Special to the Legal, PLW
As our dependency on technology continues to heighten, law firms - and any business for that fact should not overlook the importance of protecting their data from corruption, deletion, and hardware failure. Neglecting proper backup could result in lost data, which in turn would mean irrecoverable damage of both time and money for a firm.
For most small to mid-sized law firms, there is an assumption that reliable backup options are either very expensive or to difficult for the average user to implement. While this was a somewhat valid thought at one time, recently developed software programs and cost-effective hardware options now bring this once out-of-reach option to the small firm.
When it comes to backing up your data, there are several components to the process, including: the software used to create the backup copy of files or the entire computer; the hardware that will store your information; and a business decision as to what should be backed up and should not -not necessarily in this order.
FULL-SYSTEM OR FILE-ONLY
The business decision of what should be backed up can be separated into two common practices: full-system backup and file only backup. A full-system backup is a complete backup of the entire computer system exactly the way it is when the backup is performed. As long as the computer hardware itself doesn't change, this option provides the quickest recovery time from a crashed system to a fully functional up-to-date system.
The second practice followed is file-only backup, which only backs up important files that cannot be restored any other way. Most of the computer systems purchased today are packaged with restoration software that will restore a computer and all original applications with the insertion of a CD and a click of the mouse. What the restoration software cannot recover is the important company files that have been lost, which is exactly what file-only backup protects.
Be aware that both methods, full-system and file-only backup, have their advantages and disadvantages. While a full-system backup will have your computer up and running to its last saved state in a very short time period, the process requires more expensive hardware and a manual process to create the backup. The file-only method uses less expensive hardware and can be configured to run automatically but because this option only backs up important company files, your workstation will need re be rebuilt manually using restoration software.
WHAT TO USE?
Once the decision has been made between full-system and file-only backup, you will need to determine what software and hardware should be used. Backup hardware ranges from inexpensive external USB hard drives to network-ready multiple tape devices. The main factors to consider when deciding between these devices are capacity, initial cost and the re-occurring technical cost, such as additional removable media, possible network devices and IT personnel to manage and maintain.
Choosing what backup software to use is an equally important and difficult decision. While most backup hardware devices include a demo or restricted copy of a full software program, these programs might not always perform the backup task the way that is best for your firm. This is the time when you should examine multiple software backup products to determine which one best meets your firm's needs.
Outlined below is a backup system that is recommended for a majority of law firms with fewer then five computer systems and possibly a central server for file storage. This system will be a hybrid of both the full-system and file-only backup solutions, which will provide adequate protection.
EXAMPLE
You work at ABC Law Firm, a small practice with a total of four attorneys, each with their own Windows XP computer with a 60GB hard drive, and another Windows XP computer acting as the file server. The file server holds approximately 10GB of files and usually grows on average 2GB a year. Each of the attorney's computers has access to a shared directory on the file server, which is where they store all firm-related documentation. The backup hardware consists of a 350GB external USB hard drive that is large enough for full-system backups of each workstation and the file server, plus enough room for the file-only backups for the minimum of the next five years at the current rate of growth.
The first step is to connect the USB hard drive to the file server. Once connected, create the following two directories: <drive>:\documents and <drive>:\images. The documents directory is for the file-only backups and the images directory is for the full-system backup.
After creating the directories, you must share the drive on each workstation like the original shared directory on the file server. First you must setup the file-only backup. To do this, purchase and download a copy of Super Flexible File Synchronizer (SFFS) at www.superflexible.com, the software program that performs the file-only process. After the program has downloaded, double-click on it to begin the installation. During the installation process, select to install all of the components, including the ExtremeSync service.
Once the installation is completed, start the software and follow the setup wizard that appears. Configure it to copy all of your firm's files and folders from the file server to the backup USB hard drive's documents directory on a nightly basis. In addition to the basic settings, advanced options such as the ability to keep multiple copies and send email alerts when a backup doesn't work correctly, can be configured.
Certain software applications such as Time Slips, Quick and Easy and Amicus have their own set of application files that should be backed up as well. Because most law firms have these files stored on their file server as well, backup is just as easy as adding another profile. Open SFFS again and click the "Create a new profile" button, which will start the setup wizard again. Follow the same steps as outlined above - although now select the application's directory to backup. This can be done for each and every different application installed. As long as your profile is configured to run nightly during the setup wizard, SFFS will now backup your data nightly at the time you specify. Simply leave the file server on during the night and make sure that the USB drive is properly connected.
The full-computer backup process is identical for each computer and requires a software product by Symantec called Ghost, www.symantec.com. Ghost is a software application that creates a complete identical image of a computer, allowing quick restoration from a USB hard drive. Since ABC's computer system doesn't change often and the practice's files are being backed up nightly, it's only necessary to perform this on an as-needed basis such as after the installation of a new software productivity suite. After installing, start the Ghost program and run through the initial configuration wizard. The wizard will configure your computer properly in order for Ghost to work and will then walk you through creating the first image of your computer. The only item that will need to be changed is the destination folder for your newly created image. This will be the shared image directory on the USB hard drive.
While the backup method provided in this article should serve to be helpful, it is very generic and may not meet all the needs related to the data stored within your practice. It is recommended that you examine this method and alter it to meet your firm's individual needs. With the proper backup system in place, you will have the assurance that your data is safe free of corruption and deletion, which could equate to tremendous savings in time and money.
JOSH COOK is the managing director for AEC IT Solutions, a sub-division of American Executive Centers, an executive office suite leasing company. He is certified in industry standards such as Microsoft and Cisco and has over 10 years of experience in the IT industry.