Backup & Disaster Recovery
Backups You Can Actually Restore From
A backup is only useful if it restores when you need it. We design, monitor and test backups of your servers and key data, and agree a practical recovery plan with you.
What is Backup & Disaster Recovery?
Backup and disaster recovery comes down to two questions. If something is deleted, encrypted or destroyed, can you get it back? And how quickly can the business carry on working? Backups answer the first question. A recovery plan answers the second.
We design backups for your servers, key devices and business data, keep at least one copy away from your main network, and watch every backup job so failures are picked up and fixed rather than discovered on the day you need a restore.
We then test restores and agree a written recovery plan with you: what gets restored first, where it is restored to and who does what.
Key benefits
- Backups designed around what your business can't afford to lose
- At least one copy kept off-site, separated from your main network
- Backup jobs monitored, with failures followed up by our team
- Restore tests, so you know what recovery really looks like
- A recovery plan written down before you need it
How does it work?
We start with what matters most to your business, then design backups and recovery around it. Backups run automatically to the schedule we agree, copies are kept in more than one place, and the results are checked as part of our routine monitoring.
Discover and prioritise
We list your servers, devices, data and cloud services, and agree with you which systems matter most, how much recent work you could afford to lose and how long you could manage without each system.
Design and configure
We design the backup schedule, retention (how long copies are kept) and off-site storage, then set up the backup jobs and lock down who can access or change them.
Monitor and test
Backup jobs are monitored automatically. Failures and warnings are followed up by our team, and we carry out restore tests on the schedule agreed with you.
Plan and review
We document the recovery plan, including restore order, responsibilities and contacts, and review it when your systems or your business change.
- Your systemsServers, key devices and business data
- Scheduled backupsRun automatically to the agreed schedule
- Separate backup copiesIncluding at least one off-site copy
- Monitoring and restore testsFailures followed up, recovery checked
Technical scope
- Backup of physical and virtual servers, including the system settings needed for a full recovery
- File-level backups and whole-system (image) backups, depending on what each system needs
- Backup of selected workstations or laptops where business data is stored locally, if agreed
- Off-site copies stored separately from your main network
- Retention schedules agreed with you, covering recent and longer-term copies
- Encryption of backup data, where supported by the backup platform
- Separate, restricted accounts for backup administration, with multifactor authentication where supported
- Automated monitoring of backup job results, including failures and warnings
- Scheduled restore tests of files and, where agreed, whole systems
- A documented recovery plan with restore order and responsibilities
When you'd need it
Ransomware
If files or servers are encrypted, a separate, protected backup copy gives you a clean point to restore from once the infection has been dealt with.
Server failure
A failed disk or server can be repaired or replaced and its data restored, or key systems brought back on other hardware or in the cloud where the recovery plan allows.
Accidental deletion
A deleted folder or an overwritten spreadsheet can usually be restored from a recent backup without affecting anyone else's work.
Losing access to the office
Fire, flood or theft can take out the building and everything in it. Off-site copies mean your data isn't lost along with the equipment.
Problems solved
Backups that quietly stopped working
A backup job can fail for weeks without anyone noticing. Monitoring flags failures so they are fixed before you need a restore.
Ransomware reaching the backups too
If the only backup sits on the same network with the same passwords, it can be attacked along with everything else. Separated, access-controlled copies reduce that risk.
Nobody knows how long a restore takes
Without testing, recovery time is a guess. Restore tests show what can be recovered and roughly how long it takes.
No plan when something goes wrong
In a crisis, time is lost deciding what to restore first. A written plan sets out the order and who does what.
Data only kept in the office
A single on-site copy offers no protection against fire, flood or theft. Off-site copies keep your data away from the building.
What's included
Included as standard
- Review of your servers, data and recovery priorities
- Backup design, including schedules, retention and off-site copies
- Configuration of backup jobs for the systems agreed in your proposal
- Automated monitoring of backup jobs, with failures followed up by our team
- Restore testing on an agreed schedule
- A documented recovery plan, reviewed when your systems change
- Restores of data in your backup scope when you need it back
Optional or scoped
Available on request and confirmed in your proposal; not part of the standard service.
- Backup of individual workstations and laptops
- Backup storage that can't be altered or deleted for a set period (immutable storage), where the platform supports it
- Full disaster recovery tests, such as restoring key systems to other hardware or to the cloud
- A recovery planning session with your management team
- An independent review of an existing setup through our Backup Security & Recovery Assessments
What's not included
- Backup software licences, storage and hardware, unless agreed in your proposal
- Email, OneDrive, SharePoint and Teams data, which is covered by our separate Microsoft 365 Backup service
- Repairing or replacing failed hardware, which is quoted separately
- Systems and data not listed in your agreed backup scope
- Data held by third-party software providers, unless they allow it to be backed up and it is agreed in scope
Recovery times depend on the amount of data, the backup design, where copies are stored and the condition of your hardware and internet connection. We agree recovery priorities with you, but we don't promise fixed recovery times or a fixed limit on how much recent data could be lost.
Backups reduce the impact of an incident; they don't prevent one. They work best alongside endpoint protection, patching, firewalls and strong account security.
Who it's suitable for
- Businesses running their own servers, in the office or in a data centre
- Organisations holding client records, accounts or project files they couldn't recreate
- Businesses unsure whether their current backups work or would survive ransomware
- Companies whose insurers, clients or contracts ask about backup and recovery arrangements
- Businesses preparing for Cyber Essentials that want backup guidance put into practice
Pricing
This service is tailored to your business, so we confirm the price after a short conversation about your requirements. There is no charge for the conversation.
Use the quote builder to add Backup & Disaster Recovery to an indicative quote, or book a free security review and we'll recommend what fits.
Price
On Application
What affects the price
- Amount of data to protect
- Number of servers and devices in scope
- Where your systems run: office, data centre or cloud
- How long backup copies must be kept
- Off-site storage requirements
- Recovery priorities for your key systems
- How often restores are tested
All prices exclude VAT.
Add to Your QuoteFrequently asked questions
How is this different from the backup checks in Managed Servers?
Managed Servers includes checking backup status as part of routine server monitoring. Backup & Disaster Recovery goes further: we design and manage the backups themselves, keep off-site copies, test restores and agree a recovery plan with you.
What do RTO and RPO mean?
The recovery time objective (RTO) is how long you could manage without a system. The recovery point objective (RPO) is how much recent work you could afford to lose. We agree these as planning targets and design around them, but they aren't promises, because real recovery depends on what has happened.
Would our backups survive a ransomware attack?
We design with ransomware in mind by keeping at least one copy separated from your main network and protected by separate credentials. No design removes the risk entirely, which is why we test restores. For an independent view of an existing setup, see Backup Security & Recovery Assessments.
Does this back up Microsoft 365?
Not as standard. Microsoft 365 data needs a different type of backup that connects to the Microsoft cloud, which is covered by Microsoft 365 Backup. Many businesses need both.
How often are restores tested?
The testing schedule is agreed with you during set-up and can include both individual file restores and larger whole-system tests. We record what was tested and what we found, so you have evidence that recovery works.
Can you get back a file someone deleted by mistake?
Yes, for data within your backup scope. Raise a request through your normal support route and our team will restore it. How far back you can go depends on the retention you choose.
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