“Five Tips on Protecting Remote Office Data”
Eran Farajun, Asigra

1. Ensure your solution is built upon a non-restrictive architecture
If you are looking to protect corporate data at remote office locations, you’ll want to find a solution that does not require you to install software agents on all of the machines that need to be backed up. For example, the implementation of a distributed backup/restore solution built upon an agentless architecture requires that only one machine on the network at each site needs to run the backup/restore software. This machine then collects data from all desktops, notebooks and servers on the network, stores it locally in highly compressed form, then sends it to a centralized storage location. Solutions with an agentless architecture allow an unlimited number of computer systems to be protected and are non-intrusive. Therefore, this type of solution saves IT management the hassles associated with agent management, installation and licensing. Licensing based on capacity of backed up data versus number of agents aligns with storage growth and is easier to plan and manage.

2. For fast data recovery, implement a system with a local restore option
With a local restore option, a snapshot of all data being backed up to a centralized storage system may also be stored locally on the network. In the event of a lost file or email message or equipment failure, you can restore the latest snapshot of the data directly from a machine on the local network instead of over the WAN. The local restore feature enables you to restore your most recent data quickly at LAN speeds -- even if using inexpensive WAN technologies such as DSL or cable.

3. Optimize your WAN utilization
Organizations looking to backup multiple to a central location in an efficient, cost-effective manner must ensure that their data has been optimized for the WAN. To perform efficiently on WAN connections, your storage management solution should perform comprehensive file analysis, including byte-level delta processing (only changed blocks of files are transmitted after the initial backup) and common file elimination across all locations before further compressing and encrypting data prior to transmission. The net effect of this compression, delta processing and common file elimination processes is approximately a four to six-fold reduction in the data transmission and storage, and effectively a similar cost reduction for your organization.

4. Protect your data with strong security measures
Insist that your backup software offers strong security of corporate and remote site data. Data transmission over a WAN should utilize a proprietary protocol that includes the scrambling of authentication requests. This makes it difficult for an outside party to make sense of the communication if they were to somehow hack into your system. Additionally, it is important to encrypt data while in-flight and at-rest for total protection of information transmitted between corporate and remote office locations and to meet compliance regulations. Encryption should be an integral part of your backup strategy.

5. Implement a backup strategy that suits your IT staffing levels and ensures successful backup and recovery of data
Remote office data is a key corporate asset and retention is necessary to meet compliance regulations. IT expertise may not be available at each remote location. Select a backup solution that can be easily managed from a centralized location and is automated. Small and medium-sized businesses may consider outsourcing backup to a managed services provider to supply the expertise. Online backup eliminates the hassles of managing and transporting tapes that may be lost or damaged. Remember that data that can not be recovered is the same as no backup at all.