Weighing The Options: On-Premises vs. Cloud Backups

Servers fail. It’s a question of when, not if — recent data shows that in their first year of service, 5 percent of servers fail. By year four, this jumps to 11 percent. Year seven? Almost 20 percent.

Simple failure isn’t the only threat to your data. Natural disasters, malicious attacks or insider threats could all lead to data compromise or loss.

As a result, you need a backup plan that addresses current needs, plans for future requirements and is adaptable enough to handle the unexpected. But what’s your best bet? Some companies swear by on-premises protection, while others are convinced that a cloud backup policy offers the best defense.

Let’s weigh the options.

Strategic Advantage

The backup market is busy — you can easily find on-premise hardware or connected cloud software to manage data storage, protection and accessibility. The caveat? It’s worth creating a backup strategy before committing IT budgets. Here’s why: With so many options available, it’s easy to overspend on services you don’t need to protect data you never use.

Start by identifying critical data — information that’s essential for both day-to-day and long-term business operations. Then, determine the frequency of backups required. If must-have datasets don’t change often, scheduling regular transfers to backup servers may be enough. If constant change is part of your environment, meanwhile, a cloud backup policy that includes automatic, high-frequency backups is your best bet.

Backup Best Practices

While individual needs vary, incorporating common backup best practice can help streamline data protection efforts.

First, follow the 3-2-1 rule. That’s three backups across two different media types with at least one kept off-site. By diversifying both the location and storage method of backup data, companies can significantly reduce the risk of catastrophic loss. Also critical: Test, test, test. It doesn’t matter if you’re using in-house technology or working with a reputable backup provider, regular testing helps ensure data is being properly backed up and that backup solutions won’t fail under pressure.

Finding Balance: Cloud vs. On-Premises Backups

What’s better for your business? Cloud or on-premise?

On-Premise and Private Cloud:

Advantages here include total control and customization. Build out your backup solution exactly as you prefer and implement whatever security measures are necessary. You could also add physical media — such as tapes or hard disks — to create another line of defense.

Potential drawbacks? If backups are located on-site, chances are a power outage or disaster would take them down as well. There’s also the issue of cost, since you’re responsible for the initial purchase, ongoing maintenance and eventual replacement of on-premise solutions.

Public Cloud Backups:

Choosing a backup product comes with the benefit of at-a-distance defense. Even in the event of local disasters, redundant clouds spread across multiple geographic areas keep your data safe. Speed is also a factor. Backup data stored on traditional servers or physical media may take significant time to access and copy; so long as you have the bandwidth, cloud-based backups provide rapid data recovery.

Potential downsides include issues with your provider — if it experiences an outage, your data may be at risk — and the need for a reliable last-mile connection.

Best of Both Worlds

Can’t decide? Choose both. Steadfast Simplicity Clouds offers a hybrid alternative to data backups: Keep on-premises hardware or private cloud protection, then enhance backup redundancy with our secure public cloud solutions.

Strengthen your focus, boost your backups and improve redundancy with Steadfast. Ready? Let’s talk.