“Safe and Reliable” are two words frequently used when articulating the features and benefits of computer back-up systems. But just how safe is “Safe” and just how reliable is “Reliable”?

After installing a reasonably expensive automated back-up and recovery system on our network, we followed the installation instruction guide and did a complete back-up followed by a complete system restore.

The successful completion provided a sense of confidence that, should disaster strike, we were only minutes away from initiating a restore of the data and being back in business.

For years we were under the delusion that our automated back-up and recovery system was functioning correctly. After all, there were no device errors reported through the sys-admin tools. That, coupled with our continuous cycling and replacing of the backup tapes, strengthened our belief that our “Safe and Reliable” system would be there at a moment’s notice. NOT SO!

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