Here’s Why You Need to Include the Cloud in Your Business Continuity Plan

Adverse IT events like power outages and ransomware attacks could make you lose access to company data — unless you have a business continuity plan. And for your plan to succeed, you must choose your data backup storage media wisely. In this post, we’ll discuss why the cloud is the best medium to store your backups in.

Supports Hybrid Work Arrangements

Hybrid work setups are becoming increasingly popular, so it’s becoming more important than ever for your business to invest in cloud backups. Offline backup media such as flash drives, external hard drives, and tapes can only be utilized by on-site staff, but if circumstances such as lockdowns force employees to work remotely, then offline storage cannot be used. Thankfully, cloud storage makes backing data up easy for IT staff wherever they may actually be, for as long as they’re on the internet.

Grants Flexibility Over Backup Frequency

You may have staff in one location working flexible shifts, or you may have staff who are continents apart. In both cases, the cloud allows employees to work any time of the day, which means that the files they update must also be backed up more frequently than if the files were updated on a single fixed schedule.

By partnering up with a cloud service provider (CSP), you can forget stressing over how often to back up your data. CSPs offer continuous and fixed backup frequencies, as well as custom backup plans designed specifically for what your business needs. Some services can even create backups of your files while you edit them, ensuring that the information is always current.

Enables Quick and Dynamic Resource Provisioning

Backups are normally done during off-peak hours. Nevertheless, spikes in user activity and resource utilization can and do happen during the backup process and slow down websites and apps that are running in the background. A CSP can assist you by tracking user activity, allowing them to anticipate spikes before they cause lag. The provider may then use this data to dedicate resources and virtual machines as needed to manage the arrival of users and prevent network performance slowdowns.

Maximizes Uptime

Backing up your business files isn’t as simple as just storing them on a secondary hard drive or computer. Many things could go wrong if you solely rely on these devices for your backups. They can be stolen, damaged by local disasters or cyberattacks, or have errors that make the data unusable. All of this would lead to costly downtime for your business.

Cloud backups, on the other hand, can always be accessed online via an internet-connected device. Cloud servers are located away from your site, so they can’t be damaged by natural disasters in your area. Also, CSPs keep their servers running all the time. They do this by using top-notch data security measures like having extra servers and alternate power supplies.
Ensuring business continuity is but one of many functions of the cloud. Enjoy this benefit and more by availing of managed IT services Orange county.