It is vitally important that businesses back up their critical data. As more and more businesses practise online data back up, it’s timely for all organisations to consider the best way to manage their data. After all, integral to your data is the intellectual property owned by a business – its foundation for growth.
The traditional way of backing up data was complicated. It was usually done nightly or weekly. Data could be stored using a number of different devices: floppy disks back in the 1980s and 1990s, magnetic tapes (the most common form of data storage), hard disks, optical storage, and solid storage.
As email became the primary mode of communication for business, the amount of data that needed to be stored has grown to staggering proportions. Finding a method to create an archive of information that is organised, uncluttered and functional became problematic. Email archives and backed up data would far too often end up being locked away in a cupboard gathering dust and cobwebs. The data would be there to meet obligations for legal compliance, but doing anything meaningful with that data would prove near impossible.
In more recent times, thanks to the proliferation of high speed broadband, remote backup systems have become a viable and increasingly popular business option. Email archives and backed up data can now be saved off-site and made accessible via a web browser.
Archiving information online offers a number of advantages over the traditional method of local data backup, but there have been some concerns around data protection when choosing solutions from cloud providers. Let’s take up this debate with a look at email archiving.
The advantages of email archiving online
- Fully automated – unlike traditional methods of backing up data and archiving email, cloud solutions are automatic, requiring no administration, maintenance or updating on behalf of the business.
- No data gets lost – because traditional back up is typically done nightly, any data that enters the network but is deleted that day, will not be backed up in storage. Cloud archiving usually stores emails even if they have been deleted. This offers complete records and legal compliance.
- Discovery – doing meaningful things with business data is a key advantage of archiving data online. Rather than having to sort through cupboards full of magnetic tapes or optical storage to find specific information, important emails and documents can be located instantly thanks to retrieval technology.
- Disaster Recovery – local or on-site backup runs the risk of being completely wiped out by fire, flood, earthquake or other natural disaster. Backing up data online negates these risks and means you are protected in the event of an emergency.
Despite the benefits offered by online backup and archiving, there can still be a justifiable reluctance to move business operations online.
The biggest concern
Moving your data online is not a decision to be taken lightly. Ensuring your data is protected is of utmost importance. You need to choose a cloud provider who can guarantee real-time data visibility. They must be open and transparent. And most importantly, they should have the necessary support and protocols in place to justify your trust.
Do not move your data into the cloud unless these criteria can be met.
