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Nope, I’m not talking about the Android named “Data” who we met on Star Trek: The Next Generation. I’m talking about that “stuff” that we all generate on a daily basis. I could go into a lot of really boring information about what data actually is, but let’s try to keep this out of the “yawn” category. Data, simply put, is all that “stuff” (there’s that word again) that we generate and collect as we go about our daily lives. To keep this short, let’s limit this discussion to the data (stuff) that we generate, create and/or collect as it relates to our business, work, or computers. It could include accounting information, email messages, appointments, letters/documents that we created and need for future reference, presentations, photos (anything from favorite vacation photos, to Uncle Ned dancing on the table at Cousin Tom’s wedding reception, or to the photos of the company party that you are confident will be useful at some point in the future) and the list could go on.
I’ve been in this business for years, and I’ve talked with people ranging from business owners and civic leaders to individuals. There’s a thread that runs through most of the conversations, as it applies to data, with almost everyone. Their data (you know, that “stuff”) is important to them. The general consensus is that life as they know it will surely end if something happens to their data. But, even with that level of importance placed on their data, most of these same people have admitted to me that they do not have a disaster recovery plan or even a good backup plan in place. In other words, if something happened to their computer or their server(s), life as they know it might well end.
There are many viable solutions, and I’d love to talk with you about them when you have the time. Feel free to call us at the office at 501.542.4241, and we can schedule that conversation. I don’t have time to go into detail about all of them, but they include the following:
- Ghosting (imaging) your computer
- Tape Backup Systems
- Burning Data to CD/DVD
- Remote Backups
These are the “broad brush stroke” options, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. Here’s a brief thumbnail sketch of each:
1. Ghosting/imaging is a great option that creates an exact copy of your entire computer, so if anything happens, you can completely recreate your computer (data, OS and all) in one relatively simple process. The downside is that the software used to do this is typically somewhat expensive, and this process takes a fair amount of time and can take up a lot of storage space.
2. Tape Backup Systems can be a good option that gives you lots of flexibility as it applies to how much data you want to backup. The biggest negative is that the tapes are really costly. An even bigger problem I have found over the years is that, because of the expense of the tapes, people tend to re-use the same tapes for several years. The biggest problem with this is that the recommended life expectancy of this type of magnetic media is 6 – 12 months. Too many time I’ve seen the need to use those backups arrive, and unfortunately, the data could not be recovered, because the media had been used beyond it usefulness. As a general rule, if you replace these backup tapes like you should and have a decent rotation plan in place, you’ll spend from several hundred dollars per year to in excess of a thousand — every year. And if you do spend that money, someone has to be responsible for swapping the tapes out every day and taking part of the tapes offsite to protect it in case something happens at the source of origin (i.e. a fire or other natural disaster). It takes many man-hours and tends to be the first thing forgotten when schedules get full.
3. Burning Data to CD/DVD is a relatively inexpensive option. This form of media has become fairly inexpensive in recent years. The time it takes to burn data to this form of media has decreased as the read/write speeds have increased. One of the first negatives I see with this is that we seem to be getting better and better at creating more and more data. So when we do these backups, we have to go through multiple CDs/DVDs to get the important “stuff” backed up. This leads me to the second big negative. Someone has to babysit the process and swap the media out as needed. This leads me to the biggest negative of all. You and I both know that if it’s going to require us to sit by the computer to swap out the media, it is likely to happen less and less frequently as the days go by. Unfortunately, our tendency to create more and more data doesn’t decrease. I’m sure you’re getting my drift.
4. Remote Backup Service options have rapidly become the favored option in today’s marketplace. It has become very reasonable from a cost point of view, although it does represent a reoccurring expense. It is easy, reliable, secure, and requires little or no involvement on our part on any type of regular basis.
If you’ve ever turned on your TV, you’ve likely heard of a man by the name of Ron Popeil. Ron (not that I’m on a first name basis with him, but I’ll go ahead and take that the liberty anyway) is an inventor who is responsible for the Pocket Fisherman (now that one goes back a few years), the Chef & Go, a Pasta Maker and Sausage Machine, a Food Dehydrator, and the list goes on. No, I didn’t remember all of these … I went to his website to refresh my memory. I actually had the “Pocket Fisherman” when I was a kid, and I’ve seen the infomercial about something he calls the “Showtime Standard Rotisserie”, which is why I bring him up at this point. That infomercial will burn the words “Set It and Forget It” indelibly into your mind. That’s one of the best advantages to online backup services. You choose what data you believe to be important, configure the backup to run on a schedule that is prudent for your situation and start the process. Other than watching your inbox for a message telling you that something didn’t go as expected, you can now sleep at nights, because your data is secure somewhere off-site. Just “Set It and Forget It” … something that we all enjoy.
As I said earlier, I’d love to talk with you about protecting your data, your really important stuff, with one of these processes. I’d especially love to talk with you about how we’ve combined Remote Backup Services with something known as a “Web Disk” to enable you to not only backup your data, but to make all those important files available to you anywhere you can access the Internet … not just when you’re at your own computer. It’s a REALLY cool concept. Contact BizTek Connection today.