Backup is the process of copying and storing data securely to prevent loss.
Recovery is the process of restoring this data after a failure or disaster.
How is it important?
- Prevents data loss: Protects against accidental deletion, hardware failures, or cyberattacks.
- Ensures business continuity: Minimizes downtime during disasters.
- Compliance: Some industries mandate regular backups for security and audit purposes.
Consider RTO and RPO factors to strategize backup and recovery.
RTO
Recovery Time Objective (RTO) is the maximum acceptable duration your system can be down after a failure before it impacts business operations.
How can I calculate RTO for my systems?
- Identify critical systems and processes for your business operations.
- Perform a Business Impact Analysis (BIA) including financial losses, operational disruptions, and reputational damage.
- Determine Maximum Tolerable Downtime (MTD) of each critical system before it causes significant harm.
- Evaluate recovery resources (personnel, technology, and processes) required to restore each critical system.
- Calculate recovery time to acquire or create the necessary resources and complete the recovery process for each system.
- Set the RTO by combining the MTD and the estimated recovery time to determine the RTO for each critical system.
For example, if a critical application has an MTD of 4 hours and it takes 2 hours to recover, the RTO would be 6 hours.
RPO
Recovery Point Objective (RPO) is the maximum acceptable amount of data loss measured in time (e.g. last 5 mins, 1 hour).
How can I calculate RPO for my systems?
- Identify critical data for your business operations and cannot be lost without significant impact.
- Assess data change rate for you critical data changes.
- Evaluate data loss tolerance for your business can tolerate. This is often measured in time (e.g., hours or minutes).
- Set backup frequency based on your data change rate and loss tolerance, decide how often you need to perform backups.
- Implement the backup strategy and regularly test it to ensure it meets your RPO requirements.
For example, if your critical data changes every hour and you can tolerate up to 2 hours of data loss, your RPO would be 2 hours, meaning you need to back up your data at least every 2 hours.
Types of backups
Some common types of backups are:
- Full backup: A complete copy of all data. Longer time, more storage needed.
- Incremental backup: Backs up only the data that has changed since the last full or incremental backup. Faster, uses less storage.
- Differential backup: Backs up all data that has changed since the last full backup. Balances speed and storage usage.
Methods of backups
Some common methods for backing up the systems are:
- Manual backup: Human intervention is required to initiate and monitor the backup process.
- Local automated backup: Backups are automated and stored locally on the same device or network.
- Remote automated backup: Backups are automated and stored remotely, often in a cloud-based storage solution.
Recommendations
A few recommendations for backing up and restoring the system are:
The 3-2-1 Rule:
- 3 total copies of your data
- 2 different storage types (e.g., local and cloud)
- 1 copy offsite This rule is also known as “the rule of three”. Depending on your needs, consider variations like 3-1-2, 3-2-2, or 3-2-3.
Continuous backup check
Regularly test your backups to ensure they are functioning correctly, and that data can be restored without issues.
Clear and documented backup strategy
- Define responsibilities: Who handles backups?
- Set schedules: When do backups occur?
- Test recovery plans: Practice restoring to ensure readiness during disasters.
That's it for today!
You can find a document on my LinkedIn post about "Backing Up and Restoring the System".
I post about DevOps, engineering excellence, and compassionate leadership. You can reach out to me on LinkedIn.
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