In a moment you could lose everything… In January 2009, the up-and-coming social bookmarking website, Magnolia lost all its data after a single outage. The data became corrupted and therefore could not be retrieved by the website’s users. Ma.gnolia relied on only one backup which was on-site and the backup had duplicated the corruption. The CEO of Ma.gnolia admitted that the collapse of the entire business was due to a single outage. It was a nightmare that could have been avoided if they had used offsite data backup.
The truth is every business is vulnerable to data catastrophes. But every business can also make smart choices to avoid them. Having a secure data backup strategy will save your business the hundreds, if not thousands of dollars that come with data loss.
The 3-2-1 rule
When it comes to data backup and recovery best practices, the 3-2-1 rule is one of the most effective. This approach ensures that you’ll have a copy of your data no matter what happens. It means you have at least three copies of all critical data. Your data is saved in at least two different physical locations with at least one of those locations being offsite. You’ll have multiple copies that will prevent you from losing everything. When saved in multiple locations, your data is safe even if one location is damaged in a fire or flood etc…
Importance of offsite data backup
As shown in the 3-2-1 rule, offsite data backup is a must when it comes to preventing data loss. There are numerous benefits that come with storing your backup data in a physical location outside of your office building:
1. Offsite backup is more reliable
Offsite backup is an automated process that occurs at regular intervals. You can choose to backup the files daily or configure the frequency of backups to your requirements i.e. hourly, or every few minutes. With this automated process, you won’t have to worry about forgetting to backup your data.
2. Offsite backup is easy to set up
Because offsite backup solutions are managed by IT partners, you will receive full guidance on the initial setup and on selecting what files or data to backup. This process can be completed in just a few clicks and can even be automated.
3. Offsite backup reduces your workload
Traditional backup solutions require a person, whether it be you or an IT professional, to manually back up or copy files. This consumes the valuable time you could have used to focus on other important tasks and projects. With offsite data backup systems, once the initial setup is complete, it only takes a click of the mouse to run the backup or it can be scheduled ahead of time.
4. Offsite backup is highly secure
Offsite backup providers store their servers in physically secure locations. The backup data is also transmitted using advanced encryption tools to ensure that your data is protected against hackers and viruses.
5. Offsite backup saves you money
Cost is often a concern for businesses that have a large amount of data to backup. The good news is offsite backup providers often bill their clients on a fixed monthly basis or offer discounts for a business requiring more backup space. If your company requires a large number of files to be backed up, it would be wise to opt for offsite as opposed to local backup options.
Need help with your data backup?
Here at Insight IT, we have a dedicated team of fully certified IT engineers who can assist with every step of the offsite backup process. Your backup data security is constantly monitored so that we can proactively check for issues and minimize the impact. You’ll get the peace of mind, knowing that your data is stored in a location that is designed to be safe and secure. Get in touch with us here to get a customized data backup solution for your business.
