Disaster Recovery 

Of course, we would all like to avoid this and we certainly try to avoid thinking about it but, if it does happen, it could serious affect your business so think of it as an insurance policy.

There are a number of things that you should do:

• Do a quick risk-assessment and determine what it would cost the business if you could not access your computer systems for a period time. Look at different periods such as an hour, a day and a week. What would the impact be. Try to quantify any losses as this will tell you what it would be worth paying to protect yourself.

• Ensure your backup is working and, periodically, try to restore some files to prove it. Check the backup logs daily and investigate all errors and warnings.

• Think about where your backups are kept. What would the impact be if there was a flood or fire? Remember that fire-proof safes are not waterproof. Should you store a backup off-site in case the building is severely damaged?

• Consider the type of backup you are doing, is it appropriate? For example, If you are using Microsoft Active Directory (that's most of you) and you have more than one server acting as a domain controller your backup strategy will need to reflect this. All technologies have their own particular requirements.

• Now you can create a plan, the Disaster Recovery Plan, which will describe what needs to be done in all the circumstances your risk assessment suggested you need to protect against. You should also create a pack to be used in the event of a disaster which will hold all the necessary media required and any related information.

If this sounds a bit daunting then give us a call on 01757-633737 and we will do it all for you.