Which backup solution should I choose?
2015 is a record year for equipment: Business spending on Cloud infrastructure (backup, storage, application hosting) will increase by 33% between now and the end of the year, according to Gartner. This is a major trend that can be explained by the growing importance and volume of digital data held by businesses. User mobility is also a major factor in this trend. According to an Oodrive study, 80% of unprotected businesses go bankrupt after an IT disaster (fire, flood, breakage, theft, virus). In response to this problem, many specialists offer a complete range of solutions for VSEs, SMEs and large groups. So there are several options to choose from, depending on your needs. See all our back-up software comparisons.
File backup
The first level of backup concerns your files. By files, we mean all the documents you produce and use on a daily basis (word processing, spreadsheets, emails, PDFs), your media (photos and videos) and your databases (SQL or ODB, for example). In the event of a disaster or damage to your files, a backup solution will enable you to recover them in their latest operational version:
You can back up all your files on a daily basis, either at your company premises, at a location away from your offices, or in the Cloud. In the last two cases, this will be via an Internet connection. Make sure that the solutions on offer use as little bandwidth as possible, thanks to incremental backup, schedule planning and Delta-Bloc backup technologies. Your Internet connection should be reserved for business use, at least during working hours.
Example: A VSE or SME that generates a lot of documents should target solutions that preferably offer: data hosting in France to avoid the American Patriot Act, Delta-Bloc or incremental backup as a minimum, possible backup of open files, backup reports. We recommend Adbackup, RG Backup, Oxibox, SpiderOack (data hosted in the USA) and Microsoft Azure Backup.
This option allows you to save the minimum: the furniture! It does not, however, allow you to recover lost software if your computer is stolen or destroyed.
Backing up all fixed and mobile devices
The question of backing up all your content (files, software and operating systems) arises if you want to eliminate recovery time. Reinstalling all the software on your employees' workstations and importing files can be a long and tedious process. On the one hand, you are mobilising a full-time technical employee for this restoration, and on the other, the loss of data for the victim is an indefinable amount of lost working time...
You need to pay particular attention to the compatibility of backup software with your operating systems (Windows, Mac, Linux, Android). The idea of a complete system backup is to be able to restore the company's entire digital heritage on the same machines or on new ones. So you need to be able to do this under the right conditions. You also need to ensure that you have a Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP) in place, the aim of which is to guarantee that your business can be resumed as quickly and easily as possible, without any loss of data.
Example: A VSE or SME providing employees with several fixed and mobile terminals will need to pay attention to the following functions: Disaster recovery plan, Compatibility with different operating systems, "Bare Metal" recovery (complete system recovery), data hosting in France. We recommend the Adbackup, RG Backup, Oxibox, Microsoft Azure Backup and Backupia solutions.
Backing up a company server
Backing up a business server is relatively similar to backing up a computer. We separate it from the rest because the criticality and volume of information on a server is far greater than that of a single employee. Given the intense activity on a company server, it is essential to be able to manage several dozen backup versions in order to retrieve precise information. The recovery time must also be very short so as not to impact employees. Bare Metal Recovery technology enables you to recover a perfect copy of your data in the shortest possible time. Particular attention should also be paid to insurance covering the loss of your data. If your data is lost, your business will be profoundly affected. That's why it's important that your service provider offers you insurance cover in excess of €1 million.
Article translated from French