Backup

[Mark Rowe]

OK......starting to explore online backup as a primary backup for our agency (time for a new server and thus backup system so maybe going to offsite backup instead).

Do's and Dont's?

Preferred providers?

I'm an open canvas....paint me.

[Bloody Jack Kidd]

Online backup is a bit scary - my first question would be (to the provider) how does the Patriot Act impact the confidentiality of my customers' data when it's stored at your facility?

Then compare that answer to the requirements of various Privacy legislation like HIPAA etc. - you may have to fully disclose to your customers that their data is held offsite and liable to search and seizure.

[Andrew Carrick]

We found it to be very expensive (although we're in the UK so may not be the same for you) and in fact decided against it mainly on cost. Obviously we have other things in place.

[Bob]

Any decent online service is going to be pricey in the US too.  I had quotes from Axis and some others and for the annual cost I can find (and did) better on site solution such as using several USB Hard drives these days vs. tapes.

Axis claims to give you online access to your TAM data in an emergency but have to agree with Rick.  With all these constant changes in privacy laws and uncertainty on legality with Applied and it's term of use, not worth it. 

These services will not get your server replaced and up and running any sooner either.  Plus you can service most any client on the carrier websites while rebuilding.  When hardware in place restoring from that USB will be much quicker than from some online service.

JMO..   

[Ian Blundell]

We are running a combination of on-site, local off-site and secure internet backups.  It takes a snapshot every 2 hours during the day to a local device, copies the midnight snapshots to an external hard drive (taken off-site daily) and sent over the internet to the secure site.
I wasn't unhappy with the tape backups I was running before but this is quicker with more copies being made (and more expensive).

[Judy Means]

Mark,

We use a local provider for our Internet.  They have servers with lots of space that sit there at night doing not much.  I worked a deal with them to run our backup out to their server.  It is encrypted and only I have the code to unlock it. 

They have now turned that into a side business for them.  It's costs me $1200 a year. I know that we have more than doubled our space since we started, I think we're at 185 gig now.  I thought that was a fair price. 

Of course I also have the daily backup I take offsite each night.

Cassidy

[Bloody Jack Kidd]

Cassidy?

[Alice]

Cassidy?

I saw that too in another post in Water Cooler. Maybe having identity crisis today?

[Jeff Zylstra]

Do we have an "invasion of the body snatchers" mystery here?  You don't have to use Judy's account, please feel free to create your own.  Rick only requires a donation of $100.  OK.  Just kidding. It's only $50.   

[Charlie Charbonneau]

I'm pretty sure that volunteering for the jello wrestling is acceptable as well... 

[Bloody Jack Kidd]

I was taking first-borns initially, but I found they just hang out in my basement, play Xbox and eat my food.

[Jeff Zylstra]

I do something similar to Ian.  I use USB hard drives for daily and Friday backups, and then also take snapshots during the day and save those to my old Windows 2000 file server.  I don't do anything off site, however.  Whatever you end up doing, do some test restores of individual files to make sure that whatever medium you use is readable.  I was burned by that years ago, and never forgot it.

[Robin Deatherage]

Through a local reseller, we set up and are using a solution from Zenith Infotech.  We have a NAS on site with a copy offsite at their data centers.  It's taking snapshots every 15 min. I had to restore a bunch of e-mail recently for a user who accidently deleted an entire week of Sent Items.  Worked like a charm.   
http://www.zenithinfotech.com/Solutions/backup%20and%20disaster%20recovery.aspx

[Bob]

Shadow copying would have allowed you to right click any folder and restore folder to any number or restore points.  Love this feature!  Just enable it on your server.   

[Robin Deatherage]

Shadow copying would have allowed you to right click any folder and restore folder to any number or restore points.  Love this feature!  Just enable it on your server.   

Was this for me?  I like the solution we ended up with.  Mgmt wanted me to have something offsite for disaster recovery.  This solution takes care of that, as well as everything else I needed it to do, including virtualization.  I needed to do something different as I was starting to have trouble with my tape drive.  This just seems to be a good fit.   

[Bob]

Yes but only as tip for faster restore assuming server was functional.   Shadow copy is great!  Think of it like XP system restore points but on the server it's broken down far more to folder level.   

You can right click any network folder, properties, then click tab "Previous Versions" and it will list backups of this folder with date and time.  Click any and restore and done.

It's a feature most should use and most probably unaware.  Doesn't replace need of off site backup and other plans, but fastest way to restore and fix.   I often resort to this for backups to TAM vs. complete backup before doing an upgrade.  Server takes snapshots all day and makes folder restore points.  As I look now today has 3 different snap shots I can restore too and not even over.  Most backups you'll miss a days work..  This maybe few hours.. Depending on how you set up and how much space you have.  Today media is dirt cheap..   

[Robin Deatherage]

Thanks Bob. 

[GeorgeW]

We use shadow copy, it's great!

[Charlie Charbonneau]

+1 for Shadow Copies!

[Bloody Jack Kidd]

+1 for Shadow Copies!

ditto - one of the few areas where M$ would actually score karma from me!