Data Backup Systems (Real)

Don't Lose It!

Author: Aaron Rice
Date: 1998/01/22
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Some people seem to have a problem with backing up their data. These individuals, obviously content to lose everything at a point of disaster, recklessly fly through life without a care. Unfortunately, something always goes wrong, and always at the worse possible time [1].

The inevitability of a problem occurring has been scientifically proven. Unfortunately, it may take a while to occur, which has the effect of producing a feeling of total immunity to any problems that could possibly occur, while the truth is usually that they have just been very lucky.

The best place to experience these problems, and still remain in a fit state to study them fully, is to work in a support department. You may then find it easy to observe the initial stage, commonly known as the "I can do anything, yeah just stick that ten-ton super-magnet next to my hard drive"-stage. This is, under the described circumstances, almost inevitably followed by the "Well, nothing's ever gone wrong with it before, it's your fault"-stage. This is where the problem begins.

Unfortunately, the customer/user/individual [2] is always right. This means that they lost their data not because they failed to backup then did something stupid, but because:

1. someone gave them the wrong advice, or
2. they didn't realize.

However if they are really honest, they lost their data because:

1. they had total confidence in something they didn't fully understand,
2. they forgot, or
3. they couldn't be bothered.

It has been advised to some in the past that you should backup after everything you do. Perhaps this is what puts certain people off, as it can effectively double the length of certain tasks. It's generally a good idea to back up a system on a daily basis - ie. at the end of a working day. Also, if you are about to do something that could potentially cause a problem, take a backup then.

The final rule is to never assume that just because you started a backup, it completed correctly. The problem with this is that optimistic assumptions are generally met with negative consequences. This means that if you assume your backup is fine, the tape will almost certainly have screwed up, the data will be corrupt, or a disk will have exploded in the drive [3].

[1]	Murphy's laws explain this fully.
[2]	Very often the blindingly stupid under these circumstances.
[3]	In these instances, it is sometimes advisable to have a backup for the backup system, and sometimes a fire extinguisher.

See also

• Booting, Origin Of The Word
• Computer Malfunctions
• Computers, Earth
• Paperless Office, The
• Self-Destructing Computers
• Professions: System Administrator
• Murphic Field In Daily Life, The
• Luck