Surviving The Perfect Storm - The Data Protection Strategy Paid Off!
You have had these sort of events before.
This was a doozie of a Perfect Storm though...
I had finally picked up some good consulting work.
This took me out of town for just a few days, not even a week.
I had no idea of what was brewing up.
Fortunately, I had used my own advice - Build A Solid Data Protection Strategy, and you will never fear system breakdowns! And it's true.
Data Protection Strategies ensure that you will not be left high and dry with no good data.
Data protection strategies are not just about "The Backup".
It goes *beyond* just the backup! Thorough data protection strategies incorporate redundant disks and redundant backup systems.
This gives you the security your business *requires* to survive a computer/server/facilities event that could otherwise put you out of business.
Let's see how the strategy that I implemented plays out in my real life Hard Drive Perfect Storm...
Returning to my home office the last week of June I suddenly began receiving warnings from the hard drives S.
M.
A.
R.
T.
system.
S.
M.
A.
R.
T.
is the acronym for Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology that is now built into virtually all the hard drives we use these days.
It's something you DO want to be using on your computers.
S.
M.
A.
R.
T.
will review what is happening in your hard drive and will warn you before most hard drive failures happen.
With enough warning, you have the time to perform any backups or software inventories that will help you quickly recover your operating system! Nothing like getting some warning before trouble strikes! So I ordered up a new drive - 1Tb Western Digital, and headed down the road.
With all the safety nets from my data protection strategy, I had nothing to worry about! At least that is what I thought...
I had been reviewing several online backup products, and had selected Mozy Remote Backup.
The Unlimited Mozy Remote Backup product was the winner over Acronis and Carbonite products.
The ability to backup the data to online storage AND to a local USB or other 'locally attached' drive was the deciding factor.
After installing Mozy I found out just how long it will take to send 62Gb of data to the "Internet Storage"! Trust me on this, it takes a while to move 62Gb across the internet, even with a 10Mb outbound cable.
I had recognized that recovering the data from the Internet Storage would be extremely slow.
The idea of restoring the data from a locally connected USB disk really closed the deal for me.
I made the purchase, and began the backup process.
In the meantime, the 1Tb WD hard drive showed up.
I installed it, and began to recover the hard drive from my Windows Home Server Bare Metal Recovery Disk.
This is where things started going...
bad - Very BAD.
The WHS (Windows Home Server) has been awesome in the past.
The recovery of a 40Gb hard drive in a notebook took about 20 to 30 minutes the first couple of tests that were run to assure the 'bare metal' recovery of a system from the Windows Home Server system.
The 'Bare Metal' recovery is typically initiated with a CD or a USB external drive which sets up a network connection to a saved image that is simply restored to the system that needs to be recovered.
It's fast, and easy when it works.
But it wasn't working NOW! Further research revealed that the WHS required a re-installation of the complete operating system! The data was safe, but I had a couple years of enhancements and customizations in there - {sigh}.
Time to do it again.
I had just wrapped up the WHS system recovery, when here comes just another little event to cause a nice pucker factor.
The other hard drive in my primary system began reporting the same hard drive error! It was also failing with the same issue! Here is another tip - Sometimes it isn't the best thing to order 2 of the same hard drives from the same vendor for use in the same computer.
This is because if there is a flaw in the drives, and they are in the same batch, it may affect BOTH drives.
This is exactly what happened in this case! Purchased in 2007 with a 5 year warranty they had failed less than 4 years later within 14 days of each other! Well Shucks is almost what I said.
(LOL) Then I got a flash - Time to change tactics.
For years I have recommended to my business clients that you use a RAID 1 drive for your business computers if you are a home based business with only 1 or 2 computers.
I have seen this method work very well for the clients I had using this strategy.
I made the good decision that it is time to take my own advice.
I ordered up another 1 Tb drive from a different manufacturer and continued backing up my slowly failing second drive.
I also took the time to take inventory of *needed* applications.
I then gathered up all the disks and downloads required to make the installation easy, and waited for the drive to arrive.
The Mozy Remote Backup continued to keep my data backed up.
The external hard drive attached to the desktop is a great idea.
I was very confident that I was ready to go! The good news is that everything turned around after the second drive showed up! The WHS was refreshed and all the computers were backing up nicely.
The second drive showed up and I did set it up as a RAID 1 disk.
RAID is the acronym for Redundant Array of Inexpensive Discs or Redundant Array of Independent Disks.
There are many ways to build a RAID, but the best for the SOHO (Small Office/Home Office) is the RAID 1 disk.
RAID 1 requires 2 hard drives which will be mirrors of each other.
Should one drive fail, the other drive keeps the system running! Yes, it's sweet, and RAID 1 is great for a SOHO business.
It is a fast, reliable system, relatively inexpensive, and a vital part of a solid data protection strategy.
I got the new RAID 1 drive setup, and Windows 7 installed without a hiccup.
From there, I simply began downloading the 62Gigs of data to my hard drive once again.
While the data was restoring I was installing software.
It was nice to finally get this done.
It took about a week to get back to fully functional primary computer.
Remember, I had to rebuild TWO systems, and one of the two systems I had to reinstall twice! The really good news is that when everything was failing, I had already instituted an upgrade to my existing Data Protection Strategy by adding the Mozy Remote Backup.
Now that the data "seed" process is completed, Mozy Remote Backup is really FAST too! Taking the time to reinstall to the RAID 1 drive was completely worth the effort! Now I have two drives protecting the system drive and data on my computer.
To top it all off, it is just as fast as it ever was.
This is an easy protection strategy that you can implement, but it will take some time to do it right.
So - I hope that my work was not in vain.
I hope that you will take a hard look at your Data Protection Strategy and decide to upgrade your protection systems NOW so that you can save some heartache later.
It can be a bother to get it setup, but trust me - when we have the lightning storms, the power bumps, and the S.
M.
A.
R.
T.
hard drive warnings going off we are sooooo happy to have several safety nets in place! Let's review the basic Data Protection Strategy as bullet points: For Good Data Protection:
You really don't need to be as complex as what I have outlined above.
Most folks would be very well served (and better protected than their peers or neighbors) if they would simply add the Mozy Remote Backup solution to their backup strategy! Here's to your new Data Protection Strategy, and your continued operation through the hard drive Perfect Storms of life!
This was a doozie of a Perfect Storm though...
I had finally picked up some good consulting work.
This took me out of town for just a few days, not even a week.
I had no idea of what was brewing up.
Fortunately, I had used my own advice - Build A Solid Data Protection Strategy, and you will never fear system breakdowns! And it's true.
Data Protection Strategies ensure that you will not be left high and dry with no good data.
Data protection strategies are not just about "The Backup".
It goes *beyond* just the backup! Thorough data protection strategies incorporate redundant disks and redundant backup systems.
This gives you the security your business *requires* to survive a computer/server/facilities event that could otherwise put you out of business.
Let's see how the strategy that I implemented plays out in my real life Hard Drive Perfect Storm...
Returning to my home office the last week of June I suddenly began receiving warnings from the hard drives S.
M.
A.
R.
T.
system.
S.
M.
A.
R.
T.
is the acronym for Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology that is now built into virtually all the hard drives we use these days.
It's something you DO want to be using on your computers.
S.
M.
A.
R.
T.
will review what is happening in your hard drive and will warn you before most hard drive failures happen.
With enough warning, you have the time to perform any backups or software inventories that will help you quickly recover your operating system! Nothing like getting some warning before trouble strikes! So I ordered up a new drive - 1Tb Western Digital, and headed down the road.
With all the safety nets from my data protection strategy, I had nothing to worry about! At least that is what I thought...
I had been reviewing several online backup products, and had selected Mozy Remote Backup.
The Unlimited Mozy Remote Backup product was the winner over Acronis and Carbonite products.
The ability to backup the data to online storage AND to a local USB or other 'locally attached' drive was the deciding factor.
After installing Mozy I found out just how long it will take to send 62Gb of data to the "Internet Storage"! Trust me on this, it takes a while to move 62Gb across the internet, even with a 10Mb outbound cable.
I had recognized that recovering the data from the Internet Storage would be extremely slow.
The idea of restoring the data from a locally connected USB disk really closed the deal for me.
I made the purchase, and began the backup process.
In the meantime, the 1Tb WD hard drive showed up.
I installed it, and began to recover the hard drive from my Windows Home Server Bare Metal Recovery Disk.
This is where things started going...
bad - Very BAD.
The WHS (Windows Home Server) has been awesome in the past.
The recovery of a 40Gb hard drive in a notebook took about 20 to 30 minutes the first couple of tests that were run to assure the 'bare metal' recovery of a system from the Windows Home Server system.
The 'Bare Metal' recovery is typically initiated with a CD or a USB external drive which sets up a network connection to a saved image that is simply restored to the system that needs to be recovered.
It's fast, and easy when it works.
But it wasn't working NOW! Further research revealed that the WHS required a re-installation of the complete operating system! The data was safe, but I had a couple years of enhancements and customizations in there - {sigh}.
Time to do it again.
I had just wrapped up the WHS system recovery, when here comes just another little event to cause a nice pucker factor.
The other hard drive in my primary system began reporting the same hard drive error! It was also failing with the same issue! Here is another tip - Sometimes it isn't the best thing to order 2 of the same hard drives from the same vendor for use in the same computer.
This is because if there is a flaw in the drives, and they are in the same batch, it may affect BOTH drives.
This is exactly what happened in this case! Purchased in 2007 with a 5 year warranty they had failed less than 4 years later within 14 days of each other! Well Shucks is almost what I said.
(LOL) Then I got a flash - Time to change tactics.
For years I have recommended to my business clients that you use a RAID 1 drive for your business computers if you are a home based business with only 1 or 2 computers.
I have seen this method work very well for the clients I had using this strategy.
I made the good decision that it is time to take my own advice.
I ordered up another 1 Tb drive from a different manufacturer and continued backing up my slowly failing second drive.
I also took the time to take inventory of *needed* applications.
I then gathered up all the disks and downloads required to make the installation easy, and waited for the drive to arrive.
The Mozy Remote Backup continued to keep my data backed up.
The external hard drive attached to the desktop is a great idea.
I was very confident that I was ready to go! The good news is that everything turned around after the second drive showed up! The WHS was refreshed and all the computers were backing up nicely.
The second drive showed up and I did set it up as a RAID 1 disk.
RAID is the acronym for Redundant Array of Inexpensive Discs or Redundant Array of Independent Disks.
There are many ways to build a RAID, but the best for the SOHO (Small Office/Home Office) is the RAID 1 disk.
RAID 1 requires 2 hard drives which will be mirrors of each other.
Should one drive fail, the other drive keeps the system running! Yes, it's sweet, and RAID 1 is great for a SOHO business.
It is a fast, reliable system, relatively inexpensive, and a vital part of a solid data protection strategy.
I got the new RAID 1 drive setup, and Windows 7 installed without a hiccup.
From there, I simply began downloading the 62Gigs of data to my hard drive once again.
While the data was restoring I was installing software.
It was nice to finally get this done.
It took about a week to get back to fully functional primary computer.
Remember, I had to rebuild TWO systems, and one of the two systems I had to reinstall twice! The really good news is that when everything was failing, I had already instituted an upgrade to my existing Data Protection Strategy by adding the Mozy Remote Backup.
Now that the data "seed" process is completed, Mozy Remote Backup is really FAST too! Taking the time to reinstall to the RAID 1 drive was completely worth the effort! Now I have two drives protecting the system drive and data on my computer.
To top it all off, it is just as fast as it ever was.
This is an easy protection strategy that you can implement, but it will take some time to do it right.
So - I hope that my work was not in vain.
I hope that you will take a hard look at your Data Protection Strategy and decide to upgrade your protection systems NOW so that you can save some heartache later.
It can be a bother to get it setup, but trust me - when we have the lightning storms, the power bumps, and the S.
M.
A.
R.
T.
hard drive warnings going off we are sooooo happy to have several safety nets in place! Let's review the basic Data Protection Strategy as bullet points: For Good Data Protection:
- Use 2 disks in a RAID 1 for hard drive data protection
- Protect your data using AT LEAST one backup system
- Perform a data restoration AT LEAST once a month
- All data is protected by being stored on 2 different systems
- All data is backed up to online storage (Using Mozy)
- All data is backed up to a local USB drive (Again, using Mozy)
- Primary workstation runs a RAID1 hard drive system
- Server system runs a JBOD RAID using Shadow Copy (WHS)
- Backup workstation running most applications as a backup (Just In Case!)
You really don't need to be as complex as what I have outlined above.
Most folks would be very well served (and better protected than their peers or neighbors) if they would simply add the Mozy Remote Backup solution to their backup strategy! Here's to your new Data Protection Strategy, and your continued operation through the hard drive Perfect Storms of life!
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