THE EDGE
RPO ( recovery point objective ) refers to the amount of data the organisation can afford to lose during disruption . RPO plays a vital role in determining the frequency and retention policy of the backup . For example , in terms of backups , RPO refers to the last usable version of the backup . If the RPO is one hour , then an hour ' s worth of data loss or less is tolerable . If the RPO is four hours , then up to four hours of data can be lost , and so on .
Backup , recovery and replication
Perhaps the most well-known component of Disaster Recovery is backup . Simply put , a backup is a copy of data stored for the purpose of recovery after disruption . Recovery from backup is the most reliable way to restore operations after a disruptive event .
Replication refers to creating geographic , geographically distributed copies of the data to improve data accessibility and availability . When done properly , replication can ensure some of the shortest RTOs right after a disruptive event .
But what is the difference between replication and backup ? Backups can be used for archiving and long-term storage . Backups also facilitate the operational recoveries and can be helpful for regulatory compliance . Replication , on the other hand , requires a remote site dedicated to replicated workloads . Those replicas are intended for instant recovery of workloads for Business Continuity and availability . Replicas are usually stored in the original format to speed up Disaster Recovery and reduce downtime .
The most common mistakes made in DR planning
DR planning cannot be fully explored without consideration of some of the common mistakes that most businesses unintentionally make during this process . Here are five major pitfalls to be avoided :
1 . Not protecting DR systems
The most commonly made mistake is not properly protecting Disaster Recovery systems in the production environment . When a disaster hits , these systems can be wiped out along with everything else and all the work invested into Disaster Recovery planning .
2 . Not allocating the necessary resources to the DR plan
Another mishap is not allocating the necessary resources to the DR plan . For example , DR recovery will entail transferring and uploading significant volumes of data . So if the required bandwidth and network infrastructure is lacking , this can create a huge hindrance to the DR process running effectively .
3 . Assuming offsite data is protected
Another common mistake is the assumption that offsite data is automatically protected . For example , while cloud service providers are typically responsible for maintaining infrastructure uptime , they do not usually provide sufficient protection for their customers ’ data .
4 . Unnecessary backups : The impact of non-essential data
It is important to ask yourself whether every bit of data in your infrastructure is critical for Business Continuity . It is highly unlikely . Regularly creating backups for non-essential data wastes storage space and raises costs by a significant margin . Unnecessary backups also take valuable time away from high priority tasks .
5 . Using high availability as your DR plan
Using high availability as your DR plan is another common pitfall . While high availability can do wonders for Business Continuity , considering it as a replacement for a DR plan is a recipe for failure . High availability should be reserved only for critical systems .
6 . Leaving DR plans untested
Finally , leaving your plan untested deprives the organisation of valuable insights into the reliability of recovery workflows . Regular testing allows the identification of any weaknesses in the workflows and the allocation resources to fill gaps , eventually building a more robust and resilient DR plan . �
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