What does the research say?

Important question, right?  What are all of the other guys doing, or not doing?  How effective are the data backup systems that are currently out there?  The answer might not please you.

Gartner, the leader in global research, reports that if you’re using tape backup you have less than a 30% chance of recovering your data.  Let’s think about that out loud for a second (I know, doesn’t really make sense but neither does a talking and dancing hard drive).  If you lost your data ten times you would only get it back three times.  Woah!  That, under anyone’s standards, doesn’t sound too acceptable.

You’ve got a duty, whether you’re and IT professional or a business owner or a home user to make sure that your data is safe.  There are some good solutions out there today that can accomplish this for you.  The most important thing is actively monitoring your backup though.  You’ve got to make sure that you’re actively checking in on your backups and ensuring that your data is safe and sound.

One thing is guaranteed in this technological age, you’re going to have to restore data at some point.  Take it from me, be prepared, or else you’re just another statistic, my friend.  Just another statistic.