What Is Disaster Recovery

BELFOR Relectronic (UK) Ltd will be exhibiting at Business Continuity The Risk Management Expo 2007.Business Continuity - The Risk Management Expo 2007.The UK's Definitive Event for Managing Risk, Resilience and Recovery combining an exhibition, free seminars and a paid for high level conference will be held at London's Excel, Docklands from 28-29 March 2007.For tickets or further information on Business Continuity The Risk Management Expo 2007 and the Business Continuity Conference please call +44(0)870 429 4480 or visit www.businesscontinuityexpo.co.ukLet's start with a question.....what is 'Disaster Recovery'?Before you read any further... go and ask your colleagues what do they understand by the term 'Disaster Recovery'?Any chance they said it was the following:* Recovering the computers?* Recovering the data?* That hot site recovery place we rent....for an arm and a leg?* The 'plan'...what that chap in Finance looks after?If your colleagues came up with any of the above or something similar, then they are thinking along the same lines as everybody else.In fact a search of the Internet using the term 'Disaster Recovery' will probably yield the same results, although with more formal terminology:* IT and Data Recovery* Software for planning and backing up data* Recovery SitesObviously then, this is the accepted thinking....but is it the whole picture?From virtual to actual realityWhen you asked your colleagues, did any of them mention that you would need to 'recover' the following:* The building?* The important documents?* The desk you sit at?* The work in progress?* The stock?* The expensive and unusual piece of modern art hanging in your reception?...and other things that you're now thinking about?No? Don't be alarmed: you are in the majority of people that have a disaster recovery plan that only partly addresses the issues, that will affect you in a real disaster.You may already have a recovery site, but how long does your contract allow you stay there, and at what cost once you have gone past the contracted time?From the One-off' to the mundaneAs you are reading this article you obviously don't have your head in the sand..... and therefore realise that a disaster doesn't have to be a:* Terrorist explosion.* Flu pandemic.* Large scale river flooding.* A 'burn out' fire.So what sort of impact would one of the following 'incidents' have on your business?* Sewage back surge.* Vending machine mains leak.* Header tank burst.* Accidental sprinkler activation.* Fire caused by a faulty office fan - or any office equipment.Would you need to recover your IT and data and run off to your recovery site?Remember a disaster is anything that impacts on the day-to-day running of your organisation, no matter how small. Obviously then, you need a Contingency Plan, which of course, you have in place... don't you?From furniture to people...the Contingency PlanAbout that Contingency Plan, how long does it run for? Who set the time frame? Or was it just a business wish, on a need-to-recover basis?Did they consider that you would be running/recovering two sites?Having a set timeframe in a Contingency Plan is crucial, as we all need targets to work to, like them or not. But if they are not realistic or achievable, how demotivating will that be to your recovery staff? Are you planning to fail...or failing to plan?By now you may be realising that a large section of your Recovery Plan is missing. You are not alone. The vast majority of plans owe their heritage to the original concept of putting the 'computer system' back into operation and saving any valuable data when it fails. …