Designing a Backup and Recovery Strategy

Developing and implementing abackup and recovery strategy foryour organization is a step-by-step process. The following outlinedescribes the actions that take placeat each step.

Step 1: Fund

Determine what budgetary supportexists for your comprehensive dataprotection plan, and actively seekmanagement support for the plan.

Step 2: Evaluate

Conduct a backup needs analysis tohelp you determine which technologies are most suitable for your backupneeds. Understanding what data andstorage you must protect will help youdevelop effective and comprehensivebackup and recovery plans.

Step 3: Plan

Develop separate backup and recovery plans that address the data protection requirements that your needsanalysis identified.

Step 4: Implement

Deploy backup hardware and software and perform the initial backup ofthe entire data store. Begin scheduleof regular full backups and incremental data backups. Move backupdata off site (either via tape storage,network links to offsite storage, orInternet-based offsite storage).

Step 5: Test

Regularly test backups to confirmaccuracy and test data recovery procedures to guarantee data availability.Test client-side backup and recoverysoftware to assure full functionality.Retest client-side and server-sidebackup and recovery software aftersystem updates and upgrades. Regular testing will help you catch problems that updating OS software canintroduce in otherwise correctly functioning backups and restores.