Top Best Data Backup Elk Grove

Hiring a data backup partner in Elk Grove

While the general principles of data backups have been the same for many years, the practices have changed a great deal. In particular, as with so much else in IT, many companies are now organizing their data backups on a cloud-first (or even cloud-only) basis. For many SMBs a good data backup provider is an essential part of making that shift. Here are some points to consider when you’re looking to hire a data backup partner in Elk Grove.

How To Start The Data Backup?

1. Start by figuring out what basic data backup strategy you want to use

The traditional approach to data management is to have three copies of the data (including your production copy) on two media with one copy stored offsite. This, of course, long predates the cloud, however, it’s still a useful guideline and, in particular, should serve as a warning to any SMBs which are relying entirely on the automated backups undertaken by public cloud providers. These only give you two copies of the data in one location, although it is offsite.

The modern approach to data management is to back up data either to two clouds or to a cloud and a physical device, which would typically be kept on-site (as the cloud would provide the off-site storage). Either of these options satisfies the requirements of the old 3-2-1 adage but still offers more flexibility, security, and convenience than the old approach of backing up to two physical devices and sending one off-site.

The two big advantages of cloud backups are that you can restore your data very quickly and that you save yourself all the hassle of having to manage the safe (transport and) storage of physical media. In this context, “safe” means protected from environmental threats as well as criminal ones.

The only real advantage of having your data on physical media is that you can restore from it even without a network/internet connection. This used to be a huge issue and still can be a concern in some remote locations (e.g. Alaska), but these days it’s becoming less and less of a consideration.

2. Follow up by deciding what kinds of data backups you want to do (and how often).

In theory, the ideal data backup strategy would be only to use full data backups. This ideal may become a reality at some point in time, but right now full data backups require too much time and resources (e.g. bandwidth) to be used as your only option. Generally, the astute approach is to intersperse them with incremental or differential backups.

Incremental backups only backup data that has changed since the last backup (regardless of whether it was full or incremental). Differential backups only back up data that has changed the last full backup. Incremental backups are quicker and use less storage space, but it can be a challenge to restore from them. Differential backups consume more resources (including time, bandwidth, and storage), but restoring from them is usually fairly easy.

In many cases, the decision as to whether or not to perform incremental backups or differential backups will come down to whether or not a company has the resources to perform backups out of hours. If they do, then differential backups are usually the way to go as users aren’t going to be around to complain about any slowdown. If not, then incremental backups are likely to be a better option, unless you find yourself having to restore frequently, in which case you may want to go with differential backups.

For the sake of completeness, however, it has to be said that if you’re having to restore frequently from backups the longer-term solution is to work out why and, if possible, to deal with it. This may require input from an IT support partner in Elk Grove or require you to hire a managed IT services partner in Elk Grove to ensure that all care-and-maintenance tasks are performed promptly and effectively.

3. Check all legal/compliance requirements

Laws and compliance requirements can and do change both with place and with time, so it’s strongly recommended to double-check the latest requirements/guidance before even looking for a data backup partner. Ideally, you’ll also want to see if you can get any insight into what changes may be on the cards over the near future.

On that point, be aware that data backup vendors offering services in Elk Grove may be legally and/or physically based elsewhere, which could great some interesting legal/compliance situations you’d generally prefer to avoid. It’s therefore a good idea to check their actual location(s) early in the hiring process.

If you’d like to speak to a reputable and experienced data backup vendor in Elk Grove, please click here now to contact Aperio.IT.

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