"Unleash Your Users To Recover Lost Files Without Tapes or Backup Software!"
 

By
Stephen Worden
 

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Have you ever lost a file?  I mean, it was there one day and gone the next?!  How would you like to never lose another file again?  Read on...!

            Technology Secret #8          

    Backups Don't Work   

There are four main problems with tape backups.

1. Most of us don't keep our backups current.
    
2. It takes too long to find a missing file on tape, and too long to restore it.
    
3. Over the long run tapes and tape hardware become expensive.
    
4. Most users can't restore a file by themselves.

Most companies don't keep backups current.  The sad truth is that we don't do as good a job as we should keeping our backups up-to-date.  Yet we rely on them to save us when a disk drive fails or we accidentally delete an important file!   Backup jobs fail, we don't test our Restore procedures, tapes go bad over time...

But even if we do keep everything current, it takes too long to find a missing file on the backup tape.  First you need to find the right tape.  If it is offsite, you need to retrieve it.  Then you hope and pray that the catalog or index of that tape is accurate.  If it isn't, you're going to have to rebuild a listing of every file on the tape.  Then you need to make sure that the file is readable, recoverable, that no damage has occurred to the tape or file.  Then and only then can you restore it.

Usually, this process cannot be done by the person that lost the file -- a System Administrator is required -- adding to the expense, complexity, and time required to restore one little file!

I've seen this process take ALL DAY.

What happens if you are dedicated about making regular backups?  As your business grows your data will grow.  As your data grows, your backups will grow...from one tape per backup to two...to three...  So you buy bigger tape drives and more media and the cycle just continues.

Soon you might want to invest in a tape changer.  Do you know that they are unreliable?  A friend of mine once bought a very expensive tape changer ($25,000) that eventually had to be removed and replaced with a competitor's unit.  The months of problems and stress caused by this bad hardware was enormous.

Here's another problem.  In the Microsoft world, a tape created on one tape drive must be read back by an identical tape drive using the same backup program that created the tape!  Don't try to restore an old tape on a new tape drive...

Can I tell you a better way?  What is needed is something ONLINE, AUTOMATIC, and EASILY ACCESSED by anyone in your company.

            Technology Secret #9          

    Use Your Tape Drive For Disaster Recovery,   
            Use Hard Drives For Backups.      

First, let me explain the difference between Disaster Recovery and Backups.

Backups traditionally are tape archives.  The archives are created by copying data stored on hard drives to a tape.  The tape contains a (usually compressed) copy of the hard drive data.  Backups are used to restore files that have been inadvertently deleted.

Disaster Recovery, on the other hand, is a large, multi-faceted project.  The goal of Disaster Recovery is to maintain business operations in spite of a flood, say, or a tornado or fire.

Tapes are ideal for DR because they may be carried to an offsite storage location for safekeeping.  (We have full copies of our clients' archives here in my office for just this purpose.  Call us at (302) 999-1899 if you need this service.)

Tapes are cumbersome, as we saw above, for recovering a single file or folder.  A much better system is online storage -- an extra hard drive (or several) that contains an accurate copy of your corporate data.

Let me draw you a picture.

This simple diagram is typical of many businesses.  The server contains the corporate files used in day-to-day operations.  The server also may have a built-in tape drive used to make backups.  (In some companies, a dedicated machine is used for backups -- a practice we recommend.)

Notice the disk labeled 'Copy' on the server above.  This disk is just what is says it is.  A copy of the data stored on the other disk.  If one disk fails, you still have the other.

There are a LOT of ways to achieve this level of data integrity.  We can mirror disks, write a nightly batch job to copy files from one disk (or PC) to another, or create a dedicated backup system.  Each situation is unique -- you can learn more right here, or call us to maximize your protection immediately.

What is a dedicated backup system?  Let's say you buy a new PC to replace a slower model.  You can take that old PC, install a whopper of a hard drive (for about 100 bucks), and use it to maintain a copy of your corporate data.

Give us a call so we can plan your upgrade.  Empower all of your users to recover lost files without the use of tapes or backup software!  Abolish dependence on the System Administrator -- believe me, he'll thank you for it!  You can reach us at (302) 999-1899.

            Technology Secret #10          

    Use Linux For Data Protection   
       Instead of Windows Backups   

Linux leverages your hardware dollar.  Remember the slower PC we just upgraded?  Red Hat Linux will run just fine on this machine.  And your Windows users will see this machine just like every other Windows system on your network.

Backup Scripts are POWERFUL.  Once written, they run and run and run and run...  Each of your systems can be protected -- there are NO extra licenses to buy, NO extra software to install, and NO extra administration required.

Reduced costs, short and long term.  In the short term, you save the capital expense of top-dollar Windows programs and operating systems and the high-end hardware needed.  In the long run, you save MUCH money by increasing productivity of your workforce and reducing administration expenses.

Call us to learn how to exploit Linux technology.  Gain some understanding into what Linux can do.  You CAN break free of the "lost file" headache.  We're here to help.

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