Backup

Updated 31 Jul 2026

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def
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  copies of data kept to support recovery in the event of data loss or disaster
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location options
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  onsite — no internet link required, immediately available, generally cheaper
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  offsite — transferred over the internet/WAN, remains available after a site disaster, can be restored from anywhere
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  organizations often use both, for more copies and more restoration options
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other considerations
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  frequency — how often to back up (daily, weekly, hourly), which may differ by system; often uses multiple backup sets (daily/weekly/monthly)
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  Encryption — backup media (some of it offsite) is an attractive target if unprotected; encrypting backups makes them unreadable without the recovery key, especially important for cloud backups
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related
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  Site Resiliency
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cards
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  What's the tradeoff between onsite and offsite backups?
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    Onsite: no internet needed, immediately available, cheaper; offsite: survives a site disaster, can be restores from anywhere

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