Back-Up Basics

Have you ever gone back to a document that you’ve not reviewed for several months and noticed that changes you definitely made haven’t been saved?

If the answer is yes, then you may need to take a closer look at your back-up strategy. In the days of the all-encompassing cloud, many of us think we have our back-up under control. However, it’s not always as simple as that – although the cloud is incredibly resilient (i.e. it gives you exceptionally reliable access to your data and files), you still need to have your information backed-up and, ideally, in a way that means you have multiple versions stored.

Lifeline IT’s Daniel Mitchell talks us through some of the issues around back-up and why it’s an important part of your IT system.

Explained Daniel: “I’m frequently asked about the need for back-up when data is so much more secure in the cloud than perhaps it is perceived to be when sitting on an array of hard drives in a server that you can physically touch and see. The reality is that while cloud-based computing is normally very resilient, the data itself can still be vulnerable – from malware, human error, malicious activity.

“Therefore businesses need to have a strategy around back-up so they have multiple versions of their data over a period of time. This enables companies to have restore points available with sufficient granularity (i.e. detail) to bring back tiny amounts of individual data – such as the original versions of a few files or emails that were perhaps corrupted months ago and you’ve only just noticed.”

As with all things IT, your strategy for back-up will very much depend on your specific business needs. What works for a team of 100 plus co-workers over multiple sites may not be suitable for 10 staff in one office.

Said Daniel: “Working out the right back-up strategy is key and that’s what the team at Lifeline IT are here for – we can discuss how you need to access and use your information so we can devise the right system.

“Your back-up can still be cloud-based – for example if you use Microsoft 365 then we might choose to back you up to another cloud-based system such as Amazon. Or for another type of business, a physical on-site server may be a better option. It really is down to what’s right for your business needs. The most important thing is to have some form of back-up and don’t just leave it to chance.”

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