May 2010 Newsletter
HARP Standalone Focus: Data Backup Tapes
Accidents happen and, in this high-tech world we live in, they can mean the loss of large amounts of work and dollars. Computers are machines; they can break like any other machine. It is important to have safe and secure physical backups to insure against any tragedy that may befall a system. The HARP system has a built-in backup method integrated into the nightly process to help facilitate the creation of physical backups. Each night, before account processing, the system creates a copy of the database and saves it to the hard disk as a single compressed (.tar) file. The name of this file is the first two letters of the file creation day and the account code (thus, the backup file that Tuesday’s daily processing creates in the OK database has the filename TUOK.tar). A similar process happens during Monthend processing too, though the filename begins with ME. After processing has completed for the day, a separate job runs and places that .tar file onto a backup tape.
Just because the data is stored to a tape, it doesn’t necessarily mean that the data is completely safe. Tapes are physical devices; they are also vulnerable to defects and wear. It is important to have a tape rotation plan. This plan should specify the use of a different tape for backup only once every week or two. When a system backup policy does not include multiple tapes, there is the risk that if a tape doesn’t store the backup—because the tape drive malfunctions, the tape is faulty, or a power outage—up to a month’s worth of work and data can be lost in the event of a future system failure or loss of data. With a tape rotation plan, there is always a recent backup, even if something prevents the system from creating a backup tape.
The Monthend backup is a system’s biggest hedge against disaster. It is good policy to make two copies of the Monthend backup tape. It is important to keep these two tapes in a fireproof, waterproof safe, with one at an offsite location. This ensures that, in the event of a devastating natural disaster or fire, there is a secure copy of the data to help get business back to normal in a reasonable amount of time. When transporting this second tape to an offsite location, there is one important thing to remember: Never leave a tape in a vehicle. Not only could the tape melt in a hot vehicle, but it is extremely vulnerable to theft. A stolen tape full of sensitive patient data is a goldmine for identity thieves, which can lead to significant legal trouble.
Safeguard your data integrity. A few extra dollars now for tapes can lead to massive savings of time and money in the case of system failure or data loss. It always pays to be safe.