Backup and Restore:
Evaluation and Testing Tips for Small and Mid-Sized Businesses

A successful storage backup program involves more than just saving information on removable data storage media, such as tape or optical discs, and placing it in storage. A successful storage backup program requires regular evaluation and testing of the backup system to ensure it’s working properly and the data stored can be retrieved if necessary. To do this, you or your company need to periodically restore some folders and files from backup media to validate the backup process is performing accurately.

A 2004 survey of more than 200 IT directors and network storage managers of small to mid-sized businesses, sponsored by Imation Corp, a worldwide leader in removable data storage media, found that only one of three (32 percent) companies perform regularly scheduled testing and evaluation of their storage backup systems at least quarterly and another 35 percent do so only once a year or less.

The testing and evaluation process of a backup system should take no more than 30 minutes to perform. If your business cannot risk data loss, you may want to perform a restore job once a week or once a month, depending on your needs. At a minimum, testing should be done at least once a quarter.

To properly evaluate and test a tape backup system, small and mid-sized businesses should adhere to the following steps:

1. Select a representative set of test files and save them to a CD, DVD or hard drive. This step is done first so that in the event of a tape backup failure, you have a set of virus-free (clean) files to restore to the system. Make sure your sample set was copied correctly. This is vital because the files will eventually be deleted from their original location. You may also want to include a graphic file as part of your test set. Graphic files, in addition to text files, provide a visual way to easily recognize corruption if it occurs during the backup and restore process.
   
   
2. Backup the files using your normal tape backup procedure.
   
   
3. Delete the files from their original location on the hard drive.
   
   
4. Recover the files from the regular backup performed in step two. If any data is missing or damaged, the tape backup process is not working correctly. If this happens, recover the files from the CD, DVD or the hard drive backup created in step one and repeat the process with a different tape cartridge. If it fails again, check the tape drive system for problems, or call a professional for assistance.

To properly evaluate and test an optical backup system, small businesses should regularly check their CD or DVD backup copy to make sure the data was saved correctly.