable media.

Questions to ask when selecting a backup system include:

• What data is important to your business or family?
• How large is the data to be saved?
• What's the interval time to risk between backups?
• Is the data readily reconstructed from other sources?
• How long does the backup have to last? Until the next? Or longer?
• How often to you want to review the health of the backup system?
• Where off-site will the backup be stored? And how will it get there?

The questions above may have multiple answers, even within one company. However, whatever the answers,  Aisling Computers review your backup needs and put a cost-effective system in place to satisfy your requirements. Whether it's executing Internet backups to our computers here at Aisling ($), placing RAID arrays and/or tape backup onsite ($$), or installing redundant systems ($$$), call us first!