Backup: four questions you should ask your IT admin

Data is the real capital of any company. If it is unavailable or even damaged - for whatever reason - there is a risk of painful losses due to downtime, error-prone and costly reconstructions and damage to the company's image. There are also liability risks for managing directors and contractual penalties. In many cases, even business operations themselves are at risk and this can even mean the end of a company.

A backup is therefore a must for companies of all sizes: it "preserves" the current state of information so that it can be restored in an emergency. The aspect of time plays a central role here. On the one hand, the intervals between backups must be defined, and on the other hand, it must be determined how long it may take to restore the data if necessary. However, simply using an appropriate backup solution is not enough. It is important to test whether the backup files are also readable. Only those who check this regularly are on the safe side and prepared for emergencies.

We have put together four questions for you that you can ask your IT admin on the subject of "backup" (the questionnaire can be downloaded below):

1. do we create backups of our data?

Backups are not a technical gimmick! If, for example, the required digital documents are not available in an audit-proof form during an audit by the tax office, the managing director is personally liable with his private assets if the tax office makes a generous estimate. Penalties are also not uncommon if data cannot be transmitted without gaps upon request.

2. at what intervals do we carry out our backups?

To what extent can you tolerate a loss of data without affecting ongoing business operations? The frequency of the backups, also known as the recovery point objective (RPO), depends on this. This can be freely selected - whether weekly or hourly. The following applies: The restored data is only ever as up-to-date as it was during the last backup process. If a backup is only carried out once a week, the data of an entire working week is at stake. In the IT industry, for example, there is usually 24 hours between file backups.

3. how long does it take to get our data back in an emergency?

In addition, it also takes time to restore the last backed up system state - the "Recovery Time Objective" (RTO). The duration depends in particular on the performance of the data storage device. You should therefore determine how much you want to invest for the resumption of IT operations and match the hardware components of your backup solution accordingly.

4. have we ever tested whether the backup works in an emergency?

Subject the solution to a practical test. Companies often only discover that the backup data is unreadable in an emergency. Regular tests ensure that business operations can resume quickly in an emergency.

Langmeier Backup & data protection for companies

Langmeier Backup 8.1 creates consistent Windows data backups during operation. In addition to classic file backups, the software also creates bootable images (files/images of the PC) and thus backs up complete operating systems. If the computer is infected by a virus or has software problems, the system can be quickly restored and brought back into operation using a bootable emergency medium - such as a hard disk or USB stick. With just a few mouse clicks, the program also backs up contact data, emails and Internet favorites. Even active databases can be backed up easily with Langmeier Backup.

Langmeier backup software at a glance

• Langmeier Backup 8 Business meets business requirements for data security with selectable encryption levels, backup logs via e-mail and data backup to compressed zip archives or tape drives.
  
• Langmeier Backup 8 Server realizes the most diverse data backup concepts on clients as well as on servers and enables a quick disaster recovery thanks to the creation of bootable emergency media. With its high degree of functionality and scalability, the solution is suitable for companies of all sizes.
  
• Langmeier Backup V-flex combines data backup, replication, recovery and disaster recovery for virtual environments in one solution. Langmeier Backup backs up any number of virtual servers.