Losing all of your data can easily cripple a business no matter how big or small it is, which is why data backup and tape rotation are so important for every company in any industry. We live in a digital age where theft, computer failure, industrial mischief, human error and angry employees can ruin a business in the blink of an eye. This is why it is so important to guarantee the safety of your information through routine backups and secure storage of all data and records until it is needed.
As a result most businesses engage in at least rudimentary data security by making backup tapes each day, but many reuse the same tape or couple of tapes over and over, exposing their business to unnecessary risk. Following a few simple principles can drastically reduce that risk and help guarantee the safe flow of information and the continuity of your business. In general, the key to data safety is tape rotation and regular backups. Never use the same cartridge each day, this leaves you open to problems if the tape is damaged or if your system fails during the backup. Next, always store some records off site, preferably in a secure location like a bank safety deposit box or a third party archive. Lastly, make sure that you backup your information on a different tape every day. Not every other day or once a week–every single day.
The bare minimum for any slightly safe data security system should be to use 5 backup tapes on a rotating basis during the workweek, similar to how some companies use security camera tapes. However, realistically you should develop a system that incorporates both daily and weekly archives, preferably monthly and yearly as well. This will make your life significantly easier and your data and clients’ private information much more safe.
Here’s a fun little story from my youth. My girlfriend’s father (now my father-in-law) had me and my brother, and my gf, help him out at a construction site. It was a rambling mansion of a place going from this cute little country road out to the corner of a beautiful green lake with reeds and cattails, all grown over with trees and vines. The problem was that it had only been half built before the previous owners ran out of money and their builders quit. This had happened a few times actually, so the place was really lacking in, well, cohesion. We’ll call it.
So the three of us arrived at the place and found a big dumpster rental northern Virginia parked there. And we figured, well, it is a dumpster after all and this place is full of crap. For about an hour we scoured the ground, picking up insulation, nails, plastic crap, and hacking down weeds and grass. It was a huge area we had to cover and even though this dumpster was a full sized roll off model, we were putting a quite a dent in it.
Eventually my gf’s dad showed up and asked where the dumpster had come from. We suggested spontaneous manifestation but he started calling around, figuring it was from one of the old construction teams that had quit before the place was finished. And he was right, the dumpster company had actually lost track of that one and, instead of rewarding us for finding it, called the cops! They actually threatened to sue us for stealing their dumpster and using it without a contract! No on the second, kinda yes on the first. It actually cost us all a few hundred bucks—so learn from our mistake and always make sure you’re only throwing stuff away in your own dumpster rental.
Welcome to my new blog, where I am going to share my thoughts on how you might go about some simple home improvement tasks all on your own. If you are someone who would like to update some aspects of your home, then all you need to do is to make sure that you have the right tools on hand. In no time, you will see dramatic improvements in your home décor that might even contribute to a small increase in your overall property value.
Replacing your ceramic tiles is one such task. You just need to make sure that you have the right backing for these tiles and also the best adhesive so that you do not worry about them accidentally popping up after a short amount of time. Look into purchasing some durable tiles if you intend on putting them in a high traffic area of your home such as the foyer, or perhaps seek out some purely decorative tiles if they are supposed to function as an accent in your kitchen.