Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
dificult. or. impossible. to. re-create,. you. might. be. justiied. in.
expending.the.time,.money,.and.resources.to.ensure.the.data.
are.extremely.well.protected.
Finally,.an.often.overlooked.part.of.backup.systems.is.the.
actual. restoration. procedure.. Creating. and. carefully. storing.
backups. of. your. important. data. is. all. very. well,. but. if. you.
don't.have.or.have.never.tested.your.restoration.procedures,.
those.backups.are.worth.very.little.
Backup. systems. can. be. complex. and. subject. to. failure..
Maybe.you.are.an.organization.whose.disaster.recovery.plan.
relies.on.restoring.all.of.your.critical.data.from.off-site.backup.
tapes,.or.simply.an.individual.who.wants.to.be.able.to.rebuild.
your.computer.if.you.have.a.hard.drive.crash..In.either.case,.
taking.the.time.to.test.your.restoration.procedures.on.a.regu-
lar.basis.is.extremely.important.
If.you.are.a.large.organization,.you.should.irst.ensure.that.
you.have.a.disaster.recovery/business.continuity.plan.in.place.
and.that.all.of.your.employees.and.managers.are.aware.of.it..
Then. you. should. schedule. regular. exercises. to. test. that.the.
procedures.outlined.in.the.plan.actually.work.in.real.life.
For.instance,.do.a.simulated.live-ire.test.of.your.processes..
Make. sure. that. you. have. the. contact. information. for. your.
off-site.storage.provider.and.your.data.center.recovery.staff.
members..Find.out.what.it.would.take.in.time,.money,.and.
resources.to.actually.re-create.your.business.after.a.lood.or.
earthquake.or.bombing.event.
As.an.individual,.simply.take.the.time.to.regularly.test.the.
recover.process.of.your.backup.system..Usually.that.simply.
means.iring.up.the.backup.application.and.selecting.“restore.”.
It's.a.great.idea.to.try.this.just.to.understand.what.it.will.take.
and.to.ensure.that.your.backups.haven't.been.corrupted.
I.also.recommend.off-site.storage.for.both.individuals.and.
organizations..If.you.are.a.victim.of.physical.theft.or.damage,.
on-site. storage. of. your. backup. data. might. suffer. that. same.
damage.or.be.stolen.along.with.everything.else.
Organizations.should.contract.for.secure.off-site.data.stor-
age..Individuals.can.simply.take.their.external.hard.drives.or.
