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Backup

A separate copy of data kept so it can be restored after loss, corruption, deletion, or encryption.

A backup is only a backup if it is independent of the original. A second copy on the same server, or a cloud sync that mirrors every change including an encryption event, is redundancy rather than protection.

The measure that matters is not whether jobs complete but whether restores work. Plenty of organizations discover the difference at the worst possible moment.

Where this comes up

Backup sits inside our backup and disaster recovery work. If you are trying to work out what this means for your own environment rather than in the abstract, that is the page worth reading next, and a short call will get you a straight answer faster than either.

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Related terms

3-2-1 rule Keep three copies of data on two different media, with one copy offsite. Restore test Actually recovering data from backup to verify the backup works and the process is understood. Immutable backup A backup that cannot be modified or deleted for a defined period, even by an administrator. SaaS backup Independent backup of data held in cloud applications such as Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, or Salesforce.

More in backup and disaster recovery

Air-gapped backupBackup windowBare metal restoreBusiness impact analysisCloud backupDeduplicationDisaster recoveryDR site

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