Return to MAIN-Index  Return to SUB-Index    IBM-AUSTRIA - PC-HW-Support    30 Aug 1999

Why Do a Backup?



Why Do a Backup?

In today's server environments, emphasis is made on high availability solutions. Examples include RAID disk subsystems, redundant power supplies and ECC memory. These new technologies reduce risk of server downtime and data loss. Some people could see this as a reason not to implement a backup solution, since data is already secured.

Unfortunately, hardware failures are only responsible for a small percentage of incidents involving data loss.

Among other causes, the most common cause of data loss are operator errors, that is, user errors. Users may inadvertently save a file that contains erroneous information, or they may erase a critical file by mistake.

Besides hardware and user errors, software errors and virus attacks can cause data loss or data corruption.

When thinking about backups, consider that the backup is not only necessary for disaster recovery. Being able to provide a stable storage environment for keeping earlier versions of user files is as important. Think about the backup environment as being a storage management solution. To emphasize this idea, lets take an example. You are in charge of a number of OS/2 Warp Server machines. These machines are installed using CID, with response files. If these distribution procedures are maintained, restoring a server's operating system shouldn't take you more than 30 minutes.

A restore from tape will take longer. However, imagine a user who accidently erases a document he's been working on for several days. No solution other than restoring his document will give the user the possibility to get his data back without having to re-create it.


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