It is a wise person or company who plans backups and then archives important data.
Why would someone do this?
Why would a company do this?
If you place importance on your digital creations, you will have back up copies.
Companies use software to do the following types of backups.
FULL BACKUP
is a duplicate of your existing data storage system
it contains the same folders and the same files
it also takes up the same amount of space (unless compressed)
Advantage is you can restore your data from one location
Disadvantage is it is slow and takes up lots of space
DIFFERENTIAL BACKUP
the backup software looks at the files that have changed since the last full backup, it backs up the files that are different
you will have one full backup and several differential backups.
to restore, use your full backup and the last differential backup
advantage is not as much storage space needed as another full back, also much quicker than another full backup
disadvantage is differential backup is slower than incremental because it is always looking back at the last full backup
backs up only files that have been added or modified since the last backup of any type
incremental means if you back up each day then only the files changed on each day are backed up
to restore use the full back up, then also use the incremental backups of each day
advantage is incremental backups are quick
disadvantage is it takes the most time to restore from the many backups taken
is a copy of files that are not needed on a daily basis
they are put onto a different location away from the main file storage system
if they are needed, then they can be retrieved from the external storage system and used again.
advantage is it frees up space on the normal storage location for daily use
disadvantage is if you need a file, you may need to wait to get it from the archive location
a disaster can cripple a business therefore it is important that companies have a disaster recovery plan and an audit trail to restore operations as soon as possible
DISASTER RECOVERY PLAN
is a set of steps to protect data in the event of a disaster
usually it is in writing
it is to minimise data loss
it is to minimise down time
it includes storing data off-site
RECOVERY PLAN 1 - HOT SITE
this is a duplicate of the existing site in every way, servers, rooming, real time synchronisation so data is the same
following a disaster, this new site would be up and running in a short time frame eg 2 hours
advantage is it is ready to go and is the best recovery solution
disadvantage is it is very expensive to setup
example 'bank up and running in 2 hours after twin towers collapse"
this is a site that has computers set up, but not exact duplicates
following a disaster, this new site would be up and running in a longer time frame eg a week
advantage is it is not as expensive as the hot site
disadvantage is down time to get site operational
this is a site that is not configured with computers and other hardware, some may be more setup than others
advantage is it is much cheaper than the hot or warm site
disadvantage is it is more down time. more time needed to get up and running
is tracking how the data comes about
the financial trail is different from the marketing trail when it comes to data
audit trails provide how the data comes into, or leaves, the company