The need for disaster recovery management

The need for disaster recovery management

Vishnu K. Mahmud, Contributor, Jakarta

The attack on New York and Washington has prompted many
corporations to review their disaster recovery management
systems. In addition to the loss of human lives, corporations
based in the twin World Trade Center buildings have lost millions
of dollars in computers, office equipment and vital documents.

A few years ago, these losses would have been enough to
bankrupt a company as it would have taken time for them to
regroup, reorganize and rehire the resources needed to continue
their business. If a company plans for disasters properly, they
can get back in business within hours. In short, they should have
a disaster recovery plan.

What exactly is disaster recovery? According to Ian Whalley of
Jakarta's Global Hostnet (http://www.globalhostnet.com), disaster
recovery is "a component of business continuity planning and
represents the preparation and activation of alternative
operating facilities in times when the primary facilities are not
available". All companies should have business continuity plans
to anticipate disasters such as earthquakes, riots or fire.

One of the most prized assets for a company is their digital
data. All documents will have a digital copy stored on the
network and it is vital that the data is backed up continuously.
There are many ways to do this. One way is to make backups daily
or weekly using magnetic tapes and then store them offsite.
Another is to make instantaneous copies of network data using a
dedicated connection to a separate offsite server, a concept
known as "mirroring".

The first option is less expensive but subject to data loss.
If for example a company makes backups every 5 p.m., and a virus
was to hit the server at 4 p.m., all new data from yesterday
would be lost. The mirroring option is more secure as it copies
data the moment it is created. Should a virus hit the server, the
network administrator would switch over to the backup server and
carry on. This option is a bit more expensive, as it requires a
dedicated line and network but then again, how much is your data
worth?

According to Djarot Subiantoro of Sigma Indonesia
(http://www.sigma.co.id), disaster recovery is not only vital for
corporations, but also mandatory for the banking industry. Bank
Indonesia has ruled that every bank should have a disaster
recovery center at least 20 to 30 kilometers from their operation
center.

Global HostNet and Sigma, well-known for their IT company Bali
Camp, offer disaster recovery services. Both companies have
world-class data centers along with redundant power backups and
dedicated backbone networks to secondary centers outside of
Jakarta. The data centers are manned and managed 24 hours a day.
But more importantly, both companies offer disaster recovery
consultancy services to undertake the integration of a customer's
disaster recovery plans with a clients operational plans.

As Subiantoro states: "It's worthless if the IT is up and
running but there are no people or mechanisms to do the
transaction or operation".

There should be set procedures during emergencies such as
establishing a chain of command and installing key
decisionmakers. What are the priorities of the business, what
should be done, who should be contacted, etc. Some companies may
focus too much on the IT angle without even considering the
business aspects in an emergency.

Should the staff not be able to get to the office for any
reason, such as flooding, fire or earthquake, both Global Hostnet
and Sigma can offer a secondary office space far from the
client's main site for their staff to handle the most important
and time sensitive transactions. This is extremely vital for
banks, IT companies and financial institutions.

More information can be found online via the Disaster Recovery
Institute (http://www.dr.org). The institute also offers
professional certification to ensure the high standards of the
disaster recovery industry. Whalley is an associate disaster
recovery planner.

These past few weeks have shown the vulnerability of the
world's business and economy. Business continuity planning and
disaster recovery management are vital for companies to continue
to operate and employ millions of people. Should they encounter
problems, it is fundamental for these businesses to solve them
immediately in order to continue serving the public.

Otherwise, these companies could go out of business, lay off
personnel and start a cycle that could eventually shake the
confidence of the local and world economy. A teacher once told
me: Luck favors the prepared mind. Anticipating and preparation
are vital for business survival.