The Ultimate MSP Backup Checklist

Managed Service Providers (MSPs) have a huge responsibility to protect their customers' data from an ever-growing list of threats. Whether it's a ransomware attack, hardware failure, or accidental deletion, data loss can be catastrophic for businesses of all sizes. The stakes are especially high for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), which often lack the resources to recover from major disruptions. For MSPs, a comprehensive backup strategy isn't just a service - it's a lifeline for the customers they serve.

This guide is designed to provide MSPs with a detailed roadmap for building a robust backup strategy. From selecting the right software to ongoing backup management, this checklist will ensure you're fully equipped to protect your customers' data and help their businesses thrive, no matter what challenges arise.

The Data Backup Crisis: Why MSPs Need a Robust Plan

Today's digital-first world is more vulnerable than ever. The growing threat of data breaches and ransomware is no joke, as cyberattacks have increased at an alarming rate in recent years. Ransomware has become particularly prevalent, with 73% of healthcare organizations reporting that their data was encrypted in 2023, the highest rate in three years.ⁱ

These incidents disrupt operations, damage reputations, and result in significant financial losses. And the cost of downtime and data loss can be catastrophic for organizations, impacting reputation, revenue, and customer confidence.

Technology isn't infallible, and neither are people. Accidental deletions, misconfigurations, and hardware failures are just as common causes of data loss as ransomware. And since most ransomware attacks also involve a human element, such as human error, misuse, phishing, and stolen credentials, MSPs play a critical role in mitigating these risks. It's their responsibility to implement a backup strategy that ensures data is protected, recoverable, and compliant.

Choosing the Right Backup Software

It all starts with choosing the right backup software, which is fundamental to any effective backup strategy. The first step in finding the best backup software is to understand the backup regulations and compliance requirements that directly impact your customers' data security obligations, as different industries have different compliance requirements. For example, healthcare organizations must comply with HIPAA standards, which specifically require that patient data be stored securely and that multiple backup copies be maintained in separate locations.

Every backup solution offers a variety of features and add-ons. However, the following features should be non-negotiable for any MSP, no matter who their target customer is.

Encryption: Encrypting your customers' backups keeps their data secure and accessible only to trusted parties - especially important for data stored offsite. Look for solutions that combine data-at-rest encryption, which ensures that no one can access the backups on the backup storage, and data-in-transit encryption, which provides additional protection for data in transit.

Disaster Recovery tools: Since recovering your customers' information is the whole point of backup software, make sure the backup solution has built-in features that facilitate quick recovery, regardless of the data loss scenario. The solution should include local and offsite options, as well as file, application, and system backups to provide redundancy between backup files.

Retention policies and versioning: A good backup solution should allow you to retain multiple versions of your files and systems for a customizable period of time to ensure that you can set up a variety of backup jobs that address, for example, business-critical files and your customers' unique business needs.

You also want to consider the best storage devices for your backups. Local or on-premises backups offer more control and faster recovery times. Offsite backups, especially when using cloud storage, provide scalability of storage size and allow your customers to recover their data even if the local copy is lost or damaged, such as by flood or fire. Ideally, you should consider a hybrid approach that combines these two options for optimal flexibility and redundancy.

No matter what features you need to address your customers' business needs and industry, you should avoid overly complicated or feature-heavy backup software that doesn't address your customers' specific needs. Simplicity and reliability should always come first.

Data Backup Best Practices

With the right software in place, defining and executing a backup strategy becomes the next priority. Here's what to keep in mind:

Know what to back up: Take an inventory of all critical IT systems, applications, and data, including remote locations, home workers, and future needs. Don't forget to identify dependencies between systems to prioritize what's most important.

How often to back up: For frequently changing data (i.e., financial records or customer information), daily backups with 30-day retention locally and 90-day retention in the cloud are ideal. For less frequently updated data, weekly backups with similar retention policies may be sufficient.

Where to back up: As mentioned above, a hybrid approach provides the most reliability when it comes to recovery scenarios. For both local and offsite storage, follow the 3-2-1 rule of backing up three copies of data to two different storage media, with one copy stored offsite. Storage media options include

And because backup is only as good as its ability to restore data, you need to make sure your backup system is working as intended. That's why it's important to regularly test recovery processes to ensure that all backup jobs are running successfully, storage media is still functional, and encryption keys and passwords are accessible for emergency restores.

Disaster Recovery Planning

A well-structured disaster recovery (DR) plan is your safety net in the event of a major incident. It gives you a guide to follow in the event of a worst-case scenario, such as a ransomware attack or any other cause of data loss. Rather than guessing how to recover data, what to do first, or how to contact potential vendors, a proper plan saves time and reduces stress.

Document the plan: Clearly outline all necessary steps to be followed during a crisis, including roles and responsibilities. Don't forget to run simulations of the plan to identify potential gaps and refine it as needed.

Prioritize data recovery: Part of the plan should be a mapping of the most critical data that needs to be recovered first to ensure minimal downtime for the most important systems, allowing your customers to continue doing business while you take care of the rest.

Implement failover procedures: Sometimes rapid recovery of mission-critical data is not possible. For these situations (and maybe just to have a “Plan C”), implement failover systems that keep your customers up and running in the event of a disaster.

Most importantly, include a communication plan that summarizes the situation and outlines the steps you are taking to ensure that stakeholders are informed and that regulatory requirements are met.

Beyond the Checklist: Ongoing Backup Management

Finding the best backup solution for your managed backup service does not end with the implementation of the solution. Ongoing monitoring and maintenance of the software and backup and recovery plan are key to long-term success.

Use monitoring tools to track your customers' backup status, success rates, and problems in real-time. Send yourself (and, if it's part of your service offering, also your customers) automated email alerts to notify you immediately of any problems. And ideally, utilize a monitoring tool that allows you to log in and see all scheduled and completed backups in one view.

Remember to update your backup solution regularly to ensure compatibility with the latest operating systems and security and compliance measures. This not only ensures that you have the latest features, but also that the software continues to work properly. Ideally, find a solution that automatically pushes updates to agents as they become available, so you never miss a beat.

Finally, building a culture of data security to educate your customers underscores your commitment to the importance of data backup. Talk to your customers (and your colleagues) about the importance of backup and why it's included in all of your service plans (by the way, if you don't already automatically include backup in your service offering, we highly recommend that you do).

You're Not Alone

As an MSP, protecting your customers' data is both a responsibility and an opportunity to demonstrate your expertise. Implementing a comprehensive backup strategy ensures that you can meet their needs and maintain their trust, even in the face of significant challenges.

At NovaBACKUP, we're committed to helping MSPs navigate the complexities of data protection. Whether you're just getting started or looking to enhance your existing approach, our team is here to help you every step of the way.

Schedule a call with one of our backup experts today to explore how we can help you build a robust and reliable managed backup solution for you and your customers.

Sources:
i The State of Ransomware in Healthcare 2023 – Sophos (Aug 2023)
ii Consoltech