Linda posted on March 20, 2009 13:19
One of the services that KI Technology Group provides is Remote Backup. The solution we provide is a business class service that not only backs up data, but also can replace a failed server on a temporary basis while repairs are being carried out.
I have held several seminars discussing Business Continuity, Disaster Recovery and Backup. As a part of this seminar, I discuss in detail how an offsite or remote backup solution ought to work. Invariably when I have finished my presentation and get around to questions and answers, someone asks me if Mozy or some other widely promoted and inexpensive solution wouldn't meet their needs.
Now, I do not have any personal experience with these solutions, but I generally consider them to be hamburger to my filet mignon. While these solutions may work for home users who are technically savvy, they should not be used to backup your business, even if it is just a home based business. And for those of you who are Mozy fans, I have just run across a two part blog post that you can read here and here. If you are pressed for time, you will get the gist of it by reading just the second post.
So what should you look for when you select a remote backup service? Here are some things to consider.
- How long will it take for the initial backup? If you have a large amount of data, can you send the initial backup on an external drive? I can't believe that this poster signed up for service and then waited 30 days to get all of his data offsite!
- In the event of a failure, how will you get it back? If it takes 30 days initially, will it take 30 days to restore and can you afford to wait that long? Much better if your data can be shipped back to you on an external drive.
- Is the data transferred and stored securely?
- Is the offsite location geographically distant from you?
- Is restoring the files included in the monthly fee, as in will someone do it for you? If not, what level of technical expertise is required to restore it yourself?