Modern organizations use network attached storage (NAS) devices to organize team collaboration and optimize data storage and access. Furthermore, for SMBs, a NAS storage solution can be the main (or the only) data retention node. Thus, a NAS device becomes vital for the very existence of an organization, not to mention proper operation. Given the importance of NAS devices, implementing a protection strategy from possible failures and disasters is a must for organization’s of any size.
In this post, we explain why an organization that uses NAS and aims to remain functional after incidents resulting in data loss should have a NAS backup solution.
Five Reasons to Consider Using a NAS Backup Solution
An SMB can use a single NAS device to store data and synchronize and simplify internal IT processes. A large enterprise can use the same device as an independent storage for critical data. In these and other use cases, the five reasons below to have NAS backup as a core or a part of your organization’s data protection are worth attention and consideration.
Reason 1: You Need the NAS Data
The key point is that the consequences of NAS data loss extend beyond the production and profit issues for an organization. These days, data is one the most valuable assets that an SMB or enterprise has. In case NAS is your main data storage device and a core infrastructure component, you need control over that data. Otherwise, you risk not only losing your profits and getting an additional maintenance cost to invest. The best-case scenario would mean you spending significant funds to restore the damaged or deleted data. In the worst-case scenario, your entire organization can stop existing.
Therefore, a properly organized and regularly updated NAS backup is the only way to keep control over critical data in case of, for instance, a fire in your office or a successful ransomware attack. No infrastructure or data protection measures but backup can help you maintain access to that data when your NAS hardware is down or a storage breach has already happened.
Reason 2: You Already Use NAS as a Backup Repository
backup recovery Some organizations tend to perceive NAS devices as universal data synchronization, retrieval and storage solutions, thus keeping backups on different logical or physical disks of the same device. That approach enables you to have a copy of your data, but not a recoverable backup. A backup shouldn’t rely on production infrastructure to recover the organization’s data – backups must be fully recoverable autonomously.
You also need a NAS backup software solution if a NAS device is the only backup storage that your organization has. A standalone NAS is a solid choice to store backups only when combined with other backup repositories according to the IT industry-accepted backup rules:
Keep backups at least in three different storage locations, with at least one kept offsite.
Don’t rely on physical storage only, send backups to the cloud or tape.
With a specialized NAS backup solution you can recover unstructured data to the required location with minimum effort and time spendings.
Reason 3: Simple Operation and Management
In 2022, the amount of data that even the smallest organization needs to collect, process, store and back up is huge, and that figure is growing. With NAS backup solutions, organizations can get centralized data management and automation platforms that streamline IT operation in such tasks as:
- Data backup scheduling
- Network usage optimization
- Resource monitoring
- Avoiding backup overlaps
- Efficient storage space management
Thus, a NAS backup solution picked thoroughly can simplify data backup and recovery, improve the overall performance of an organization and cut maintenance costs. Moreover, an IT department gets additional time they can spend to complete other important tasks instead of taking care of data protection tasks.
Reason 4: Improved Backup Data Security
security systems A modern organization needs a constant online presence to ensure operation and interaction with clients. A network connection that remains active 24/7 is an efficiency booster as much as a threat. Apart from enabling, for instance, remote work and worldwide sales, an Internet channel means that cybercriminals are at your virtual threshold all the time. A cybercriminal seeks a chance to access an organization’s data mostly to steal or encrypt it.
Your NAS backup is a target for cybercriminals’ attacks too. Therefore, ensuring backup data security should be a concern as well. Some hackers may even make backups their priority target because organizations tend to concentrate on production security while perceiving backups as secondary.
You can use a NAS backup solution to enhance the security of backup data. For example, specialized solutions enable you to encrypt backups both in flight (while the data is transferred through the network) and at rest (when a backup is in the repository). Encryption means that no third party can read the data without a decryption key even if they reach your backup repository.
Additionally, advanced solutions can have security features such as multi-factor authentication and role-based access control, which set additional barriers for cybercriminals trying to break into your infrastructure and reach backups. Moreover, with the help of a specialized solution you can not only backup NAS data offsite and to the cloud but also make backup repositories immutable. Immutability makes changing or deleting the data in a repository impossible throughout the set period, thus, for example, preventing ransomware from encrypting your backups.
Reason 5: App Data Consistency and Integrity
NAS devices can be used to run production applications and databases that have I/O operations running at any time. Backing up the data from such databases and apps without pausing and saving data exchange operations leads to the lack of backup integrity. This causes issues with correct recovery and production restoration.
With a solution to back up NAS data, you can use the advantages of application-aware backups which can automatically flush I/O operations to disks before starting backup workflows. Thus, when you back up a database or a running application, you can be sure that no data is lost in the process. Then, you can restore production successfully after recovery.
Conclusion
Organizations can use NAS devices as data or backup storage, and in both cases a specialized NAS backup solution is what they need. A contemporary solution can enhance data protection by sending backups offsite and to the cloud, adding more security layers with immutability, two-factor authentication and role-based access control features. Additionally, such solutions can help organizations automate backup workflows, improve resource utilization and cut maintenance costs. Application-awareness functions of solutions for NAS backup can help with ensuring correct data recovery and immediately restore production to minimize downtime.
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