Today, I will speak only of some advice on how you can make a better server backup of your own dedicated server or VPS. There is talk of unmanaged server, where the server is put online without any assistance and with a backup policy to be implemented completely at home.

Backup, really needed?

If your server contains only the files of little importance, websites of which you have made changes in years and years, then the answer is no. If you have websites and important files, then you must immediately count the cost of the server that must be added with a backup solution. The budget may be commensurate with real needs, and also varies depending on the frequency with which we want to backup.

The first step, I repeat, is to become aware that without a back up, our service should not go online. In the case of data loss we will not give any chance to get back online in many cases and many have to remain offline for a long time.

What kind of backup?

Run up the data on the same server that provides the service does not make sense , and in fact it is only useful if that backup is then immediately exported elsewhere, on other media. The best choice is to back up your server on another machine or even better on a service dedicated solely to the backup, which in turn has an adequate technical data protection.

If our business is important, it is better to start now to think of the redundant backup across multiple media: an online backup service at a special (sending via FTP or rsync) or through the placement of data on external media such as DVD or our hard drives in the office.

Usually other dedicated servers are chosen to back up several machines online, virtual and physical properties: it is not entirely the best solution, at least not until it is combined with other solutions (media). Better then to think of a dedicated external backup service, to another provider or directly online through one of the many services worldwide that offer backup space. The advantage is that in fact these services in turn provide data security systems and reduce the risk of loss or damage to the integrity of the data.

How often to backup?

Daily, weekly, biweekly or monthly?

All these options have a different charge, as do a daily backup actually means keeping multiple copies of data. Usually a daily backup is very useful for database and dynamic web sites that are updated daily, but of no use if our data is not updated frequently. The weekly backup is usually the intermediate solution, the one chosen most often for web sites and servers that contain a good number of GB of data and must be backed up with a cost, however small.