Laptop data protection: A major headache with many cures

David Underwood could be called an IT “everyman.” He is an IT specialist at the University of California, Davis, where the institution is exploring choices of backup systems to protect laptop data. His organization, like most others, has had to wrestle with the question of how to provide laptop data protection through some kind of backup system.

More recently he tested and adopted Druva inSync laptop backup software . “I found it was very tenacious at getting the data—now if someone only comes onto the network once a month, it will back them up,” he said.

Underwood said in the past he has relied on a utility that kept a copy of each folder on the server. However, he admitted that process “took forever” and slowed the system to a crawl for at least an hour. Then, he tried another application that was supposed to help back up Microsoft Exchange PST files. “They were the main things I wanted to grab, but to get the software to work drove me crazy,” he said. 

Underwood found he was so happy with the Druva product for his 70 laptops that he adopted it for his desktop systems, too, with good results. “Desktops are on a regular schedule and in a sense laptops are no different [for scheduling],” he said, since they, too, are always scheduled for regular backups, but must wait until they are online. “The software was designed for laptops but works well for desktop systems, too,” he explained.

Underwood’s experience highlights the fact that laptops are not a problem by themselves. According to Lauren Whitehouse, a senior analyst at Enterprise Strategy Group, the laptop data protection challenge needs to be—and is—increasingly viewed as part of the broader “endpoint” backup challenge, covering everything from desktops, to laptops and mobile devices.

Laptop backup strategy missing in many organizations

Derek Meister, an agent with Best Buy’s Geek Squad, echoes those sentiments. “For most companies, just having any backup process for their laptops would be a huge advance,” he said. “When we talk to small businesses, the key for them is to have a backup plan . Even local backup will save you if your laptop gets hit by a virus.” However, he noted, if you are going to really look into it “we suggest both a local and an online backup capability.”

The fact is, noted Greg Schulz, analyst with the StorageIO Group, there are a bewildering range of options for laptop and endpoint backup . “Some organizations are leveraging cloud service providers for taking care of laptops and desktops in work groups; some are leveraging existing backup tools that have traditionally provided support for the desktop; and, some organization use the same tool from the server down to the desktop or laptop,” he said.

Best practices for Backup Exec 2010 Agent for Microsoft Exchange ...

During research for a problem that related to Exchange GRT backups which you can read here – I found this document on the Symantec site which I thought I’d reproduce with some comments and thoughts. For me the simple act of doumenting how the server is configured is absolutely vital – especially in a crisis recovery situation.

Best practices for Backup Exec 2010 Agent for Microsoft Exchange Server

Best practices include tips and recommendations to help you use the Exchange Agent effectively. For more information about the Exchange Agent, see the Backup Exec 2010 Administrator’s Guide. For best practices on preparing the Exchange Server for backup, do the following on the Exchange Server:

• Circular logging must be disabled if you want to do the following:

◦ Run incremental and differential backups.

◦ Recover data up to the point of failure.

◦ Run continuous backups of Information Store transaction logs.

• Put transaction log files on a separate physical disk from the database. If the disk that contains the database is damaged, the transaction logs are available as a recovery resource. Good point but rarely seen on client sites

For Exchange 2010, use a Database Availability Group (DAG) with at least one passive database copy for each database to protect against data loss. If you can make more than one passive copy, the second passive copy should use a log replay delay of 24 hours.

• Set the retention period for deleted items and mailboxes to a length of time that is appropriate for the available disk space. The longer the retention period, the more disk space is required. However, some retention period can prevent you from having to restore a mailbox or database. If possible, configure the Exchange server so that items are not deleted until a full backup is performed.

• Make Write Cache unavailable on the SCSI controller. Data corruption can occur if the computer fails before the operation is written to disk. Should use only battery backed controllers on UPS

• Monitor the Application, Security, and System logs for any relevant events that may affect Exchange Server functionality. EventMeister is a good tool

• Allow sufficient disk space for maintenance and recovery procedures. Refer to your Microsoft documentation for details.

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