Database crashes can affect your organization, the same way it affects thousands of companies regularly. Technology has surely come far, but component failure is the basic way a database fails to function. Without proper backups of your database, a failure can result in downtime, loss of profits, and even unhappy customers. A reliable database backup must have three aspects in check- regular backups, quick uploads, and speedy restores. You can form a good backup strategy by using these 10 factors.
Onsite backups
The internet is big and it keeps getting bigger with new hardware coming in connection every day. If you upload a file to cloud storage, you can access it wherever you want, given you have a working internet connection. Instead of backing up your database on a hard drive, you can upload it to a cloud. You will not have to carry a hard drive with you everywhere, and you will download the backup wherever you want. You can significantly cut down on downtime with this method as the internet works pretty fast in the current generation. Gigabit cables provide hundreds of megabits per second, which is pretty fast bandwidth.
Storage of older backups
Older backups can help you recover corrupt data in case of database loss. But older backups can help you during data analysis. Data analysis is a very important process of finding patterns for predictions of decisions, and even events. You can make use of this amazing scientific process that is on the rise in the current generation of technology. Older backups will help you get back data loss by finding patterns through old data. You can also set up periodic backups which will automatically back your data every 30 days, 60 days, or 90 days.
Offsite backup
Offsite data is handy, but not extremely reliable because they take time for restoration. If you suffer an on-site data loss, you can rely on an offsite data source for restoration. You have to keep this backup updated and in a safe spot, as offsite data storage systems do take environmental damage at a significant scale. You also have to manage more than one off-site backup to make sure things work out in difficult situations. In a critical situation as database loss, off-site backups can prove an unlikely rescue for developers and database management.
Datacenter
Data centres are amazing for backups, but should also have good security controls. As the company will home important organization data, leaks can result in your competitions gaining an upper hand over you. Your data centre will have to pass the SSAE 16 type 2 industry standards to house your data. A few things that make good data centres are-
- Access security- security alarms, armed guards, CCTV, gates, checkpoints, and secure servers.
- Availability service- power supplies, power backup generators, cooling systems, gigabit internet connections.
Data transmission controls
Security centre controls understand the basic spots where your data may be out of protection range. One of such instances is when data is under transmission from one server to another. Insecure transmission channels can result in your data getting compromised when you are transferring it to places. Getting data encryption, such as AES encryption, 256-bit encryption, and triple DES encryption are all amazing choices for encrypting data under the transmission.
Backup schedule
You should always keep multiple backup schedules under circulation to make sure your data automatically gets backed into the cloud. The frequency of backups can be anything depending upon the circumstances your company is in. You can consider the following questions when setting up the frequency of automatic backups-
- How often do changes occur in the system?
- When do people from the organization access the database?
- How much space will the backup eventually take?
Cloud backup providers
You can set up your cloud server to back data up, but that server will not be as secure and manageable as cloud backup providers. You can tackle almost every issue you might have with a cloud backup provider. A provider who enables automatic backups can help you with a continuous chain of error-free backups. You will never have to pre-schedule backups after you sign up with cloud backup providers. Cloud backup plans also make the backup process efficient by combining every process in a single fee and giving you relief from expensive cloud servers.
The quick and simple restore process
Cloud backup providers also help you carry out a normal backup process which is quick. But you can also set up efficient methods to enable quick restore in case of data loss through your server. Cloud backup providers prove to be quicker than your backups because they already have efficient ways to deliver your system back. The backup process in cloud storage also memorizes the paths where data needs to go to keep the system running, which is also a major upper hand.
Backup testing
Always test your backup systems multiple times before systems, because it is always better to be safe than sorry. You can backup a copy of your system in the cloud service provider or your backup server, and restore it to test. You can note down the times that your service takes to back-up and restore an entire system. You can test out multiple services, or systems and find which one of them is best for your system backup. You can test potential risks and security holes, to find if your data is fully secure in the system.
In conclusion
Database backup is important for any organization, as all important data from different production processes are in storage for processing. Data losses can result in downtime for the company, and the customer, resulting in losses. The above 9 factors can help you create reliable backup and restoration chains for harsh data losses. Modern technology has come far enough to help you create a fast restoration chain with any good cloud storage provider.
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