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How to Test Backups Properly

Table of Contents

Why Backups Fail Without Testing
  • • Many businesses in the UK make the mistaken assumption that their backup files will protect them. Unfortunately, it simply doesn't always happen that way.
  • • Without proper testing of the backup system, you cannot properly trust that your backups are reliable.
  • • When an actual disaster occurs, potential problems with your backups may not be detected until the disaster occurs.
  • • During recovery from an actual disaster, your backups may be unavailable due to backup file failures or unusable due to missing or corrupt files.
  • • Additionally, when trying to recover a backup file, the recovery time for certain types of backup systems may often take longer to recover than you may expect.
  • • By regularly testing your backup system, you can ensure that your data will be restored from your backup system back to its original state.
  • • Thus, the benefit of testing your backup system is that you can make sure that, when needed, it will be an effective tool in keeping you safe, as opposed to merely thinking it was a good idea.
What Backup Testing Actually Means
  • Backup testing refers specifically to the process of restoring data from your backups and verifying that it is working correctly.
  • Backup testing does not include:
  • • Confirming that backups were created
  • • Seeing the message "Backup Successful"
  • • Assuming that everything is ok with your backups
  • Backup testing involves:
  • • Taking data that you have created and restoring it from your backup
  • • Confirming that it opens, works properly, and is complete.
  • You wouldn't wait until there was a fire to conduct a fire drill you would know how to do so before you have an emergency.
Types of Backup Tests

1. File Level Testing

  • The most basic form of testing involves recovering individual files such as:
  • • PDF documents
  • • Excel spreadsheets
  • • Outlook email
  • Why Do File Level Testing?
  • To ensure that your most commonly used data can be returned to you quickly.

2. Full System Testing

  • Recovering an entire system, example:
  • • Server
  • • Workstation
  • • Business application
  • Why Full System Testing?
  • To confirm your ability to recover from a major catastrophe, not just a minor incident.

3. Disaster Recovery Testing

  • Full scenario to simulate “What if we lost everything?” There are various ways to simulate a real-life disaster, including:
  • • Server crash
  • • Cyber attack
  • • Significant outage
  • Why Disaster Recovery Testing?
  • To demonstrate how your company would actually perform during a disaster in real-life conditions.

4. Random Sample Testing

  • Instead of consistently using the same files for example, randomly selecting data to test.
  • Why Do Random Sample Testing?
  • To expose any potential problems that you may otherwise not find.
How Often Backups Should Be Tested
  • A practical schedule for most small to medium-sized businesses in the UK could be:
  • • Weekly: verify that backups have been made
  • • Monthly: test restoration of certain files
  • • Quarterly: test restoration of an entire computer system
  • • Annually: conduct disaster recovery simulation
  • Businesses that depend heavily on data (e.g., finance; healthcare; legal) may want to test more frequently.
  • More important than how complicated testing is, is how consistently you carry out the testing.
Step-by-Step Guide to Testing Backups

Step 1: Identify which of your Data is More Important to Have Backed-Up

  • These are your most critical areas:
  • • Customers’ records
  • • Financial Systems
  • • Emails
  • • Shared folders that are important to your team.
  • If you lost any of these, which would create the biggest problem for you or your team?

Step 2: Determine Which Back-Up to Restore

  • • You can choose to restore a recent back-up (this is to verify the latest data being backed up) or
  • • An occasional older back-up (this is to verify data retention).

Step 3: Restore Files and/or Systems to the Safe Location

  • You should NEVER overwrite your LIVE data.
  • • Is there more?
  • • Use a testing folder,
  • • use a separate device or use a test environment to accomplish this.

Step 4: Confirm Data Integrity

  • This means verifying that:
  • • Your files are all there
  • • Your files are not corrupted
  • • The version of your files is correct

Step 5: Confirm You Can Access and Use the Data

  • This means verifying that:
  • • Your files open without any problems
  • • Systems are functioning normally
  • • Your staff can all access what they need

6. Document Results

  • Record:
  • • What you tested
  • • When you tested it
  • • What worked
  • • Any issues
  • This creates accountability and helps improve over time.

Step 7: Fix What Did Not Work

  • When you identify that something did not work:
  • • Investigate what caused it.
  • • Adjust your backup system.
  • • Re-test until the test is complete.
  • NEVER allow a failed test to go unresolved.
Common Backup Testing Mistakes

Not Testing Backups at all

  • • The most significant risk. Most businesses operate under the assumption that their backups will work without having to verify if this is true.

Only Verifying that Backups Exist

  • • Having access to the backup files or logs does not validate that backups can actually be restored.

Not Testing Backups often enough

  • • You may not find issues with your backups for months at a time.

Not Documenting Your Test Results

  • • Not having a record of your testing results may result in repeated problems and a loss of accountability.

Not Performing Any Action after a Backup Test Failure

  • • When a backup test fails it is a warning that an action needs to occur, not something to postpone for another day.

Backups Stored in Insecure or Inaccessible Locations

  • Examples:
  • • On The Same Server As Live Data.
  • • Devices Without Remote Access
  • If The System Fails, The Backup Will Fail With It.
What to Do If a Backup Test Fails
  • 1. Stop And Investigate The Problem
  • 2. Identify The Cause Of The Problem
  • • Corruption
  • • Configuration Issue
  • • Storage Failure
  • 3. Fix The Backup Setup
  • 4. Run Another Test Immediately
  • 5. Review Your Overall Backup Procedure.
  • If Failing Yesterday, Seek Professional Help To Avoid Larger Risks.
Backup Testing Checklist Disaster Recovery Testing Checklist Questions Businesses Should Ask About Their Backup System
• Find crucial data
• Ensure that your backup is done regularly
• Restore test files every month
• Restore systems every 3 months
• Verify that all data is valid
• Verify who has access
• Document each test completed
• Fix any problems right away 		• Create recovery priorities
• Practice doing a system recovery
• Recover full systems
• Time how long it takes to recover
• Test access for users
• Make sure your communication plan is followed
• Use problem solvers (bottlenecks)
• Enhance processes 		• When was the last time a restore was completed successfully?
• How long does a full system recovery normally take?
• Are my backups being stored off-site?
• Are my backups secure from a cybersecurity point of view?
• What data is included/excluded in the backup?
• Who is responsible for performing the test?

Frequently Asked Questions

You should test your file backups at least once a month and test your complete system backups every three months.

One of the best ways to test a backup is to restore live data to a secure testing environment, and verify that it works?

Yes. Most backup tests are fairly simple, and do not require any advanced technical skills.

You need to immediately resolve the issue and re-test the backup. If you wait until you need the backup to resolve the issue, you greatly increase your risk of data loss.

Yes! Testing your full system backups will ensure your ability to recover from catastrophic (major) failures, as well as minor failures.

About This Guide

Computer Support Centre, the creator of this guide, is a professional provider of IT support and cyber security services that helps organisations better safeguard their computer systems and data.

Based on their extensive expertise in helping small and medium-sized enterprises, Computer Support Centre specializes in providing practical, real-world IT solutions ensuring that not only will you have a backup, but it will also work if you need it to.

This guide provides practical and simple-to-follow tips for organisation that want to confidently test their backups and make improvements in resiliency and protection against loss of data, cyber threats, and system failure.

Conclusion

Having reliable backups means being able to restore them is essential. Just having backups doesn’t mean you will always be able to restore from them without testing them regularly. This makes it an assumption rather than a guarantee.

Regularly testing your backups will reduce the chances of having an unexpected failure, increase the speed with which you can restore from those failures, and help your company avoid losing important data due to a backup failure. By testing every backup (whether it’s restoring one file or simulating an entire disaster recovery plan), you will improve your response capabilities when you need them most.

The most important point to remember is:

Don’t wait until there is a problem to find out; test backups regularly, fix any issues immediately, and incorporate testing of backups as part of normal business operations.