Data backup is one of the most critical IT functions, but historically it has been difficult to get right. Studies regularly find that about one-third of all companies never back up their business data, while roughly the same number say they conduct intermittent backups but never test their backups to ensure they’re working properly.
The volume of data that must be backed up has always been a problem, even before mobile, the cloud and the Internet of Things. However, the explosive growth of data is straining backup performance and capacity. The nightly backup is no longer adequate, and most organizations are struggling to back up large volumes of data in near real time.
Backing up virtual machines (VMs) is also difficult. Traditionally, organizations would deploy a backup agent for each VM, but this approach is inefficient, creates a management nightmare and drains significant resources.
In addition, many organizations tend to focus on backing up data without making sure that recovery is fast enough to meet business requirements and minimize disruption. And because many organizations fail to test their backups there’s no guarantee that the data can be recovered at all.
There are three things to consider when developing a backup strategy. First, you should think about the “3-2-1 rule.” That means you should keep at least three copies of your data (the original and two backups) on two different storage media with at least one copy offsite. If you use two different storage media, such as a disk drive and the cloud, you increase the odds that your data will be recoverable. And by storing one copy of the data offsite or in the cloud, you protect against data loss in a local site disaster.
Next, think about two three-letter acronyms: RTO and RPO. RTO stands for “recovery time objective,” which is the acceptable amount of downtime before data is recovered and systems are brought back online. This will vary from system to system — for mission-critical applications it might be minutes while for others it might be days. RPO stands for recovery point objective, the allowable amount of data lost since the last backup. Again, this will vary from system to system according to the critical nature of the data.
And, finally, you should consider application protection as well as data protection. Many types of data only have value when used within an application. It could take days or even weeks to reinstall a critical application and get it configured properly.
Datto’s Unified Continuity solutions cover all three points. The Datto platform consists of an onsite appliance and cloud service that work in concert to protect your data. The onsite appliance provides lightning-fast recovery in the event of a disk crash or that “oops” moment when a user accidentally deletes an important file. The cloud provides business continuity. Datto enables granular data recovery from multiple points in time and provides seamless protection for industry-leading virtualization solutions.
In addition, Datto captures a complete image of a protected workstation or server, including the operating environment and applications. If the system fails it can be virtualized instantly on the Datto appliance or in the Datto cloud so your business never misses a beat.
The Datto SIRIS platform provides comprehensive backup, recovery and business continuity for local, virtual and cloud environments, while the ALTO platform provides enterprise-class functionality for smaller businesses. Verteks can help you select the right Datto solution and implement a plan that protects your vital applications and data.
