It’s estimated that the world creates 2.4 quintillion bytes of data daily. That number has gone up from years past as more people gain access to computing technology.
As a business, chances are, you are invested in keeping the data you collect/generate safe. Therein lies the purpose of leveraging a backup server and industry-accepted backup solutions.
Backup servers and best practices can insulate your company from data disasters caused by hackers, fires and other brands of adversity. Below, we share five tips that comprise a simple yet sound backup strategy.
1. Keep an On-site Mirror
Your IT team can make it so everything you store on your company server is immediately copied to a physical “mirror” that you keep on-site. A mirror sever is an identical server that you can fall back on if your primary on-site server has issues.
Servers that are mirrored are constantly syncing so there’s virtually no chance of one failing before the other has a chance to be brought up to speed.
2. Use the Cloud
In addition to keeping a physical mirror server in your office, you should also back up your data off-site. Off-site backups are usually facilitated through the internet.
The basic idea is that your company will rent server space from a third party. That third party will then automatically sync its off-site server with your on-site servers on an intermittent basis (every three days for example). Note that data generated from popular cloud applications like Quickbooks or paystubs.net won’t backward sync with your local servers.
Be sure that any third parties you do business with have solid security measures in place.
3. Make Your Backups Automatic
Make the process of backing up your local machines (ex: your company computers) to your servers automatic. If you leave this responsibility to the discretion of your employees, things are going to fall through the cracks.
Most backup server software will automate the process of backing up local machines. You’ll just have to specify a backup schedule.
4. Perform Regular Server Maintenance
There’s nothing worse than adversity striking and then realizing that your backup server wasn’t properly syncing data. To avoid that fate, have an IT professional examine the health of your in-house servers and their synchronization with cloud servers regularly.
5. Always Leverage Encryption
When dealing with sensitive data, you must use reliable encryption to ensure that if your sever’s information falls into the wrong hands, it’s unreadable.
Popular encryption key algorithms include Tripe DES, RSA, and AES. An IT professional can shed light on the pros and cons of each algorithm as well as which might suit your needs.
Leveraging Solid Backup Server Workflows Can Make or Break Your Company
You’d be surprised by how many organizations have faced catastrophic failure due to data losses. Don’t be one of those organizations.
Invest in good backup server technology and workflows to insulate yourself from consequences that stem from man-made and natural disasters.
For more advice on how you can protect your company through technology, browse additional content in our lifestyle blog!
