All you need to know about disaster recovery for your company

We recently saw how our National Stock Exchange (NSE) prepared for disaster recovery. It hosted two special trading sessions with a disaster recovery switch with prior public notice. This is a testament to how all organizations in our country should implement a disaster recovery plan and test its efficiency for complete preparedness.

Disaster recovery is even more crucial for any modern business that operates online. Consider a time when a cyberattack cripples your company’s systems. Customer data gets locked or erased. This means people can't access their money, emergency operations fail, and the company can't operate. Disaster recovery helps prevent this.

What does disaster recovery planning include?

Disaster recovery planning involves restoring an organization's IT infrastructure and data following a catastrophic disruption. It is a crucial component of a financial organization's continuity plan, and as it can be highly complex, it should only be completed with expert assistance.

While numerous circumstances influence what you should include in your disaster recovery plan, some elements stay common. Among these components are:

• IT infrastructure and hardware needs
• Cyber security and data protection solutions
• Risk management strategy
• Managed services 

Technologies to leverage for disaster recovery

Today, at least 30% of business applications in India have moved to the Cloud. In fact, a multi-cloud and hybrid-cloud approach is also being taken to ensure better accessibility and scalability for businesses. In addition to these benefits, Cloud computing and migration are among the first steps enterprises can take to ensure data recovery and backup in an emergency. 

Besides the Cloud, newer and more advanced technologies enable better disaster recovery planning. Some of these are:

1. Virtualization: Businesses back up data in virtual machines off-site to quickly recover from disasters. This way, they can be up and running faster.
2. Failover Clustering: This technology involves creating a group of servers that work together. If one server fails, another server in the cluster can automatically take over its tasks, ensuring minimal disruption to operations.
3. Network Segmentation: It is a practice that divides a computer network into smaller sub-networks. By isolating critical systems and data from the rest of the network, a cyberattack or other disaster impacting one segment can be contained, minimizing the overall damage.

Preparedness wins the war

Disaster striking your business is not something you can block a calendar for. From natural disasters to man-made emergencies, you don’t see them coming. However, it is crucial to be prepared for it and ensure continuity in your business in the face of disruptions. 

Click here to get started if you’re looking for expert guidance on improving your business's network security or planning a disaster recovery plan.