Four Best Practices for Vendor Cloud Backup
Not until it’s too late do many businesses like yours realize that a backup is necessary. Only after valuable data is lost do they take action. But you don’t have to be one of those organizations. You can deploy a robust backup and recovery solution to safeguard your cloud-based data.
When you entrust your business data to a cloud-based platform, you expect it to be secure. Most cloud platforms, however, acknowledge their backup shortcomings, as, for instance, in the event of a power outage or data corruption. So, most cloud platforms recommend having an additional backup and recovery solution for your cloud-based data.
Knowing key best practices, though, can help you get the most bang for your buck.
Four Key Best Practices
To ensure your backup and recovery journey is a smooth one, follow the following four key practical steps in best practices.
Set your expectations
Though a vendor states that backup is included, you need to know exactly what that means: is backup once per day or in real time? When you subscribe to a cloud-based platform, you need to determine whether the included level of backup and recovery is sufficient for your needs.
It is important, then, to read the terms and conditions of a vendor before subscribing to their services, in order to see what type of backup and recovery solution they have in place.
This will help ensure that your data doesn’t simply vanish into thin air.
Fine-tune your backup
Before subscribing to a cloud-based platform service, consider several factors:
- Is the backup and recovery solution offered by the vendor customizable to your specific needs?
- Will the backup and recovery solution offered be too little or too much for your needs?
- How frequently your data changes will impact how frequently you need to back up data.
- How much data do you need to back up or possibly recover?
- What type of data do you have that needs to be backed up?
- What are the levels of importance of your various pieces of data and how often do each need to be backed up?
Test your backup regularly
Testing your backup solution on a regular basis will enable you to catch issues before they become a problem or before data is lost. Then you can fix the issues before they escalate into something severe.
Anyone who has ever lost data knows the importance of backup, but backup isn’t all you need: you need to test your backup solution to ensure that it works properly. A backup that doesn’t work is, of course, no use at all. That’s why you need to test your backup solution regularly to ensure it is functioning in the right way.
How often should you test your backup? That depends on your backup system and the nature of your data, how crucial it is for your organization’s functioning. A good rule thumb, though, is to test your backup at least weekly.
Stay up-to-date on the security landscape
As the world becomes evermore complex so does the cyberworld: we use a vast array of devices and applications all the time, doing both business and leisure online. As the cyberworld becomes evermore complex, so does the landscape for security risks. Cybercriminals are constantly evolving with the ever-evolving cyberworld.
Thus, it is crucial to be aware of various ways your data could become compromised. Awareness isn’t enough, though! You need to have strategies in place to prevent and avoid them.
Both for basic business survival as well as having a competitive edge, it is crucial to be prepared for any and all cyberattacks or compromises. If you’re prepared to deal with any and every cyberthreat that may compromise your data, then your organization’s chances of survival increase significantly. This will also give you a great competitive edge, as you will be more resilient than they are or you were before.
We Can Help
Following the aforementioned key best practices can be overwhelming, especially if you’re working alone. You already have enough on your plate, running your business, handling organizational matters, meeting your bottom line. This is why we exist: to provide secure IT so you can succeed.
We collaborate with organizations like yours to create a backup and recovery plan that meets your specific needs and budget. Additionally, we provide the support and maintenance you need to secure your data.
Contact us today for a free, no-obligation consult.
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