Reading 1: Backup introduction

Backup is one of the most important tasks an IT worker may have to

undertake.

In any company environment, there is a huge investment in the data

stored in user files, databases, websites, server operating systems
and a myriad of other sources.

This data could represent thousands of hours of staff labour or hold

key customer data. The loss of this data and the inability to recover it
will have an impact on the performance of a company.

Hopefully, the data loss will be a mere inconvenience to a small

number of users. It could, however, represent millions of dollars of
resources or revenue that is lost. This financial loss could continue to
mount for every minute, hour or day that passes without the recovery
of the data.

For these and other reasons, the use and implementation of backup
technologies is a vital skill for IT workers.

Disaster recovery and fault tolerance

Two key terms used when discussing backup are ‘disaster recovery’
and ‘fault tolerance’.

Disaster recovery is the ability to respond to an interruption in service

by implementing a disaster recovery plan to restore an organisation’s
critical business function. The main assumption is that a disaster will
occur and a recovery process will be enacted. Backup is a key
component in disaster recovery.

Fault tolerance is the ability of a computer system to continue to

operate correctly even though one or more of its component parts
are malfunctioning. The main assumption is that despite a disaster
event no data loss will occur and therefore, no recovery process will
be enacted. Backup is not a key component of fault tolerance.
However, the use of fault tolerant systems will have an impact on the
complexity of backup solutions. Ideally, a fault tolerance system will
cope with a diaster event and backup data will not be required.

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 Fault tolerance systems include technologies such as redundant
hardware-eg dual power supplies, Uninterruptible Power Supplies
(UPS) and surge protectors, Redundant Array of Inexpensive disks
(RAID), server clusters and Storage Area Networks (SAN).

For more information on disaster recovery and fault tolerance use the
links below:
 disaster recovery - www.wikipedia.org
 fault tolerant system - www.wikipedia.org.

Managing and implementing disaster

recovery
The ability of a company to respond to a disaster is very much
dependant on the plans and strategies they have in place. Backup
systems are an integral part of any disaster recovery plan. The list
below contains some of the fundamental issues to consider:
 Develop a backup, verification and restoration, plan.
 Implement backup hardware and software.
 Back up data such as user files, databases and web sites.
 Back up system data such as user accounts and security
settings.
 Create scheduled backups.
 Test and verify the backups.
 Restore the data that has been backed up in the event of data
loss.
 Restore the system data that has been backed up in the event
of data loss.

To have a disaster recovery plan involves planning for a disaster to

occur and then setting in place the steps required to recover from
that disaster. There are three parts to disaster recovery:
1. backup
2. verify
3. restore.

There is little value in implementing backup strategies when, in the

event of data loss, it is discovered that the backup is corrupt or
incomplete. It is also essential that the restoration strategies are
adequate and can effectively reproduce the lost data and its
associated structure and permissions.

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 A company’s disaster recovery plan should be well documented and
available in hard copy. There is no use having an online disaster
recovery document when a power outage occurs.

This disaster recovery plan needs to be a living document that grows

with the needs of the company. It must be constantly updated to
reflect changes in hardware, software and workflow procedures.

Information included in a disaster recovery plan can be gathered

from many sources. It can include material, such as critical
hardware/software manuals, copies of software keys, serial numbers
and passwords, hardware vendor details, contact information for
consultants, Emergency Repair Disks (ERD) and a list of who to
contact in the event of a disaster.

Developing a backup strategy

The importance of developing a backup strategy was made
especially clear when, on September 11, 2001, the New York World
Trade Centre (WTC) was destroyed. Many of the companies in and
around the WTC were able to continue ‘normal’ business operations
within minutes of the disaster. Through the use of well-tested and
thorough contingency plans they were able to switch their business
operations to an alternate site almost immediately. However, a
number of companies never traded again due the loss of all their
data.

When developing a backup strategy think about some of the

following problems that may affect backups:
 blackouts (total loss of external power)
 brownouts (below normal voltage external power supply)
 electrical spikes (including lightning)
 backup tape ejected
 backing up the wrong data or not including key data
 backup hardware failure
 human error
 software corruption.

What needs to be backed up?

A critical issue to consider when developing a backup strategy is
determining what is to be backed up. This may seam obvious but
today’s company’s data stores can be very large and complex.

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 Effective backup hardware and software can be an expensive
investment for a business. There is little point in using resources to
backup unnecessary data and, conversely, little point in investing in a
backup solution that cannot backup all critical data.

It becomes important to prioritise the data according to its impact

upon a company if lost. Data required for the day-to-day running of
the company, such as the day’s financial transactions, is given a high
priority. Data that has been archived for seven years to comply with
tax rules will have much lower backup priority.

Data can take many forms:

 user files
 emails
 documentation
 databases
 user accounts
 security settings and file permissions
 client computer images
 company website or intranet
 software
 system state.

The last item listed above is system state. This term refers to a
bundle of system files that form the core capabilities and settings of
the operating system. Many backup software solutions will have a
system state (or similar) setting to allow you to restore the key
functions of the operating system.

Some of the other key issues to consider when formulating a backup

plan focus on the agility of the plan. This refers to the speed with
which lost data can be restored. This is highly dependant on the type
of backup implemented and the hardware and software used. The
fundamental question is: What will the cost be to a business and its
reputation if data is lost?

There is no one-size-fits-all plan that can be adopted by a company.

Guidelines are very valuable but it is the careful planning and
customising of a plan to suit the needs of a company that will result in
the most successful backup/disaster recovery plan.

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