Software as a Service is NOT backup
Cloud data needs backups too
The cloud is everywhere, and it’s a solution that often gets sold as the cure to all of our infrastructure woes; disaster recovery, network security, mobility and more. Although data in the cloud may be safer, it’s not perfect - and we’re here to break the news on what you need to do to get it one step closer.
We see three premier cloud vendors competing for domination within small and medium-sized business network spheres. They all have things that they’re better at than others, and areas that leave something to be desired. To understand which cloud platform is best for your business, you need to understand how they each address these four fundamental factors:
| Google Apps | Office 365 | Salesforce | |
|---|---|---|---|
| How data is protected | Google offers infrastructure high availability (HA) with erasure code and multiple replicas in multiple geographies, so data will still be accessible in incidents of hardware failure. Google does not offer native backup capabilities for Google Groups or Sites data. | The infrastructure of O365 is not unified, which means the backup capabilities for the components differ depending on the application. Backup measures include: local flash copies, encrypted, offline remote backup, and near real-time replication to a data center. | Customer data is automatically backed up to a tape library on a nightly basis. Backup tapes are cloned to an offsite facility to verify their integrity. Clones are stored in a secure, fire-resistant location at the same offsite facility. |
| How data is recovered | Once an admin or end user deletes any data, the files stay in the Trash folder for 30 days, after which point the data is deleted permanently and only recoverable by an admin. Data is irretrievable once an admin deletes a user account. | Microsoft backs up data daily multiple times. End users may recover deleted files from the Recycle folder. Admins can restore data, such as collections, as well as deleted users. | Salesforce support can recover customer data at a specific point in time, in the case that it has been permanently deleted or corrupted. The price for this service is a minimum of $10K and it could take weeks. |
| Recovery Limitations | Any data deleted from the Trash folder requires admin assistance to recover, but only for 25 days. All or nothing will be restored - there is no option to select specific files. | Data deleted from the Recycle folder goes to the Recoverable items folder for 14 days (30 days if reconfigured), and requires admin assistance to recover. | Only 3 months of data recoverable. Deleted data goes to the Recycle Bin and is queried in an “isDeleted” API. Data deleted beyond this requires SFDC assistance. Any recoverable data must be manually imported back into Salesforce. |
| Recovery Time | Up to 1 hour. | Minutes. | A 15 business day minimum. |
No solution is flawless, and that’s why Visionary IT recommends a carefully planned strategy where more than one service is utilized to make sure that all of your business goals are covered by your IT. Just managing a cloud platform alone is a daunting task, and if you want to be properly covered you should be backing up your cloud data elsewhere as well. If your IT projects aren’t getting the attention they deserve, or are pulling you away from more pressing business concerns, it’s probably time for a managed service provider.
