Backup strategy for SMBs
What owner-led companies should consider for data protection, retention and recovery — practical guidance without vendor hype.
Define scope and targets
Identify critical data
File services, mail, ERP and collaboration differ in priority — not everything needs the same schedule.
Document RPO and RTO
Written targets prevent debate during an incident and support investment decisions.
Ownership and test cadence
Who runs restore drills? How often? Without tests, a backup is only hope.
Without recovery targets, every backup design stays abstract. Agree which systems must return first, your maximum acceptable data loss (RPO) and downtime (RTO). These drive technology choice, backup frequency and budget.
3-2-1 and immutability
Air gap or object lock
At least one copy should not sit in the same admin domain as production.
Monitor backup jobs
Catch failed jobs and volume anomalies early — not on the first restore attempt.
Practise recovery
After major changes or yearly: test restore to isolated systems and measure duration.
The 3-2-1 rule (three copies, two media, one off-site) still applies — extended with protection against silent encryption by malware. Versioning, offline or cloud storage with immutability and separate admin accounts reduce the risk of losing every generation at once.
3
Locations
6
Service areas
< 30 Min.
Response time
10+
Years experience
Reliable backups are the last line of defence against ransomware, hardware failure and human error. Clear objectives, tested restores and ownership matter more than how many tools you run.
Typical flow by phase
Inventory
Systems, data classes and dependencies.
Design
RPO/RTO, locations and retention.
Implementation
Jobs, alerting and documentation go live.
Operations
Regular tests when infrastructure changes.