that affect the data you are backing up. We delve into more detail later in
the chapter.
Follow the plan—Faithfully complete each part of your backup strategy
and verify the data stored in the backups. Backups with corrupt data are
of no use to anyone. Even backup operations can go wrong.
Practice your skills—Practice restoring data from your backup systems
from time to time so that when disaster strikes, you are ready (and able)
to benefit from the strength of your backup plan. (For restoring data, see
the section “Using Backup Software.”) Keep in mind that it is entirely
possible that the flaws in your backup plan will become apparent only
when you try restoring.
SOUND PRACTICES
You have to create your own best backup plan, but here are some building
blocks that go into the foundation of any sound backup program:
Maintain more than one copy of critical data.
Label backups.
Store backups in a climate-controlled and secure area.
Use secure offsite storage of critical data. Many companies choose
bank vaults for their offsite storage, and this is highly recommended.
Establish a backup policy that makes sense and can be followed
religiously. Try to backup your data when the system is consistent
(that is, no data is being written), which is usually overnight.
Keep track of who has access to your backup media and keep the total
number of people as low as possible. If you can, allow only trusted
personnel near your backups.
Routinely verify backups and practice restoring data from them.
Routinely inspect backup media for defects and regularly replace them
(after destroying the data on them if it is sensitive).Evaluating Backup Strategies
When you are convinced that you need backups, you need a strategy. It is
difficult to be specific about an ideal strategy because each user’s or
administrator’s strategy will be highly individualized, but here are a few
general examples:
Home user—At home, the user has the Ubuntu installation media that