How to Access & Share Digital Resources in Education

 

IT and Cybercrime

This is one of many articles I wrote for a client on IT and cybercrime. I was provided several keywords to include (highlighted in yellow) and a fixed word count.

Data Backup: Are You Avoiding the Issue?

Businesses exist for many reasons, but the main one is to make money, whether that be for profit, to enable growth, or simply to help others. Cashflow is the lifeblood of every business, so it is hardly surprising that data backup takes a back seat when it comes to business planning.

Many companies are providing small business backup solutions, so there is no excuse for not taking this issue seriously. Failure to back up data and systems could cost you dearly one day.

The question should be which method to use. Simply keeping copies of key files on a memory stick is not a solution and can lead to prosecution if they get into the wrong hands, so in this article, we look at the options available.

 

The risk of not backing up regularly

What could possibly go wrong? Well, if you fail to back up your data, you risk losing it, so you need to consider the consequences. Even a partial data loss will take time to recover, and time, after all, is money.

The frequency of backing up is also an important consideration. In an ideal world, every time you change, add to, or delete any of your data, it should be saved. In reality, there is often a time delay, but only the most recent changes will be lost by limiting this.

Concern over data getting into the wrong hands is often given as a reason for not backing up onto some types of portable media. Still, files can be encrypted and most cloud solutions have built-in security measures, making them perfectly safe for most data types.

 

Small business backup solutions

A lot has been written about the 3-2-1 strategy. This entails keeping three copies of your data on two different storage types, keeping at least one copy in a remote location. This strategy certainly has its merits, but it could be time-consuming if it is not automated.

Keeping backups in the same workplace, whether at home or in an office, has the advantage of being on hand should things go wrong. Restoring the data can take place immediately without the need to retrieve tapes or other media from an offsite store. However, in the event of a major disaster such as a fire or flood, not only has your server gone, but your storage media has, too.

Therefore, it is essential to keep a copy of your data offsite, either in a central office, a storage unit, or the cloud.

Another alternative for small businesses is to use an external hard drive, which simply plugs into a USB port. This is good for storing data from an individual PC but not so good for shared data. Remember the 3-2-1 rule? An external hard drive should only be used in conjunction with other media.

There are three types of backup:

·        Full backup

·        Incremental backup

·        Differential backup

A full backup replicates all the files on your server onto another server or media set. This can be very time-consuming and take up a lot of storage space, so it is best not to do it too often.

With an incremental backup you only save the data that has changed since the previous update, so if this is done daily, you will have one tape or DVD for each day.

Differential backups contain all the data that has changed since the last full backup, so the tape or DVD gets added to each day. This works better when restoring data as there will only be two media sets to deal with as opposed to six or seven incremental backup sets.

But there is more to it than simply making backups and storing them safely. The backups have to be tested regularly to make sure that the data can be reinstated on the system in the event of a disaster. If the restoration fails, then it is better to create fresh backups than to discover this at a critical time.

 

What are the options?

Hardware such as servers and PCs are used to store data that is in constant use, and files are constantly being saved as you work on them if you set this up right. However, these things can crash or get damaged, rendering your information inaccessible.

Backing up onto tape or DVD can be time-consuming. Automated backup systems mean you don’t have to physically do much if anything. It just happens at certain points every hour, day, week or month depending on how you set it up.

Another option is to use the cloud.

 

Cloud backup solutions for small business

Using a cloud backup service is a good solution for most SMEs, whether this is Microsoft OneDrive or a professional service.

Cloud backup solutions for small business have the advantage of being relatively cheap, often free up to a limit, and don’t require huge amounts of space. However, some hosts only allow retrieval of files up to 15 days old, so for archived material, it would be better to use an online backup service or tapes and DVDs.

There are several options for cloud backup solutions, the best in terms of free storage being Google Drive, with 15GB. This functions well if you use Google Docs to share documents across a number of remote users.

 

Summary

If you are not currently backing up your files, you are definitely avoiding the issue and running a massive risk. Loss of essential data is one of the main reasons small businesses fail. It is not just a question of being unable to restore files, it is the time it takes to get back up and running following a critical event.

Backups need to take place at least once a day and they should be stored offsite or in a cloud – preferably both. This should be automated as much as possible to avoid human error.

There a many options available to small businesses to suit both the budget and the amount of data to be stored, so there really is no excuse.