As we head into 2024, it’s important for businesses to ensure their data recovery plans are future-proofed and ready to handle any disruptions that may come their way. Here are some key things to consider when evaluating if your organization’s data recovery strategy is optimized for the future:
Ensure Your Data is Properly Backed Up
Having regular, automated backups of all critical data is the foundation of any solid data recovery plan. Assess if your current backup solutions and schedules provide adequate protection. Some key questions to ask:
- Are backups running daily for critical systems? Weekly or monthly for less critical data?
- Are backups stored both on-site and off-site/in the cloud? This protects against local disasters like fires or floods.
- How long are backup copies retained for? Can you restore point-in-time data from 6 months ago if needed?
- Are backups encrypted end-to-end? This protects against data theft or leakage.
- Are backup systems, schedules and retention policies documented? Are they regularly tested?
Upgrading backup technology or retention policies may be prudent to handle new data recovery needs in 2024 and beyond. The threat landscape is always evolving.
Have Clear Data Recovery Procedures
While backups provide a critical safety net, well-documented procedures for restoring data are equally important.
- Are data restoration steps defined for different systems, locations and scenarios?
- Are the appropriate employees trained to execute restores if needed?
- Do you have contingency plans if key personnel are unavailable during an emergency?
- Are cyber incident response procedures aligned to your recovery workflows?
Having detailed, maintained recovery runbooks is essential for minimizing downtime in the event backup data needs to be restored to operations. Make sure procedures are kept current for personnel and system changes.
Maintain Secure, Isolated Recovery Infrastructure
To enable reliable data recovery, maintaining infrastructure that is isolated and secure is key. Some tips:
- Use air-gapped backups that are offline and inaccessible for maximum protection against malware or ransomware.
- Only connect recovery infrastructure temporarily during backup/restore activities to reduce risk.
- Ensure recovery platforms use robust access controls, encryption and activity logging.
- Segment recovery systems from production environments on separate networks/domains.
Keeping recovery infrastructure separate avoids “backup poisoning” from compromised production systems.
Test Recovery Processes End-to-End
Simply having backups and documentation is not enough – recovery procedures need to be tested regularly.
- Schedule tests restoring data from backups to ensure the process works as expected. Fix any gaps identified.
- Vary testing parameters – restore times/dates, specific systems, etc.
- Involve relevant staff to test execution, gain experience and provide feedback.
- After large IT changes, conduct additional recovery tests to confirm protection.
Testing gives confidence in your organization’s ability to bounce back when data recovery is required in 2024 and beyond.
Maintain Alternate Processing Options
Should primary infrastructure become unavailable, alternatives to restore business systems into operation are crucial.
- Maintain contracts with cloud/colocation providers to activate temporary capacity if needed.
- Keep minimum failover configurations pre-staged in the cloud or at disaster recovery sites.
- For critical systems, assess hot/warm standby options to rapidly flip operations over during disruptions.
Having standby infrastructure or failover plans to leverage during incidents can dramatically reduce recovery time.
Re-Evaluate as Data Environments Evolve
Finally, recognize that data recovery needs change over time as environments evolve.
- Adjust backup targets, retention and recovery plans to match shifts in criticality, compliance and data volume/platforms.
- When adopting new systems/tech like IoT, mobile or AI, assess specific availability requirements and adjust plans accordingly.
- Periodically revisit recovery policy gaps highlighted through past incidents or testing.
Revalidating recovery capabilities regularly and after material infrastructure changes will keep your organization resilient. A recovery plan that worked fine in 2019 may need re-calibration for 2024 demands.
By taking these steps to validate and optimize resiliency preparation, companies can ensure data recovery capabilities are future-proofed for whatever 2024 may bring. Being ready to quickly restore operations in the face of outages, cyber incidents or other disruptions will become even more critical. Reviewing recovery plans through the lens of evolving technology, risk landscapes and business demands will enable organizations to maximize uptime no matter what surprises the future holds.
