As discussed in Part 1, data backup and data archiving both entail creating a copy of an organization’s data for use in the future. Backup data is indispensable when there is a great loss of data because it could be used to restore information to its previous state very quickly, and business disruption will be minimized. Archiving data aids greatly in the reduction of backup costs and stress on storage systems. Part 2 will discuss the topics of Location, Searchability, and Speed.

Location

Stored on servers, backups are duplicates of presently active data. The creation of backups will not be affected or moved from their locations. Although archives are also copies of data, the process of archiving will transfer data from the organization’s main storage location to less costly and longer term storage areas.

Searchability

Having the capability of being able to perform a search and find a file easily is of great importance with data archiving. Performing regular archiving properly will eventually store a massive amount of data accumulated over an extended period of time. As a result, it will be very improbable that the exact locations of particular folders and files will remain known. However, it is crucial for organizations to be able to find them efficiently and rapidly. This capability is not just for regulatory compliance, but it is also for occurrences when it is requested for legal purposes.

Speed

Since the objectives of backups and archives differ, their features that are thought to be important will be different. For backups, the quality of speed is a crucial characteristic. Backups are performed frequently to be able to restore the most recent state, so they must be performed rapidly. It is of equal importance to also have the capabilities of swift recovery and restoration should there be a catastrophic loss of data to mitigate the effect on business operations.

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