Skip to main content
Seintec

Data protection strategy

How to design a business backup plan

A guide to deciding what to copy, how often, for how long and how to verify recovery before selecting a backup platform.

Design the backup plan936 940 176

The starting point

This page does not describe a subscription or a backup tool: it structures the decisions that come first. It starts with an inventory and the impact of losing each system, then turns business needs into frequency, retention, destinations and testing. The backup service page then explains how Seintec executes and monitors that policy.

What we usually find

  • Copies on a disk permanently attached to the same server.
  • Nobody reviews the error notices from overnight jobs.
  • Retention too short to catch a late deletion or encryption.
  • Microsoft 365 data assumed to be backed up when it is not.

Which companies it fits

Companies that need to review an existing strategy, compare alternatives or define a recovery policy before procuring a managed service.

We inventory data and systems, rank their criticality and document the policy the backup service must meet.

Design the backup plan

What the solution includes

  • Policy design

    What is copied, how often, how long it is kept and where each copy lives.

  • Off-site copy

    Encrypted replication in our own datacenter, separate from production infrastructure.

  • Daily oversight

    Review of results and action on errors, not just automated alerts.

  • Restore testing

    Documented periodic restores to confirm timings and integrity.

How it is deployed

  1. 1Inventory of data, applications and owners.
  2. 2Definition of retention and recovery objectives.
  3. 3Deployment of the appropriate agent or copy method.
  4. 4First full copy and validation.
  5. 5Operation with daily review and periodic reports.

Real-world scenarios

An accidental deletion noticed two weeks later

Someone removes a shared folder and nobody notices until month-end. If retention only covers seven days, the data is gone. That is why retention is defined by type of information: working documents, databases and mailboxes do not need the same history depth or the same frequency.

A partial restore during working hours

Not every recovery is a disaster. The most frequent request is restoring a single file, a mailbox or one database table without touching anything else. The system has to allow that granularity and the procedure has to be documented, so such a request is resolved the same day rather than whenever a window appears.

Scope of the backup service

The service covers defining the scope, installing and configuring agents, scheduling jobs, the agreed retention, encryption, periodic review of reports, handling failures and documented restore tests. Every restore request is handled as a logged incident. Systems the company chooses not to include fall outside scope and are listed explicitly in the proposal, so the exclusion is a conscious decision rather than a discovery made in the middle of a recovery.

What is at stake if it is left unaddressed

  • Backups reachable from the attacked network

    If the backup sits on a mapped network drive, ransomware encryption reaches it just as it reaches the original data.

  • Microsoft 365 without its own backup

    The platform protects against service failure, not against deletion, encryption or an offboarded account. Backing up mail and files remains the company's responsibility.

  • Reports nobody reviews

    Failure alerts that go unread are equivalent to having no backup at all. Regular review is part of the managed service.

Services involved

Related sectors

See all solutions

Frequently asked questions

Where are the copies stored?
On Seintec infrastructure, in our own datacenter in Barcelona province, unless the project defines another agreed destination.
Does Microsoft 365 need separate backup?
Yes. Microsoft operates the service, but responsibility for retention and recovery of the data remains with the customer.
How long does a restore take?
It depends on volume, data type and destination. It is estimated during design and verified during testing.
Are the copies encrypted?
Yes, both in transit and at rest on the platforms we manage.
What should be backed up besides files?
Databases behind the management applications, server and network device configurations, Microsoft 365 mailboxes and files where used, and the documentation needed to rebuild the environment. An initial inventory avoids the most common problem: discovering mid-restore that a system was never in scope.
Where are the backups stored?
On Seintec infrastructure, in our own datacentre in Osona, encrypted and with the agreed retention. Where data volume or recovery time justify it, a fast local copy is combined with the off-site copy, so routine restores are immediate and a copy still exists away from the premises.
How do we know the backup actually works?
Through reviewed reports and documented restore tests, not just the result of the overnight job. A backup that finishes without error only tells you the process completed, not that the content is usable. Verification means restoring and opening the data, which is exactly what will be needed on the day.
How long are backups kept?
Retention is agreed by data type rather than set as a single figure. A common scheme combines several days of daily copies, a few weeks of weekly copies and a monthly point kept for longer. Where tax or document retention obligations apply, it is aligned with what the company's adviser specifies.
How quickly can data be restored?
It depends on the volume and on where the copy sits. A single file or mailbox is normally back within the working day. A full server takes longer and the realistic figure comes from the restore tests rather than from a brochure. That measured time is what feeds the continuity plan, and it is the reason a fast local copy is often combined with the off-site one.

Design the backup plan

We inventory data and systems, rank their criticality and document the policy the backup service must meet.

Design the backup plan