Only Fools Don’t Back Up Their Data

It may be a little late for an April Fools kind of post, but not backing up your data properly would be foolish! It is so easy to end up losing data when you don’t take the necessary precautions. Between technology glitches, hackers and system meltdowns, there is a good chance that somewhere along the line you are going to be in the position of needing to recover some, if not all, of your data. 

Just picture the hooded shadow lurking in the back of your system looking for that one tiny opening into your otherwise secure system. Once they find it, BAM! Data instantly gone, caput, MIA. All because you didn’t think you needed to worry about backing up data. Or worse still, you backed it up, but your only backup was accessible to the hacker in your system and now it’s gone too! 

The Chilliwack area had massive floods this past winter and there were more than a few companies that found themselves in the position of having systems that were completely fried due to water, power outages, and system overload. We were bombarded with calls from businesses begging us to recover their data. Unfortunately, it’s not quite that easy if you didn’t have a secure backup in place before the problem occurred. We are pleased to say though that for our customers that had us create backups for them off site prior to the flooding, we were able to restore almost all of their data. 

So, what is the best way to protect your data? We recommend our 1-2-3 backup model. 

1. On-Site Backup – Not the best choice due to the cost of additional equipment and relying on your staff, who may not be experts in the area of data backup, to do just that. That would be like asking me as an IT guy to build your garage for you – I might be able to muddle through, but I don’t guarantee it will be even close to perfect or that it will survive the first big storm that comes along! But, if you really don’t think you want to go the route of cloud backup or other services, this MIGHT save at least some of your data if you are breached or your system breaks down – unless of course your backup is constantly connected to your system, in which case, it will undoubtedly be lost as well! However, used in conjunction with other options, this will serve as an added layer of protection. 

2. Cloud Backup – Cloud backup, also known as online backup or remote backup, is a strategy for sending a copy of a physical or virtual file or database to a secondary, off-site location for preservation in case of equipment failure or catastrophe. The secondary server and data storage systems are usually hosted by a third-party service provider. There is always a charge for cloud backup, but the cost is worth it when you consider the cost of losing your company’s data. 

3. Hire an MicroAge Chilliwack – We can take away all of your headaches. No need to figure any of the backup options out – just let us do it for you! Outsourcing has long been considered a cost-cutting move and MicroAge Chilliwack can offer specialized skills as well as provide you with the option of having us handle all of their back up systems, be it in the cloud, off site storage, etc… We offer tiered services so that you are only paying for the services you want. That should always include backups! 

Learn more about the data best practices by checking out this article from MicroAge.