Prioritizing Data Backup with Analytics

Businesses work with an enormous amount of data each day. It’s estimated that 1.145 trillion MB of data is created each day. For businesses, making sense of their data helps them see patterns, market trends, customer preferences and provides other meaningful insights. However, putting all the data into a manageable form and knowing what to use, backup, and monitor can be extremely challenging—especially for small businesses.

Structured and Unstructured Data

There are two types of data that companies work with—structured and unstructured.

Structured data is specific data that has a predefined format and consists of numbers and values. This type of data fits neatly into a relational database (think rows and columns). Examples of structured data include dates, phone numbers, Social Security numbers, addresses, product names identification numbers, and other quantitative types of information.

On the other hand, unstructured data is information that’s not arranged according to a pre-set data model and can’t be stored in a database. Examples of unstructured data include emails, text files, presentations, photos, videos, social posts, chat logs, text messages, and many other things.

Most of today’s data is unstructured data, and there’s a lot of it. Studies reveal that the expected data generated per person is nearly 1,700 gigabytes. With so much data being created on a regular basis, data storage and backups can become a big problem. Smaller organizations and businesses may struggle with this sooner rather than later.

Data Storage and Backup Challenges for SMBs

The truth is small businesses are faced with more data storage and backup challenges than larger enterprise companies because of limitations around staffing, finances and technical knowledge. Some of the most common difficulties that SMBs face include:

Rapidly increasing data
High data storage costs
Data protection and storage management limitations
Lack of skills, knowledge, and staff

Because of these issues, backup processes often take a backseat to business operations. And high costs lead to organizations settling for cheaper, or seemingly “easier” solutions, which often serve as little more than a Band-Aid.

Visibility into Backup Landscape

The good news is companies can optimize their backup landscape by applying and using analytics to better understand a security system as a whole. Managed Services Providers can offer analytic tools to SMBs that give insight into backup performance and data storage predictions. It’s nearly impossible to monitor and analyze data backup metrics manually—automating the system can help reduce the amount of storage capacity so that you only pay for what you really need.

Additionally, analytic tools will help keep data protected by reducing the risks of backup failures, and minimizing the oversight needed from your internal team, therefore freeing up IT staff for other projects, all the while improving data security.

Data Classification

Businesses, regardless of size, need to manage data effectively to prevent data loss and data theft. Classifying data is the best way to do this. It helps identify and provide quick insight into:

Data type
Confidential status
Value to organization

Data classification can be complex and time-consuming, but automatic tools can do this and provide data backup helping streamline the backup process, especially when risk management, getting compliant, and data security is a focus.

Automatic Tools for Data Backup

Using automatic tools to backup your data will protect, sort, and analyze routine data backups. Using these kinds of tools can help better predict storage requirements, anomalies in the system, and risks. These tools will also monitor files during backup and send alerts if the backup fails for critical files. Additionally, custom reports can provide the specific information essential for your business. Even though these tools offer a significant level of automation, keep in mind that a piece will still require personal attention and involvement to adequately monitor the backup environment.

Using An MSP for Data Backups

As a small- or medium-sized business owner, it can be challenging to manage network backups that help secure data and the business. Partnering with an MSP can provide many advantages, including:

Secure Automatic Backup and Quick Recovery. An MSP uses the latest analytics tools to operate and analyze the data for your business. It ranks critical files according to value in the overall business operations. Unnecessary data can be ignored. MSPs will provide immediate recovery services to minimize data loss and business operation downtime.

Save Money. Using an MSP for data backups will save money by minimizing the risk of a ransomware attack, in addition to reducing the need for additional hardware and IT staff. MSPs will have the necessary analytics around backup data to accurately predict the free space required for data backups.

Enhance Business Continuity and Productivity. MSPs can help lower stress and improve productivity in small- and medium-sized businesses by helping the IT team manage systems backup and allowing them to focus on meaningful projects that will help support the long-term goals.

Boost Skilled Professionals. Instead of having access to only one or two IT professionals with an in-house IT team, using an MSP gives small businesses access to many experts who can respond quickly to any issues.

Being able to access information and analytics around data backups can help businesses streamline their backup processes. Working with a Managed Services Provider means access to services and monitoring 24/7.

Visual Edge specializes in managed IT services and security, cloud computing, and print/copy solutions for businesses across the U.S., including remote offices. The company has more than 30 years of technology service with a national network of expert engineers. Request your no-obligation assessment today and get a free dark web analysis.