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Sunday, 9 April 2017 ehdf

Ten things you must include in your IT Disaster Recovery plans

Computers and their networks have ushered us into a whole new way of going about our lives, in recent decades. It is nearly impossible to imagine a modern business – of almost any size and scope – operating without the benefit of an IT infrastructure. Servers, software applications, databases, networks and countless other aspects of IT are central to organizations of all sorts and varieties. This ubiquitous dependence on IT solutions also exposes the modern business environment to disruptions and disasters due to their failure.

IT Disaster Recovery in the UAE, in keeping with internationally accepted practices, intrinsically includes plans and processes to recover from an IT disruption. However, despite the high standards of IT Disaster Recovery in the UAE, it is always a good idea to have certain priorities in place to address such disruptions.

We suggest the following 10-point checklist, to have a robust Disaster Recovery plan in place.

1. Design an effective and detailed Disaster Recovery plan: Given how central and non-negotiable IT infrastructure has become for the modern business organization, preparing a plan for its widespread disruption can seem well and truly daunting. One sensible approach is the identification of core functions that must be given the highest priority in the event of a disaster. These priorities can then be added to sequentially and as the infrastructure and technologies evolve. The response needs to be planned in detail, with parameters and metrics defined, while considering a wide range of possible disruptions.
2. Communication: An effective response is best generated by aligning every resource towards the goal of recovery. One of the keys to this is effective communication that includes redundancies and protocols which allow the organization to combat the crisis with the best possible efficiency. It is important that each stakeholder is aware of their role within the response and that there is a process in place that allows for effective coordination as the circumstances allow.
3. An effective inventory process: An IT infrastructure is made up of numerous elements – both physical and software based. For an organization to effectively address such a situation, it is important that it has the various elements and their interdependence mapped out in advance. An effective and ongoing inventory process allows the business to anticipate, prepare and plan, as well as be able to delegate responsibility in the event of a disaster.
4. Detailed and ongoing testing of the plan: It is of the most critical importance that an IT Disaster Recovery plan that a business has prepared is subjected to constant testing in a controlled environment. While disasters occur in unforeseen ways, components and elements within an IT environment can certainly be put to elaborate tests that provide a measurable outcome.
5. Defining the organization’s scope for sub-optimal performance: It is almost counterintuitive for a modern organization to focus too much on the lowest level of performance it can tolerate. However, the nature of IT disasters makes it important that an organization identifies the least possible performance it requires of the various IT dependent functions and departments within it. Setting a lowest acceptable benchmark and testing processes at that minimum allows organizations to prepare for minimizing the negative effects of an IT disruption.
6. Assign roles for employees in the event of a disaster: Empowering employees with clearly defined roles and responses should form a very important part of the organization’s Disaster Recovery plan. It is important that employees are aware of clearly defined tasks to take ownership of, in the case of an IT disaster.
7. Ensure that your SLAs have clearly defined terms for Disaster Recovery: Several businesses have outsourced a lot of their IT functions and infrastructure or are taking advantage of Co-location Data Centre services. It is important that the SLAs with such external entities are comprehensive and binding, with well conceived outcomes and responsibilities.
8. Processes in place to handle sensitive data: An important factor in limiting the damage due to an IT disaster and maintaining the functional capacity of an organization, is having processes in place to handle sensitive data. A clearly defined set of processes should be in place to define how to access information and maintain its integrity.
9. A recovery site: If possible, it is a great idea to have a pre-appointed recovery site where employees can gather if the disaster has affected their workspace catastrophically. An organization should have facilities in place that allow it to revive its basic operations after a disaster. Some Service Providers like EHDF offers Disaster Recovery/ Business Continuity Seats, allowing a business to seamlessly continue operations when access to their usual workplace is interrupted. These seats are either shared or dedicated and offer connectivity, 24/7 Service Desk, telephone lines, etc.
10. Regular updating of Disaster Recovery plan: A Disaster Recovery plan should remain current and consider changes in technology, business operations and the evolution of threats. An effective plan is one that proactively considers changing parameters and possibilities, as they emerge.

While not every aspect of a disaster can be anticipated, it is important that a business organizes its response to an IT disaster with as specific a recovery plan as possible. This plan must be scrutinized and tested on an ongoing basis and all employees must be made aware of their roles and responsibilities if a disaster strikes.

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