Finding Peace Of Mind In A Server Recovery Plan
The need for server recovery software and services, from RAID to Oracle to Exchange, has grown markedly in the past five years, owing mainly to the lower costs of server hardware. In the early 2000s, for example, small to mid-sized organizations tended to purchase and use less high end software, but as overall server costs began to lessen markedly, the demand for these mission critical software increased. Now, it's common to see companies with less than 10 employees operating a new Microsoft Exchange server, saving their customer data on a RAID server or handling their CRM on a NAS. Use of these applications can, however, prove to be a double-edged sword.
The dynamics of a small organization differ greatly when compared with a large organization. Quite naturally, the accountability levels are far higher, and decisions can be made faster, without a meetingdiscussion that has to involve several levels of management. Essentially, a "do it yourself" culture often shapes the small organization. With high end mission-critical products, however, this DIY-ethic can actually be hurtful. When server recovery is necessary due to a crashed hard disk drive, the implications are huge, and it certainly is the worst possible time to "go guerrilla" and attempt a novice recovery. Yet, high trust in administrators can lead you down this path, which can greatly worsen the situation.
Designing A Server Recovery Action Plan
The "invulnerability factor" with smaller successful organizations can bleed into the management of IT assets, as evinced by smaller companies' lack of server recovery preparation. Isn't a RAID server naturally "redundant", after all? On the other hand, RAID servers, particularly in situations where more than a single hard drive malfunctions, can crash severely, leaving a dependent organization unable to function, imprisoned by a mission critical app that just isn't working. Creating a server recovery plan is crucial, then, and should include these points:
Gather Critical Resources Today - While it may sound rather obvious, researching key IT and intellectual resources in preparation for a server failure is something most organizations do not think about. All it takes, really, is a single text document listing all key support forums, product update alerts and a server recovery [provider that can be trusted when your organization is in a jam. Attempting to gather these details under stress is never good thing, as panic can set in. Of course, panic is the mother of permanent data loss.
Expertise Pays Dividends - IT administrators, as a rule, have a broad array of expertise in their field. In fact, it is this encyclopedic knowledge of IT assets and products that makes them an extremely critical part of any organization, no matter how small. The problem here is that as a result, IT administrators typically work by themselves, and offer solutions on a do it yourself basis. Attempting do-it-yourself server recovery, meanwhile, is one of the trickiest and potentially harmful act someone without hard drive recovery experience can do. And because 99 out of 100 organizations do not have a staff member with genuine physical hard drive recovery experience (nor do they have the specialized equipment), it is key to have the number of an expert. It never hurts to get help, and in this scenario, it will be necessary to avoid further issues.
Have A Backup - Yes, it sounds like a simple fact. But what many organizations do not plan for is a complete server hard drive failure. So, as an example, a crashed Exchange server can take down an organization for hours, even days, during an emergency. Having a daily backup plan and an extra server (a lower end PC, perhaps, with a single hard disk, but the ability to "instantly connect") when times are tough means that all server failures become seamless - thereby greatly lessening the "emergency level" of the problem. This way, the organization "doesn't know" that a major issue has occurred, and it's business as usual while the systems are recovered.
Data recovery emergencies occur every single day around the world, and all you can do is be ready for them. Readiness is the critical difference between a complete server recovery and a real problem.
The dynamics of a small organization differ greatly when compared with a large organization. Quite naturally, the accountability levels are far higher, and decisions can be made faster, without a meetingdiscussion that has to involve several levels of management. Essentially, a "do it yourself" culture often shapes the small organization. With high end mission-critical products, however, this DIY-ethic can actually be hurtful. When server recovery is necessary due to a crashed hard disk drive, the implications are huge, and it certainly is the worst possible time to "go guerrilla" and attempt a novice recovery. Yet, high trust in administrators can lead you down this path, which can greatly worsen the situation.
Designing A Server Recovery Action Plan
The "invulnerability factor" with smaller successful organizations can bleed into the management of IT assets, as evinced by smaller companies' lack of server recovery preparation. Isn't a RAID server naturally "redundant", after all? On the other hand, RAID servers, particularly in situations where more than a single hard drive malfunctions, can crash severely, leaving a dependent organization unable to function, imprisoned by a mission critical app that just isn't working. Creating a server recovery plan is crucial, then, and should include these points:
Gather Critical Resources Today - While it may sound rather obvious, researching key IT and intellectual resources in preparation for a server failure is something most organizations do not think about. All it takes, really, is a single text document listing all key support forums, product update alerts and a server recovery [provider that can be trusted when your organization is in a jam. Attempting to gather these details under stress is never good thing, as panic can set in. Of course, panic is the mother of permanent data loss.
Expertise Pays Dividends - IT administrators, as a rule, have a broad array of expertise in their field. In fact, it is this encyclopedic knowledge of IT assets and products that makes them an extremely critical part of any organization, no matter how small. The problem here is that as a result, IT administrators typically work by themselves, and offer solutions on a do it yourself basis. Attempting do-it-yourself server recovery, meanwhile, is one of the trickiest and potentially harmful act someone without hard drive recovery experience can do. And because 99 out of 100 organizations do not have a staff member with genuine physical hard drive recovery experience (nor do they have the specialized equipment), it is key to have the number of an expert. It never hurts to get help, and in this scenario, it will be necessary to avoid further issues.
Have A Backup - Yes, it sounds like a simple fact. But what many organizations do not plan for is a complete server hard drive failure. So, as an example, a crashed Exchange server can take down an organization for hours, even days, during an emergency. Having a daily backup plan and an extra server (a lower end PC, perhaps, with a single hard disk, but the ability to "instantly connect") when times are tough means that all server failures become seamless - thereby greatly lessening the "emergency level" of the problem. This way, the organization "doesn't know" that a major issue has occurred, and it's business as usual while the systems are recovered.
Data recovery emergencies occur every single day around the world, and all you can do is be ready for them. Readiness is the critical difference between a complete server recovery and a real problem.
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