Backup and recovery

What this is

Copies of your data that are far enough away from your data to survive whatever happens to it, and a plan for turning those copies back into a working business.

Two numbers matter, and both are commercial decisions rather than technical ones: how much work you can afford to lose, and how long you can afford to be down. Everything else follows from those.

What is actually delivered

All of it describes backup we supply and manage, which is the only backup we can stand behind. Where yours is someone else’s, or is not there at all, we will tell you what it does and does not cover — but the claims below are about ours, and what you get is what your quote says.

Server and endpoint backup. Image-level where a full rebuild needs to be fast, file-level where it does not. Encrypted, held off the systems being protected, and to the cloud rather than to a box in the same building as the thing it is protecting. Retention is typically 30 or 90 days for workstations and file servers, and your quote says which. Longer is available if you ask and the budget allows.

Microsoft 365 backup. Mail, files, collaboration sites and the directory, typically retained for a year. This is the gap most businesses do not know they have.

Directory backup. Users, groups and policies, so a mistaken deletion or a compromised administrator does not mean rebuilding your directory by hand.

Tested restores. We take items back out at random and check they open — sometimes automatically, sometimes by hand — rather than trusting a job that says it succeeded. This is the part that distinguishes a backup service from a backup product.

The IT half of your recovery plan. The plan itself is yours, the same way your business continuity plan is — it is about your business, not your servers. What we contribute is the part only we can: what can be restored, in what order, and how long each step genuinely takes, so the plan is built on real numbers rather than hopeful ones. Worth doing while everyone is calm.

Immutable retention, as an option. Backup copies that cannot be deleted or overwritten within their retention window, including by an administrator account. Modern ransomware goes looking for the backups first, so it is worth knowing this exists — but it costs more and most businesses decide against it, so we would rather tell you it is available than let you assume you have it.

How it is charged

Backup is charged per protected device, and per user for each cloud service — Microsoft 365 backup is a charge for every mailbox it protects rather than one fee for the tenant. Microsoft 365 and directory backup are included from the Secure tier upwards. Recovery planning for a complex estate is quoted as a project.

Related

• Security and compliance Detection, response, and the evidence your customers are asking for.
• Microsoft 365 and cloud Identity, email, files and the permissions underneath them.
• Managed IT support The day-to-day. Unlimited remote and on-site support for every managed device.

Questions people ask

How do we know the backups actually work?

We pull items back out at random and check they open, rather than reading a green tick on a dashboard — sometimes automatically, sometimes by hand. A backup job that reports success and produces an unusable restore is the standard way this goes wrong, and the only thing that finds it is taking something out.

Do we need to back up Microsoft 365 separately?

Yes. Microsoft keeps the service available; it does not keep a restorable copy of your data. Deleted mail, a compromised account or a mistaken bulk change are all your problem, and the retention windows are shorter than most people assume.

How long would it take to get us running again?

Mostly it depends on what you are willing to pay for, which is why we agree it in advance rather than find out during an incident. Physics sets the rest: a restore can only come down as fast as your connection carries it, and Microsoft rate-limits large restores out of 365, so recovering a whole mailbox or site is slower than recovering the message someone deleted. We will tell you what your current arrangement actually delivers, which is usually slower than people expect.

Where is the backup data held?

In the UK, encrypted, and on infrastructure separate from the systems being backed up. Some services keep data in the EU rather than the UK — if you would rather nothing left the UK, tell us and we will work to that. Backups held where a compromise of your environment could reach them are not backups.

Before you get in touch

• How we charge What is charged per user, per device and per site, and what moves the number.
• Service levels Response and resolution targets, and the hours they run within.
• Certifications ISO 27001, ISO 9001 and Cyber Essentials, with the numbers to check them.