Archives for August 2019

A Tiered Approach to Data Protection and DR

All data is valuable. But when disaster strikes and the clock is ticking, with business operations and customers hanging in the balance, is some data more important? That’s the thinking behind the newest approach to data protection and disaster recovery: prioritizing certain data in order to avoid downtime and minimize customer impact.

Taking Cues from Cybersecurity

Adopting a tiered approach to data protection mirrors cybersecurity’s prioritized defenses, says Tech Target. In cybersecurity, multiple tiers are used to from data against the many different internal and external threats that loom every day. The thinking behind tiered data protection is similar: protecting data from the different outages – such as severe weather, ransomware, hardware failure or simple human error – that can occur.

More Data Equals Longer Recovery Time

As data storage has grown more accessible and affordable, so has the volume of data being stored by many organizations. While this is good from an overall business perspective, it’s not ideal for disaster recovery. Customers are increasingly intolerant of downtime, and taking that valuable time to load data that isn’t essential to operations could mean a significant loss in sales and customer satisfaction.

Start Slowly and Keep it Simple

For best results, disaster recovery solutions should include multiple data tiers, each supported by multiple points and layers. But tiering doesn’t have to be all-or-nothing. Defining and understanding your organization’s priorities is the first step, and something is always better than nothing.

If and when an outage or disruption occurs, will your business be ready? Give Vaultas a call to get started on a disaster recovery solution. We offer custom IT services to meet your company’s unique needs.

Vaultas is a premier provider of IT solutions, providing data storage and backup, disaster recovery and business continuity services, hosting, colocation, cloud storage and more. Our data centers are located in Minneapolis/St. Paul, Alexandria and St. Cloud, MN, and Milwaukee, WI. Contact us to get started.

Industrial IoT: Applications, Benefits and Challenges

On our hybrid IT blog, we’ve written about the Internet of Things, or IoT. As a refresher, IoT refers to the smart devices that are becoming increasingly popular and prevalent in Minnesota and across the country. These devices include smart thermostats and security cameras, fitness trackers, speakers, even light bulbs. The IoT is growing, and so is the application of IoT in the energy, transportation and related sectors: the Industrial IoT.

The Industrial IoT, or IIoT, refers to devices, sensors, instrumentation and applications that connect machines and tools in industrial businesses. Common users of IIoT include power utilities, oil and gas companies, transportation and healthcare, among others.

The potential benefits of IIoT are many, but, as discussed by NetworkWorld, challenges and risks are inherent in IIoT adoption and use.

The Benefits of Industrial IoT

The effective use of IIoT systems can lead to significant gains in efficiency, productivity and accuracy. To-the-minute asset tracking, production line instrumentation, predictive maintenance and immediate breach alerts can save companies time and money. IIoT helps businesses act proactively, protecting them against costly downtime from a broken part or misstep in the production network.

The Challenges of Industrial IoT

If your FitBit suddenly stops tracking steps or your Echo stops responding, it could make your life more difficult. If a sensor in a large IIoT network malfunctions, it could disrupt power, production or care for hundreds or thousands of people. Put simply, the stakes are much higher when IIoT is adopted in industries that are essential to daily life. And, because IIoT networks are often large and intricate, one failure can have a ripple effect, and can be difficult to diagnose and fix.

Additional IIoT challenges include security (also a consideration for IoT), lack of standardization, cost, expertise and training, and integration with legacy technology. However, because the time and money savings can be so significant, IIoT adoption will likely continue at a fast pace in the months and years to come.

If you’d like to learn more about how IIoT can support your business, give Vaultas a call today. We offer custom IT services to meet your company’s unique needs.

Vaultas is a premier provider of IT solutions, providing data storage and backup, disaster recovery and business continuity services, hosting, colocation, cloud storage and more. Contact us to get started.