Your Data Is at Risk: Why Backup Is So Important

A home burglary or car theft creates an overwhelming sense of loss that stuns anyone who experiences it. In most cases, victims must depend on others to recover lost or stolen items that did not have adequate protection. The loss of computer data can create an even greater impact on your business. Where it differs from the loss of tangible items lies in irreplaceable information. Every aspect of running your business depends on the data in your computers. Protecting it may prove easier than you imagine.

Understanding Data Backup

Creating a copy of your computer’s contents gives you a record that lets you recover and restore it when you need it. Without notice, your hard drive can crash. You may accidentally delete information on a report that took hours to build. A hacker may install a virus or ransomware that paralyzes your system. Small businesses need access to data about sales, marketing, finance, accounting, customer service and human resources.

When you wonder what is data backup, it shows your concern for the health of your business. It can bring clarity to mind when you think about losing everything on your computer. Much of the information that you painstakingly gathered no longer exists anywhere else. So the idea of starting over falls into the impossible category. Data backup prevents losses that no one can afford. A routine process of backing up your computer system can provide protection from unimaginable loss. Running a full backup after hours or on the weekend does not interfere with productivity and keeps your data safe.

Stressing the Importance of Data Backup

As you adopt the concept of protecting your computer system from the loss of data, your employees may need some guidance. It can help them understand the reason behind it when you explain the importance of data backup. Many of them may have entered the data in the first place and do not want to do it over. Databases take a long time to build in most small businesses, and they assure the continuity that leads to success.

Protection of someone’s home or car requires the simple act of locking a front door or taking the keys out of the ignition. Protecting the security of small business data has as much importance and maybe more. The value of database contents can easily exceed the price of personal possessions as it threatens the existence of a company.

Focusing on Protecting Company Documents

An employee may ask you why is it important to back up computer documents, and you can provide many reasons. Backup software can copy data and protect a computer system from corrupt files, hacking, fire or flood, cyberattack or other threats. In addition, computer equipment can wear out. Your computer’s internal or external hard drive may reach a point where it cannot work anymore. When that happens, you may ask someone to work a miracle and restore it, but chances of success show up very rarely. Any company document that has value needs backups. Anytime they can save irreplaceable information, everyone can understand why are backups important.

Choosing Physical Backup Storage

When you look for what options are available for storing backups physically, you have many choices. An external hard drive, such as a USB flash drive, lets you copy files and take them with you. Connecting to a solid-state drive lets you download data through a USB cable and drag or drop files or folders onto it. However, leaving it next to your computer does not provide security.

Off-site storage at your home, in a safety deposit box or with a remote location service that you can purchase can provide a key to safe storage. In addition, you may consider backup software that can send the files and system information to any site you select. It may seem inconvenient to retrieve your backup or wait for its return. However, the advantages of preserving your business far outweigh the disadvantages of off-site storage.

Deciding When to Back Up

How often should you backup your computer becomes a matter for small-business owners to decide. The choice depends on your assessment of risk. The longer you wait between backups creates a larger chance of losing valuable information. For example, systems that change every few days need a weekly or monthly backup. However, rapidly changing data needs backing up at least every day.

Realizing Why Backups are Important

American Express introduced a Traveler’s Cheque ad that cautioned people to carry only as much cash as they can afford to lose. Your customer database, financial data, spreadsheets and word processing documents contain the essential elements of your company’s survival. In addition, you need to save a copy of your operating system apps, program installation and registration information and the configurations that make your system unique.

Small businesses can show why are backups important by assigning someone to manage them. Employees need to understand that business runs on information, and backups make sure to protect it. Your belief in its importance can make the difference between your company’s ability to survive data loss or not.