It was a day just like any other: Dorothy and her dog Toto were roaming the family’s farmlands until a cyclone came along and swept everything (farmhouse included) right into the Munchkin Country in the magical Land of Oz. Let’s say you are Dorothy and Toto is your business. Out of nowhere, a natural disaster sweeps the land, leaving nothing but rubble in its wake. Will you be able to soldier on down the Yellow Brick Road, or will you be left with nothing but the ghosts of all your crucial business files that were snatched from your hardworking hands?
Aside from tornadoes, business owners also have to worry about fires, floods, and even burglary. Their commonality is that they are all out of your control and can strike when you least expect it. Unfortunately, the best firewalls and antivirus programs are no guarantees against infernos that incinerate everything they touch, or deluges that drown all of your blood, sweat and tears. The question still remains: How sure can you be of your current disaster backup and recovery solution?
Though we persevere through any ordeal that comes our way, there are still a million and one things to deal with in the aftermath. Not being prepared would make matters worse. Nonetheless, many business owners unfortunately settle for on-site options and still choose to completely ignore the benefits of cloud backups.
Identify mission-critical systems and data first
Firstly, you'll need to identify the necessary data and systems that your organization can't do without. This differs from company to company. The most valuable data normally incur large costs resulting from data loss. Let's say your company wishes to hold onto client information, financial reports and email data. These critical assets are better off in a secure virtual storage space that is kept away from less important data. By prioritizing mission-critical systems, both you and your recovery service provider can swiftly restore basic functionality and resume business.
Onsite vs. offsite backup solutions
The first step of carrying out a data protection or disaster recovery plan is to back up your data at a remote and secure data center. Businesses would normally opt to have all their data onsite for convenience, but this is quite risky since physical servers would be wiped out if faced with an earthquake, hurricane or any external attacks.
Whereas with virtualization, you'll be able to store data at multiple offsite locations while simultaneously mitigating the impacts of disasters or theft. On top of that, if onsite servers were to be compromised by cyber threats, cloud technology would let you boot backups into a clean device.
It’s estimated that 40-60% of businesses with a poor business continuity plan disrupted by natural disasters are likely never to reopen; moreover, companies that fail to resume operations within 10 days after the first impact aren’t likely to make it either. If your business belongs to the previously mentioned group, it’s time for you to act. Why wait for problems to occur when you have the resources to prevent them from wreaking havoc?
It’s evident that cloud backup solutions are paramount to the survival of businesses both big and small. If your data is gone, it’s GONE. By investing in and properly implementing a reliable and efficient cloud backup service, you can have some peace of mind knowing that if something wicked came your way, you would fall but ultimately manage to get back up again.
At Complete Technology, we want to help you and your business protect all that you’ve worked for. We want to spare you from knowing what it's like for countless years of hard work to be swept away in a matter of minutes. We’ll hook you up with the right cloud backup solution for your business’s needs and requirements. In a world where threats are constant and ever-changing, safety should not be a luxury, but a necessity. Feel free to get in touch with us for any further questions.
