What is disaster recovery technique?

Disaster recovery technique refers to the processes and procedures an organization puts in place to quickly resume business operations and access critical systems after a disruptive event like a cyberattack, natural disaster, or equipment failure. The goal of disaster recovery is to minimize downtime and data loss. An effective disaster recovery plan is vital for organizational resilience.

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Why is disaster recovery important?

Disaster recovery is crucial for any organization that relies on technology and data access to conduct business. Without a disaster recovery plan, a disruptive event could result in:

Prolonged downtime – Systems and applications could be unavailable for days or weeks

Permanent data loss – Data may not be recoverable if proper backups are not maintained
Reputational damage – Customers and stakeholders lose trust after a prolonged outage
Revenue loss – An inability to conduct business results in lost sales and income

Non-compliance – Some regulations require a disaster recovery plan to be in place

With the above risks in mind, disaster recovery is considered a fundamental component of business continuity. The costs and efforts associated with disaster recovery planning pay dividends when a disruptive event occurs by minimizing downtime. It’s far more cost effective for an organization to invest in disaster recovery compared to the potential losses from an actual disaster.

Elements of a disaster recovery plan

An effective disaster recovery plan will include strategies and documented procedures for:

Backup and recovery – Regular backups of critical data, systems, and applications. Documented processes for restoring backups during outage scenarios.
Secondary infrastructure – Alternate processing sites and computer equipment to failover to during an outage. May include a dedicated disaster recovery data center.
Connectivity – Redundant network infrastructure and internet connectivity designed for automatic failover.

Replication – Synchronizing critical data to an alternate site in real-time to ensure current data is available during a disaster.
Emergency response – Detailed response plans that outline actions to be taken during a disruption to stabilize operations.
Testing – Regular testing of the disaster recovery plan through simulated outages and recovery exercises.

Disaster recovery vs. business continuity

Disaster recovery and business continuity are closely aligned disciplines, but there are some key differences:

Business continuity is a broader organizational discipline focused on maintaining operations before, during, and after a disruptive event.
Disaster recovery is more technical and tactical, dealing with the specific technology strategies and processes for recovering IT systems and data after an outage occurs.

Business continuity planning will account for non-IT related impacts like employee availability, supply chain interruptions etc. Disaster recovery is focused exclusively on information technology systems.
The business continuity team is responsible for planning and preparation across the entire organization. The IT disaster recovery team implements and manages the technical disaster recovery program.

In summary, business continuity takes an enterprise-wide approach while disaster recovery deals strictly with minimizing IT downtime and data loss. Disaster recovery is a subset of business continuity.

Disaster recovery plan steps

Developing a robust disaster recovery plan involves the following key steps:

Conduct a business impact analysis (BIA) – Analyze key business processes and systems to understand downtime impacts and allowable outage times.
Perform a risk assessment – Determine the types of disruptive events that could occur and potential frequency. Cyberattacks, systems failures, and weather events are among top risks.

Define recovery objectives – Set recovery time objective (RTO) and recovery point objective (RPO) for each system and process based on BIA results.
Document recovery procedures – Detail the technical response procedures for recovering IT systems during a disaster scenario.
Implement disaster recovery systems and technologies – Build in redundancies such as alternate sites, backup systems, and network failover.

Test the plan – Perform regular disaster simulations to validate the effectiveness of recovery procedures.
Update and maintain – Review and revise the disaster recovery plan as technology systems change.

Disaster recovery plan template

A disaster recovery template can help organize the key elements of a disaster recovery plan. Here are common sections to include in a disaster recovery template:

Executive summary – Brief overview of the plan’s purpose, scope, and objectives.
Business impact analysis – Results from analyzing business processes, systems, and allowable downtime.
Risk assessment – Summary of identified disaster threats and likelihood of occurrence.

Recovery time objectives – Defined RTOs for each system and process.
Recovery point objectives – Defined RPOs for data loss limits.
Emergency response procedures – Documentation of actions to take during a disaster.

Recovery procedures – Technical steps for recovering systems, software, data, and hardware.
Roles and responsibilities – Assignment of tasks to disaster recovery team members.
Communication plan – Protocols for internal and external communications during an outage.

Testing and exercises – Schedule and procedures for validating the disaster recovery plan.
Maintenance – Process for updating the plan as technology changes occur.

Sections can be added or modified as needed. The template will provide consistency in content and format across disaster recovery plan versions.

Disaster recovery plan maintenance

A disaster recovery plan must be kept up-to-date to remain effective. Important maintenance activities include:

Scheduled reviews – Formally reassess the disaster recovery plan on at least an annual basis.
Update when technology changes – Revise procedures after major system implementations, moves, or architecture changes.

Incorporate test findings – Implement lessons learned and exposed gaps from disaster recovery testing.
Audit compliance – Update the plan to adhere to new regulatory requirements as needed.
Review contracts – Verify agreements with partners align with recovery procedures. Update financially as needed.

Distribute changes – Circulate plan changes to disaster recovery team members and stakeholders.

Disaster recovery maintenance ensures the plan adapts as technology evolves while remaining aligned to current business needs and IT infrastructure.

Disaster recovery solutions

There are many technologies and solutions available to aid in disaster recovery capabilities:

Backup and restoration software – Enables automated backup of data, systems, and applications as well as restores when needed.
Data replication tools – Synchronizes data to alternate sites in real-time or near real-time to maintain current recovery point objectives.
High availability clusters – Provides automatic failover of applications and databases to redundant server instances.

Virtualization – Allows entire systems to be replicated for recovery. Virtual machines can be brought online at alternate sites.
Alternate processing sites – Dedicated disaster recovery data centers or commercial recovery sites enable IT operations to resume at an alternate facility.
Emergency communications – Solutions like mass notification systems to contact employees and automated status pages to update customers.

Additionally, cloud-based disaster recovery as a service (DRaaS) offerings provide simple, scalable recovery capabilities.

Disaster recovery plan testing

Testing is crucial to validate that a disaster recovery plan is executable and effective. Disaster recovery testing helps identify plan gaps and technical issues. Recommended testing methods include:

Tabletop exercises – DR team engages in a simulated scenario to discuss response procedures and decision making.

Walkthrough drills – Team performs abbreviated functional testing of recovery procedures.
Simulation tests – All infrastructure is tested with systems failed over to alternates.
Parallel testing – Recovery systems are activated in parallel to production systems during normal operations.

Full interruption testing – Primary systems are shut down to fully test an organization’s ability to recover critical systems at an alternate location.

The disaster recovery plan should be tested at least annually. More complex environments may require more frequent testing such as once per quarter. Documentation of lessons learned is imperative for ongoing plan improvement.

Cloud disaster recovery

Cloud disaster recovery leverages public cloud infrastructure to provide highly available and scalable recovery capabilities:

Disaster recovery as a service (DRaaS) offerings allow organizations to replicate systems to a cloud provider like AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud.
Cloud storage facilitates maintenance of remote backups without having to manage physical backup media.
Backups can be restored quickly in the cloud when needed.

Cloud computing resources can be scaled on demand to run critical systems when required for disaster recovery purposes.
No hardware to maintain at alternate sites.
Cloud DR can be a lower cost disaster recovery approach compared to traditional methods.

Cloud DR provides agility, scalability, and geographic diversity for recovering systems in modern IT environments.

Conclusion

A comprehensive disaster recovery plan is essential for minimizing IT disruption and stabilizing operations when adverse events occur. At its core, disaster recovery requires data backup and restoration, systems redundancy, and documented policies and procedures. Robust disaster recovery capabilities empower organizations to rapidly overcome disruptions like cyberattacks, power outages, and natural disasters.