Disaster recovery plans are necessary because they enable a comprehensive response to various disruptive events, such as cyber threats, natural disasters, wars, and human errors. In the event of a full or partial crisis, like a data system crash, a disaster recovery plan allows an organization to continue operating from the cloud immediately. This includes cyber scenarios, where the organization may need to "rewind time" to seconds before an attack.
Here's why disaster recovery plans, particularly those enabled by Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS), are crucial:
- Business Continuity: Disaster recovery plans address the fundamental challenge of maintaining business operations during disruptive events. Without a plan, a data system crash, cyberattack, or natural disaster can halt operations, leading to financial losses, reputational damage, and compliance issues.
- Minimized Downtime: DRaaS, as part of a disaster recovery plan, provides a rapid failover capability, allowing an organization to get back online almost immediately. This is in contrast to traditional systems that might require hours or days to recover. The goal of a disaster recovery plan is to minimize the time a business is not operational.
- Data Loss Prevention: A disaster recovery plan includes a strategy for data recovery with a defined Recovery Point Objective (RPO). The RPO defines the maximum amount of data loss a business can tolerate. Some DRaaS solutions can achieve near-zero data loss, with some systems able to recover with only 5-10 seconds of data loss.
- Cost Savings: Implementing a disaster recovery plan with DRaaS can lead to significant cost savings. DRaaS eliminates the need to maintain a second physical infrastructure, so the organization does not have to pay for unnecessary server costs or the maintenance of idle infrastructure.
- Expert Management: DRaaS provides ongoing management and support from experienced professionals who are on standby to handle crisis situations. They also create and maintain playbooks, which are pre-defined recovery plans, ensuring all scenarios are prepared for. The DRaaS team is focused on the early preparation of processes and the appropriate playbook.
- Preparedness: Disaster recovery plans also emphasize preparedness. The establishment and maintenance of DRaaS include continuous updates and reviews of processes to ensure continued optimal performance and response.
- Customer Portal: A DRaaS customer portal offers a critical interface for businesses to manage and monitor their disaster recovery services. This portal provides visibility into the status of backups, recovery plans, and performance metrics.
In summary, disaster recovery plans, particularly when implemented using DRaaS, are essential for ensuring business continuity, minimizing downtime and data loss, and providing expert management during crisis situations. They enable organizations to remain resilient and continue functioning despite any challenges they may face.