Disaster Recovery Resources

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Local data backups are effective for a limited set of disasters. Using a wide area network (WAN) to backup data is an attractive option for moving backup data offsite. Recover point objectives (RPO) are dependent on WAN efficiency. Recover time objectives (RTO) are dependent on available WAN bandwidth. Backup and recovery strategies should be designed with RPO's and RTO's under consideration.

Data recovery specialist can recover data from an wide array of losses. There are many causes of damage that can make your data inaccessible. Prevention is always a good policy, but when your data is lost a recovery specialist may be needed. Unless, of course you made backup copies.

Organziations are more dependent on data than ever. IT infrastructure and communications are essential to the operations of most businesses. When a disaster occurs, businesses that have made essential disaster recovery plans will bounce back. Businesses that fail to plan for disasters, will suffer severely in the event of a disaster.

Business are quick to adopt new information technologies to improve operational efficiency. Unfortuantely these rapid changes can quickly outpace the datacenters capacity for power and cooling, which can lead to interuption of service and possibly loss of data.

A glossary of terms sponsored by the Disaster Recovery Journal. Just reading over these terms will give some things to check in your own disaster recover plans.

Disaster Recovery involves much more than backing up and recovering data.

Any discussion of computer security is incomplete if it fails to address the all-important issue of backing up data. Microsoft Windows XP Networking and Security Inside Out: Also Covers Windows 2000 is concerned primarily with keeping security threats such as viruses, Trojan horses, hackers, and spammers at bay; however, in this sample chapter, the subject of data loss prevention is given its due. The chapter outlines how to design and troubleshoot a comprehensive data backup and recovery solution.

Many businesses risk grave losses due to failures and disasters yet continue to depend on their tape backups to help them recover successfully should a major outage occur. The thought of implementing a more appropriate disaster recovery plan can be daunting; to the point which many simply push it off until later. Unfortunately 'Later' often ends up being after the business has suffered a major loss from which it could not recover. This paper is intended to help simplify the process of starting a disaster recovery plan so as not to be so overwhelming. Through some basic steps, businesses can better protect themselves against data loss while working toward a more complete business continuity plan.

Good disaster recovery planning is about identifying those processes and resources that are truly critical, developing realistic recovery objectives for them, and then developing a plan that can achieve those objectives as simply and cost-effectively as possible. The goal of this paper is not simply to provide a checklist of tasks, but to help reader to develop an understanding of the disaster recovery planning process and the principles that underlie it. The paper lays out a framework for DR planning that keeps things conceptually simple, and helps to know what steps must be carried out and why, without a lot of jargon or unnecessary formality.

As often as not, disaster recovery expectations are unrealistic. Even with a well thought out Disaster Recovery (DR) plan, the ability of an organization to execute is suspect. The hope that DR can be executed to the defined RTO (Recovery-Time Objective) and RPO (Recovery-Point Objective) is often a dream rather than an expectation. The reality is that if a disaster should occur, nothing short of Herculean efforts by the IT staff would be required to have the slightest chance of getting back online in any reasonable period of time, much less the targeted RTO. But, don't give up hope. This paper provides a disaster recovery reality check and although it may be difficult to achieve, one can accomplish the DR vision by understanding four basic principles.

This is the first of a three-part series that describes the planning process related to disaster recovery. Based on the various considerations addressed during the planning phase, the process itself and related methodology can be equally as beneficial as the final written plan. ost businesses depend heavily on technology and automated systems, and their disruption for even a few days could cause severe financial loss and threaten survival. The continued operations of an organization depend on management’s awareness of potential disasters, their ability to develop a plan to minimize disruptions of critical functions and the capability to recovery operations expediently and successfully. A disaster recovery plan is a comprehensive statement of consistent actions to be taken before, during and after a disaster. The plan should be documented and tested to ensure the continuity of operations and availability of critical resources in the event of a disaster

This is the second of a three-part series that describes specific methods for organizing and writing a comprehensive disaster recovery plan. The first part of this series described the process for developing a thorough disaster recovery plan. A well-organized disaster recovery plan will directly affect the recovery capabilities of the organization. The contents of the plan should follow a logical sequence and be written in a standard and understandable format. Effective documentation and procedures are extremely important in a disaster recovery plan. Considerable effort and time are necessary to develop a plan.

This is the third part of a series that describe specific methods for organizing and writing a comprehensive disaster recovery plan. The first part of this series described the process for developing a thorough disaster recovery plan. The second article described specific methods for organizing and writing a comprehensive disaster recovery plan. This article presents particular methods and materials that can expedite the data collection process. Disaster recovery is a concern of the entire organization, not just data processing. To develop an effective plan, all departments should be involved. Within all departments the critical needs should be identified. Critical needs include all information and equipment needed in order to continue operations should a department be destroyed or become inaccessible.

A disaster recovery plan covers both the hardware and software required to run critical business applications and the associated processes to transition smoothly in the event of a natural or human-caused disaster. To plan effectively, you need to first assess your mission-critical business processes and associated applications before creating the full disaster recovery plan. This best-practice document outlines the steps you need to take to implement a successful disaster recovery plan.

Putting a disaster recovery plan in place isn't cheap, though it's never as expensive as not having one when disaster strikes. But as one TechRepublic member explains, there is a cost-effective approach, and he provides a template to follow.

Learn how to develop and implement a comprehensive disaster plan for your IT organization using the disaster recovery principles outlined in this TechRepublic compilation. If your IT organization's number one disaster readiness objective is business continuity (and whose isn't?), this unique resource is for you! Disaster recovery planning is far too important to leave to chance. This download will help you determine the backup, storage, and retrieval strategies that make the most sense for your IT organization

Enterprise data is any business' most critical asset. Master the concepts that will allow you to leverage today's state-of-the-art strategies, best practices, and technologies to protect your critical information in this sample chapter from Data Protection and Information Lifecycle Management. Consider the different techniques that must be used for different aspects of data protection, and how the size of an enterprise determines which practices, processes, or technologies are most appropriate. Develop your data protection strategy with these key practices and techniques in mind:

• Backup and recovery
• Remote data movement
• Storage system security
• Data Lifecycle Management (DLM)
• Information Lifecycle Management (ILM)

Too many companies are using bad practices for the data backup and recovery strategies. This often leads to a disaster that cannot be recovered. This article covers 5 of the worst practices that doom companies in the event of a major data loss.

Your corporate Disaster Recovery Plan is a very valuable document. It needs to be audited as closely as any other important company asset. I’d like for you to consider these new threats of High-Tech Crimes such as Information Warfare, Industrial Espionage, Denial-Of-Service Attacks and variety of White Collar Crimes that continue to make headlines. Does your Disaster Recovery Plan address any of these new threats?

Companies that don't implement good backup and restore processes are at risk of serious losses. Regular assessments of risk and business continuity plans are required to maintain effective data backup and restore systems. This article contans a 15 question self assessments that can be used to improve your chances of a complete recovery in the event of a disaster.