Keep orders moving when systems stop

What a Norcross business actually needs to recover

Office files matter, but they're rarely the hardest part. For a distributor or small manufacturer, the systems that stop the dock are the inventory or ERP database, the shipping software and its label templates, the printer and scanner settings, and the handful of shared PCs that tie them together. A backup that only covers the file share leaves the business stuck even after the files are back.

We start by listing the systems that keep product moving and how they connect. Then we decide two numbers with you for each one:

• Recovery point: how much recent data you can afford to lose. For an order system taking orders all day, the answer may be minutes, not a full day.
• Recovery time: how long that system can be down before trucks are missed or a line stops.

Those answers decide how often we back up, where copies are kept and whether a standby copy should be ready in the cloud.

What we protect

• Servers and databases, including ERP, warehouse and accounting systems, using methods their vendors support.
• Microsoft 365: mailboxes, OneDrive, SharePoint and Teams, backed up separately from Microsoft.
• Floor and packing PCs: a standard image for each role, so a failed station can be swapped and running again quickly.
• Configuration: firewall, switch and Wi-Fi settings, label templates and printer setups, which are tedious to rebuild from memory.
• Cloud applications: we confirm what each vendor backs up and fill the gaps with exports or third-party backup where needed.

Copies attackers can't erase

Ransomware crews look for backups first. A drive plugged into the server, or a backup system that uses the same admin password as everything else, will likely be encrypted with the rest. We keep at least one copy that is immutable or offline and one copy offsite, follow a 3-2-1 approach, and lock backup administration behind separate accounts with MFA.

The risks we plan for in Norcross

• Ransomware and stolen passwords, still the most common reason a small business needs a full restore.
• Hardware failure in servers and storage, especially units in warm, dusty spaces near dock doors or in closets with poor ventilation.
• Building issues such as roof leaks, sprinkler discharges or a fire in a neighboring unit of a multi-tenant flex building.
• Power and storms: summer thunderstorms and the occasional ice storm bring outages and surges. Battery backups on servers and network gear, set to shut down cleanly, prevent a lot of corrupted databases.
• Human error: a deleted price list, an overwritten spreadsheet or a bad import into the order system.

Testing, not assuming

A person reviews backup results every business day, and failures are fixed rather than just logged. We restore files and whole systems as a test on a schedule and record how long each one took. That gives you a real recovery time, not a guess, and it shows where the plan needs work.

A written recovery plan

The plan names who to call, which systems come back first and how orders get out in the meantime. That might mean printing labels from a carrier's website on a spare laptop, taking orders by phone into a shared spreadsheet or moving the office team home for a few days. Your managers keep a printed copy, and we walk through it with them once a year.

Matching the plan to the budget

Not every site needs a standby server in the cloud. A ten-person office near downtown may be fine with a solid offsite backup and a tested restore. A distributor that ships hundreds of orders a day may need its order system back within hours. We explain the trade-offs in plain terms, show what each option costs and let you decide how much downtime you are willing to accept.

Questions about backup & disaster recovery