Setting
up a tape backup strategy for your business
So you know a little bit about tape
backup, but you're wondering
how to set up a tape backup
strategy for your business.
Well, let's take a look at
3 simple steps to setting
up a complete backup
solution.
Step 1 - Purchase your tape
backup hardware
The first step is to purchase
the necessary tape backup hardware.
The data of most small organizations
will fit onto a single tape.
Work out the amount of data
that you need to back up, and
select an appropriate tape
drive according to these rough
guidelines:
- Up to 10 Gig -Travan cartridge
drive
- Up to 20 Gig - DDS tape
backup drive
- Up to 40 Gig - DDS tape
backup drive with hardware
data compression
Then purchase the necessary
tapes for your backup rotation
strategy. A good Grandfather-Father-Child
variation will require 10 tapes
or 14 tapes.
Step 2 - Purchase your tape
backup software
When it comes to tape backup
software, one option is to
use NTBackup -
the standard Windows
backup program. The problem
with NTBackup is that it is
too hard to use. While an expert
should be able to schedule
backup jobs using NTBackup,
what you really want is something
a novice can setup in minutes.
The solution is to invest
in some quality backup
program for your business?
Well, firstly, steer away from
those expensive brands! They're
designed for large corporations.
Don't pay for features that
you simply don't need.
Look for a backup program
that's designed specially for
small business instead, such
as BackupAssist. Look for a
product that advertises itself
as being simple to use. Remember,
you don't want software that
requires an expert to run it.
Download a trial version of
the backup software and try
it out for a month or so. If
everything works smoothly and
you're happy with the product,
go ahead and make a purchase!
Step 3 - Continually perform
your backups
So you've attached the tape
drive to your server and installed
the software. You've configured
the software to run your tape
rotation scheme and everything's
raring to go. So how do you
go about performing backups?
Well, at the end of each working
day, put the tape into the
drive. And as obvious as this
sounds, the correct tape should
be placed in the drive. For
example, placing the "Week
2" tape instead of the "Week
3" tape in the tape drive will
reduce the effectiveness of
your tape rotation strategy!
Your tape
backup software should
take care of the rest.
In addition, you should monitor
the results of each backup
to check for errors. For example,
if a tape wears out and data
cannot be verified, you need
to take action and replace
that tape. If some problem
prevented a backup from completing,
you need to know about it so
that you can re-run the backup
the next morning.
Be sure to also follow your
manufacturer's guidelines for
drive cleaning and maintenance. Top
of Page
Final notes
As strange as this seems,
you should be at the mercy
of your tape backup software.
And the more control it exerts
over you, the better! Let me
explain...
NTBackup assumes that you
insert the correct tape and
it doesn't inform you of any
errors. You are responsible
for selecting the tape according
to your tape rotation scheme,
and the onus is on you to read
result logs and discover if
any errors occurred.
This means that the file
backup process is tedious
and prone to human error.
A complete solution for tape
backup should take charge
of your backup strategy for
you.
A backup
program like BackupAssist
will email tape rotation
instructions and the results
of backups to you or your
secretary, making your task
far simpler and minimising
the chance of human error.
Select the right tape backup
software and you're already
most of the way to implementing
a complete tape backup strategy
for your business.
>This article was brought
to you by BackupAssist
- tape backup software
More Articles
Introduction to tape backups
for small business data protection
How to setup
a backup strategy for small
businesses
Alternatives
to tape backups for small
businesses
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