When it comes to data management in general, it’s understandable to think that data backup might be the same as a cloud archive. As a matter of fact, many people think these terms are interchangeable. However, those who have experience on the matter will be quick to tell you just how far from the truth that is – and what the consequences might be for trying to treat one like the other.
If data management is a goal of your company (as it should be for every company out there), it’s not enough to have a decent amount of storage or even a good level of cyber security. It’s also essential to understand the differences between the types of data management. Here are the differences between a cloud archive and a data backup.
What is data backup?
Data backup is basically what a company would use to restore parts of their digital structure to an earlier date. In essence, to have a backup in the event of something that may compromise the data being managed by a company. For example, when something happens to your files that make them impossible to retrieve, data backup will help restore these files.
This type of data management and storage does not mesh well with utilizing it like one would use an archive because it’s not how this works. An archive isn’t meant to restore anything, it’s a means of data storage, as explained below.
What is a cloud archive?
If the data backup helps you restore data to a prior time when things were still working as it should, the archive is there for history. Let’s say that your company gets sued for one reason or another.
Your business would then be required to have an email archive, a history of what led to the company being sued in the first place. This would include all of the emails related to the case, alongside specific keywords. You can already see that this isn’t something that data backup can do because reverting the state of your files isn’t going to do anything to help if what you’re looking for is an archive.
A matter of incompatibility
Simply put, trying to make use of backup programs in an archive will only lead to disappointment in the end, because it’s not possible. The same goes for trying to treat backup files as an archive. It’s not going to work because it simply isn’t built that way – the two are incompatible as you would likely find out from working with software that deals with both of these issues. You’ll find that they’re treated separately from each other, and for good reason.
A costly mistake to make
Believe it or not there are business owners out there who focus on only one type because they think backup and archive are the same thing. This is until they’re forced to make use of either of these only to realize that not only were they wrong, but the situation isn’t getting better. That said, it’s still understandable that some businesses would end up like this – it’s simply because data management in this age is often too difficult. Data management is not something to be taken lightly, and if you don’t have the very best services supporting you, it could be something that your business regrets in the future.
Is it worth going it alone?
With regards to cloud based storage or having a full backup of your company’s data, it’s not something that can be left to chance. You might go for services based on price or something else, but it’s not recommended to do this without professional advice. There’s no reason to suffer and make things difficult for yourself when you can get the help that you need to manage the data of your business.
To review, backup data is used for emergency or disaster recovery, archiving is the storage of data for historical purposes, to ensure that you’re able to pull up the information that you need. Either way, businesses continue to make strides in technology so your unstructured data, that makes up most of the data being used by businesses, will be much easier to manage, store and retrieve quickly.