The importance of safe data storage for your small business
Small businesses should never underestimate the need for good data storage to safely backup vital information and to distribute data quickly when required. Thankfully there is a huge amount of inexpensive storage options available whether you’re a start-up, or in the market to expand your current storage solutions.
If you’re concerned about the safety of your company information or simply need additional safe data storage for your growing business then assess your needs and take a look at the latest storage options available.
A vital business requirement
There’s a number of reasons why data storage is a vital part of any business, and one of the biggest factors is keeping company information secure. Viruses can easily wipe out data and it’s imperative that back-up solutions are in place in order to quickly retrieve wiped files. Fires or floods can also lead to data loss, which is why disaster recovery solutions can help a business to access their information as quickly as possible. If you have a sound back-up strategy in place then you’ll have peace of mind whether you’re storing data on external hard-drives or using some form of cloud storage system.
The need for more safe data storage
As your business grows so does your need for more sophisticated storage facilities, especially if you have employees who require access to large amounts of information in the office and off-site. For certain businesses there may also be legal compliance requirements that mean certain historic information must be stored as part of data retention policies. There’s also the simple scenario of upgraded software in your business making higher demands on your hard-drives over the long-term. All of these factors plus the safety of your information, should be enough to make business owners aware of the importance of this tech requirement.
Assessing your storage needs
There really is no ‘one size fits all’ when it comes to business data storage, and some assessments should be taken before deciding on the right solutions to meet your needs. An assessment should include old and duplicated information, as well as non-business related data, and how long certain data has to be retained. Other factors will include how quickly a business needs access to data in the case of disaster, and the ability to share information easily with off-site employees. One more point may be the need to free up more office space via off-site servers and cloud storage solutions.
Your storage options
The good news for small businesses is that there is a wide range of data storage options available to suit every size of business. This can include inexpensive smaller devices such as flash memory thumb drives for mobile use, external hard-drives for those who need a little additional storage or move it up to online storage, which is excellent for backing up and sharing. There’s also of course the popular cloud storage but take care to ensure this does meet your needs in terms of accessibility and secure back-up performance. Third party storage such as backing up from your own network to a remote data centre server is another safe and reliable option, which can be good for large companies.
Upgrading your data storage isn’t a move to be taken lightly. Take a look though a data storage buying guide, like the one from Tesco, and ensure that the solution you choose has the ability to meet your present and long-term needs.
