System backups and disaster recovery are critical components of any IT infrastructure. We asked industry experts to share their approaches to automating system backups and disaster recovery procedures. Here are the best practices they follow that you can implement to safeguard your systems against potential disasters.
- Compliance-Driven Backups with Validation Drills
- Test Restore Processes Regularly
- Implement 3-2-1 Backup Strategy
- Leverage Cloud-Based Disaster Recovery Services
- Build Redundancy Across Multiple Environments
- Automate Backups with Integrity Checks
- Integrate Recovery Checks into CI/CD Pipeline
- Define and Test Disaster Recovery Plan
- Conduct Automated Restore Drills Quarterly
- Containerize for Quick System Restoration
- Use Blockchain and AI for Decentralized Backups
- Apply 3-2-1 Rule for Essential Data
12 Best Practices and Approaches for System Backups and Disaster Recovery
Compliance-Driven Backups with Validation Drills
Working in the pharmaceutical industry, which is one of the most heavily regulated sectors, our approach to automating system backups and disaster recovery is deeply rooted in regulatory compliance and data integrity expectations. Any failure to protect critical data can have implications not just for operations, but also for patient safety and regulatory standing.
We follow a compliance-by-design methodology where GxP-critical systems are identified and categorized based on risk. From there, we implement automated backup solutions that include encrypted, time-stamped, and audit-trailed backups, with clearly defined retention periods aligned with regulatory guidance (e.g., 21 CFR Part 11, EU Annex 11).
One best practice I follow: we run periodic disaster recovery validation drills for our validated systems. These involve restoring full environments in sandbox mode, verifying data integrity, and documenting outcomes against predefined acceptance criteria. This ensures our backup processes are not only automated—they’re inspectable and reliable under real-world scenarios.
Pravin Ullagaddi
Systems Compliance Manager
Test Restore Processes Regularly
Even automating backups is a no-brainer—I’ve come to realize it’s only the beginning. Backups run like clockwork, stored offsite securely and versioned so we can roll back. However, the ultimate setup doesn’t mean anything if it hasn’t been tested. That’s why I routinely run restore tests. It’s not thrilling work, but it has saved our team more than once. On one occasion, a backup file appeared perfect—until we attempted to use it and discovered it had been corrupted. That kind of wake-up call stays with you. Always trust, but verify.
Jason Hishmeh
Author | CTO | Founder | Tech Investor, Get Startup Funding, Varyence
Implement 3-2-1 Backup Strategy
I’ve found that the most effective backup automation approach combines scheduled full and incremental backups with intelligent retention policies. While automation is crucial, the single best practice we recommend is implementing the 3-2-1 backup strategy: maintain at least three copies of critical data on two different storage types with one copy stored off-site or in the cloud, such as Amazon S3.
This approach provides redundancy against various failure scenarios, from hardware malfunctions to cyberattacks. We’ve observed that organizations who follow this practice consistently reduce their recovery time by up to 60% during critical incidents. The key is to verify your automated backups regularly through automated integrity checks—a step many organizations overlook until it’s too late.
Alan Chen
President & CEO, DataNumen, Inc.
Leverage Cloud-Based Disaster Recovery Services
We prioritize automating system backups and disaster recovery using a cloud-centric approach. One best practice is leveraging Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS). This allows us to quickly recover entire IT environments in the cloud, which is crucial for minimizing downtime during a disruption.
In a recent case, a global manufacturing client integrated DRaaS with their existing infrastructure on Microsoft Azure. This reduced their recovery time by 70% compared to manual backups. By automating these processes, our clients can focus on core business functions without worrying about data loss.
Another key strategy is conducting regular incident response drills. These simulated attacks help identify vulnerabilities and ensure that our clients’ systems, such as those using Backup as a Service (BaaS), are resilient against data breaches. This proactive stance not only saves time and costs but also improves overall data security readiness.
Ryan Carter
CEO/Founder, NetSharx
Build Redundancy Across Multiple Environments
A key part of our approach to automating backups and disaster recovery is building in redundancy at every critical layer. This means not just backing up data, but ensuring systems, applications, and infrastructure are mirrored across multiple environments—typically across separate geographic regions or cloud zones.
One best practice is maintaining real-time replication to a secondary environment that can be activated immediately in the event of a failure. This minimizes downtime and removes the reliance on a single point of recovery. Automation handles the syncing, health checks, and even the failover process, so recovery is fast, predictable, and doesn’t hinge on manual intervention.
Redundancy isn’t just about safety—it’s about resilience and continuity.
Ryan Drake
President, NetTech Consultants, Inc.
Automate Backups with Integrity Checks
Automating system backups is crucial for ensuring our clients’ WordPress sites remain secure and resilient. We use managed WordPress hosting platforms, such as Kinsta and WP Engine, which provide automatic daily backups as a standard feature. However, we also implement our own backup systems using plugins like UpdraftPlus for additional layers of security. This redundancy means we can directly access and restore from multiple backup points, minimizing downtime when issues arise.
A best practice I’ve always emphasized is not only having automated backups but also conducting regular audits on these systems. For instance, we schedule monthly checks on backup integrity and occasionally perform test restorations. This ensures that our data recovery process is smooth and that backups are actually viable. This approach has saved countless websites from data loss incidents and allowed us to maintain a less than 5% incidence rate of significant downtime across the over 2,500 sites under our management.
One example that stands out is a retail client’s site that fell victim to a malware attack. Thanks to our layered backup strategy, we managed to restore the site to a pre-attack state within hours, preserving both their business operation and customer trust. It demonstrated the effectiveness of a robust, multi-faceted backup strategy and the importance of preparedness in disaster recovery planning.
Kevin Gallagher
Owner, wpONcall
Integrate Recovery Checks into CI/CD Pipeline
Our approach to automating system backups and disaster recovery is built around cloud-native infrastructure and strict DevOps discipline. Within AWS and Google Cloud, we use services like AWS Backup and Google Cloud’s Snapshot and Storage lifecycle policies to automate recurring, versioned backups of critical systems, including databases, VMs, and file storage. These backups are encrypted, regionally redundant, and logged for auditability.
One best practice we follow is integrating backup and recovery checks directly into our CI/CD pipeline. This includes testing restoration processes in staging environments on a regular cadence to ensure integrity and readiness—not just assuming backups will work when needed. We also use Terraform to manage infrastructure as code, making recovery predictable and fast if redeployment is required.
By combining automated snapshots, cross-region replication, and infrastructure as code, we ensure we can recover quickly from failure scenarios with minimal disruption. Disaster recovery isn’t just about backup frequency—it’s about having a repeatable, tested process that can restore full functionality in hours, not days.
Ari Lew
CEO, Asymm
Define and Test Disaster Recovery Plan
An effective approach to automating system backups and disaster recovery starts with maintaining a well-defined disaster recovery plan. This plan must clearly specify recovery time objectives (RTO), recovery point objectives (RPO), system dependencies, and precise recovery steps. Roles and responsibilities should be explicitly assigned to ensure clarity during incident response.
The disaster recovery plan must not remain static. It should be tested and updated regularly, as both the system architecture and external risk landscape are subject to change. Tabletop exercises, failover simulations, and periodic audits help validate the plan’s relevance and effectiveness over time.
Backup processes should be fully automated, covering both full and incremental backups. Versioning is essential to prevent data corruption or accidental overwrites, and all critical data must be stored in offsite or geo-redundant locations to guard against regional failures.
Retention policies must reflect the sensitivity of the data, compliance requirements, and available storage capacity. These policies should strike a balance between long-term availability and cost efficiency.
Danil Temnikov
Software Engineering Team Lead,
Conduct Automated Restore Drills Quarterly
My approach is simple: treat backups as if they’re already part of the disaster, not just some “nice-to-have.” Automation is non-negotiable—if it’s manual, it’s vulnerable. We use scheduled, encrypted backups daily (or more, depending on the system), store them offsite in a separate cloud region, and test those backups regularly. Because an untested backup is just a false sense of security.
One best practice I swear by is “automated restore drills.” It’s not enough to back things up—you have to simulate the chaos. Every quarter, we spin up a fresh environment and restore from our latest backup as if everything just crashed. No warnings, no prep. It exposes blind spots quickly and keeps the team sharp. Backups are only as good as your ability to recover fast—so we treat recovery as part of the product, not just the safety net.
Daniel Haiem
CEO, App Makers LA
Containerize for Quick System Restoration
In our company, the main value lies in the source code of our products, which is stored on a separate server running Git, SVN, Trac, and GitLab simultaneously. We also have servers for building products. After spending an entire weekend transferring backups that were poorly saved to another server, we realized our system had no real “design.”
That’s when we transitioned to using Docker, which allowed us to clearly define where our data is located and ensured that we back it up weekly. For additional assurance, we conduct “drills” once a month, simulating server unavailability. Now, we know that in the event of an issue, we can virtually instantly restore our system on new servers in just about half an hour!
Artem Razin
CEO, Softanics
Use Blockchain and AI for Decentralized Backups
TIP: Always test your recovery process regularly, not just your backup creation.
Our automated backup strategy employs a decentralized architecture, distributing data across multiple blockchain networks for enhanced protection. This creates redundancy without single-point vulnerabilities that traditional centralized systems face.
Our systems use AI technology to constantly check for warning signs. The software scans for unusual patterns and automatically switches to backup systems at the first hint of trouble—fixing issues before they cause problems and without needing anyone to press buttons.
We store certain backups in a completely isolated state where they have no connection to any internet or network. These files are locked in a technical format that prevents any changes after creation, even by administrators. This dual protection shields business information from both digital attacks and human error.
Our disaster recovery procedures utilize automated incident response integration, with security playbooks that activate predetermined recovery sequences immediately upon threat detection. During recovery, geo-redundant failover systems dynamically select optimal restoration points based on real-time performance metrics and disaster impact assessment.
Our number one rule? Physically isolated backups that cannot be changed. We keep critical data copies completely disconnected from any network and make it technically impossible to alter. This practice has protected our systems during attacks that have taken down similar businesses for days.
Matt Bowman
Founder, Thrive Local
Apply 3-2-1 Rule for Essential Data
Working with complex systems, I know that automating system backups and disaster recovery plans is critical for minimizing outages and maintaining business operations. My method employs numerous layers of strategies, all revolving around periodic backups which I also automate using rsync, Bacula, or Acronis to make sure that essential information is routinely safeguarded.
In addition to routine backups, I take snapshots of information with tools like LVM or ZFS to capture the state of data at specific points in time so it can be restored quickly in the event of data corruption or deletion. Also, for important systems, like databases or virtual machines, I create replicas to ensure that information is captured and stored in real-time. As an additional layer of protection, I formulate backup and disaster recovery procedures for restoring systems, data, and applications after a catastrophic failure, including:
- Finding critical systems and data that require backup and replication.
- Setting recovery time objectives (RTOs) and recovery point objectives (RPOs).
- Choosing members of a disaster recovery team with specified duties and responsibilities.
- Regularly rehearsing aspects of disaster recovery and adjusting based on test results.
Out of the best practices I follow, the one that stands out is the 3-2-1 rule, which suggests having a minimum of three backups of essential information, saving copies on at least two formats like disk and tape, and placing one backup offsite, like in the cloud or a distant data center. Having these backups ensures that crucial data is safe from hardware malfunctions, software damage, and physical catastrophes.
Spencergarret Fernandez
SEO and Smo Specialist, Web Development, Founder & CEO, SEO Echelon
