In its broadest sense, the term Disaster Recovery indicates the set of technological and logistical-organizational measures aimed at restoring - that is, bringing back into operation - the
systems,
data and
infrastructures necessary for the provision of business services for companies, associations or organizations, in the face of serious emergencies that have somehow seriously affected the regular activity.
In
this article we have already talked about the importance for modern organizations of having a
disaster recovery plan. Today we want to give you some practical advice to build an optimal DR plan for your company.
Make a risk assessment
Risk assessment is the first step in creating an efficient disaster recovery plan. It is an essential process to assess the
business impact of potential disasters and to isolate potentially dangerous events that can threaten the safeguarding of your IT infrastructure such as: potential damage, time required for recovery / recovery operations, measures and preventive checks able to mitigate the probability of an event occurring.
Classify
all the risks connected to the IT infrastructure, which can range (among others) from the user who does not log out, in the event of a flood.
Finally, catalog each risk based on its
severity and the
likelihood of it occurring.
Implement a business impact analysis
Once the risks have been identified and assessed, you will have a much clearer and more defined idea than is necessary for disaster recovery.
It is necessary to establish which are the
central aspects of the business, the most vulnerable components of the infrastructure and what would happen if they were lost.
In other words, business impact analysis helps
identify and prioritize IT systems.
Plan testing, training and implementation
The disaster recovery plan test is necessary in order to identify any
critical issues and / or
programming bugs.
At the same time, it would be invaluable to start a training course aimed at preparing personnel for the activation of the recovery plan. Both activities increase the degree of effectiveness as well as the chances of success of the plan itself, while offering adequate preparation.
Maintenance and updating of the Disaster Recovery plan
It is unlikely that the validity and effectiveness of a Disaster Recovery plan is immune to changing times and technological evolution.
On the contrary, the Disaster recovery plan should be a plastic, mutant document that is regularly updated to always be adapted to changes in the timing and the system.
In light of these considerations, it is advisable to carry out a
periodic assessment of what has been collected within an operational document that identifies what has been done and how much should still be done, with annexed suggestions for achieving the business objectives.
For more information on our DR related services, read also
Disaster Recovery Services