Setting up a tape backup strategy for your business

So you know a little bit about tape backup, but you're wondering how to set up a tape backup strategy for your business. Well, let's take a look at 3 simple steps to setting up a complete backup solution.

So how do you go about setting up a backup to tape, strategy for your business? Well, let's take a look at 3 simple steps to setting up a complete tape backup solution.

Step 1 - Purchase your tape backup hardware

The first step is to purchase the necessary tape backup hardware. The data of most small organizations will fit onto a single tape. Work out the amount of data that you need to back up, and select an appropriate tape drive according to these rough guidelines:

• Up to 10 Gig - Travan cartridge drive
• Up to 20 Gig - DDS tape backup drive
• Up to 40 Gig - DDS tape backup drive with hardware data compression

Firstly, purchase the tape backup hardware. If you need to perform file server backup (or Exchange Server backup or SQL Server backup) for small business, then one of the following tape drive should suffice:

• Travan cartridge drive (up to 10 Gb)
• DDS tape backup drive (up to 20 Gb)
• DDS tape backup drive with hardware data compression (up to 40 Gb)

Then purchase the necessary tapes for your backup rotation strategy. A good Grandfather-Father-Child variation will require 10 tapes or 14 tapes.

Step 2 - Purchase your tape backup software

When it comes to tape backup software, one option is to use NTBackup - the standard Windows backup program. The problem with NTBackup is that it is too hard to use. While an expert should be able to schedule backup jobs using NTBackup, what you really want is something a novice can setup in minutes.

The solution is to invest in some quality data backup software. How do you go about finding the right backup program for your business? Well, firstly, steer away from those expensive brands! They're designed for large corporations. Don't pay for features that you simply don't need.

What you really want to do is invest in some quality tape backup software. What should you look for in a backup software for your business? Well, if you run a small business, you'll want to avoid those expensive brands! They're designed for large corporations. You should really be looking for software for tape backup that does everything you need, but is affordable at the same.

Look for a backup program that's designed specially for small business instead, such as BackupAssist. Look for a product that advertises itself as being simple to use. Remember, you don't want software that requires an expert to run it. Download a trial version of the backup software and try it out for a month or so. If everything works smoothly and you're happy with the product, go ahead and make a purchase!

Step 3 - Continually perform your backups

So you've attached the tape drive to your server and installed the software. You've configured the software to run your tape rotation scheme and everything's raring to go. So how do you go about performing backups?

Well, at the end of each working day, put the tape into the drive. And as obvious as this sounds, the correct tape should be placed in the drive. For example, placing the "Week 2" tape instead of the "Week 3" tape in the tape drive will reduce the effectiveness of your tape rotation strategy! Your tape backup software should take care of the rest.

In addition, you should monitor the results of each backup to check for errors. For example, if a tape wears out and data cannot be verified, you need to take action and replace that tape. If some problem prevented a backup from completing, you need to know about it so that you can re-run the backup the next morning.

Well, at the end of each working day, put the correct tape in the tape drive. Your tape backup software will take care of the rest. The backup should start automatically and complete overnight. Remember to check the results of each backup. If some problem prevented a backup from completing, you need to know about it so that you can re-run the backup during the day.

Be sure to also follow your manufacturer's guidelines for drive cleaning and maintenance.

Final notes

As strange as this seems, you should be at the mercy of your tape backup software. And the more control it exerts over you, the better! Let me explain...

NTBackup assumes that you insert the correct tape and it doesn't inform you of any errors. You are responsible for selecting the tape according to your tape rotation scheme, and the onus is on you to read result logs and discover if any errors occurred.

Your data backup software should tell you exactly what actions to take and when to take them. It should tell you which tape to insert into the tape drive. It should tell you if the backup failed. You shouldn't be in charge of your network backup strategy. Your software should be!

This means that the file backup process is tedious and prone to human error. A complete solution for tape backup should take charge of your backup strategy for you.

A backup program like BackupAssist will email tape rotation instructions and the results of backups to you or your secretary, making your task far simpler and minimising the chance of human error. Select the right tape backup software and you're already most of the way to implementing a complete tape backup strategy for your business.

> This article was brought to you by BackupAssist - tape backup software