What The Disaster In Japan Teaches Us About Online Backup

How Close Are Your Backups To The Systems They Mirror?

I have conversations with people all the time who have backups that stored off site and they feel well protected because of that; but that “site” is not that far away from the computer systems those backups are created from. The recent Japan disaster brought on by the earthquake and subsequent tsunami demonstrates what CAN happen.

First let me say that our hearts go out to the people affected by that horrible disaster, and hope only the best for the families who lost loved ones and everything they owned.

But it is frustrating to see so many people make the mistake of thinking that something that bad won’t happen to them. Just because you don’t live in a fault zone or near the ocean does not mean that you do not need geographically diverse backups.

Maybe you live by or downwind of a nuclear plant whereby an “incident” there could render all of your backups unsafe to even touch. Again, a lesson to be learned from this recent crisis in Japan.

Entire communities, even large cities, can be leveled, flooded or even swept out to sea. And it could happen to you.

The Solution Is So Easy And Affordable

It’s one thing when you have a potential problem and there are no viable solutions. Such was the case with geographically diverse backups just 10 years ago.

Stories in the disaster recovery community would circulate of companies located in high rise buildings ABOVE a floor where there was a fire. Their own particular office space was not damaged, yet the Fire Marshal would not allow anyone into the entire building due to safety concerns.

Something of this nature can be solved by taking backups to a bank safety deposit box or a trusted employee’s home.

Large scale disasters, though, are not protected against by that type of action.

Online Backup Is More Reliable Anyway

Any client I have ever known to take backups to an off site location would forget from time to time, some more often than others.

That’s the beauty of a good online backup service; the backup occurs automatically, to a data storage facility that is as protected as man can make it – at a location FAR away from where you are at.

In fact, if you happen to be in the general vicinity of an online backup service data center that does not have geographically redundant storage, I would suggest NOT using that particular service.

Protect your data, protect your business, protect your memories.

Online backup is safe, secure, reliable, affordable and perhaps best of all, automatic.

Choose an online backup service right now from our online backup reviews.



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