When backing up your files there are a few different procedures to understand.

High capacity removable storage media such as backup tapes present a data security risk if they are lost or stolen. Encrypting the data on these media formats can reduce this problem, but presents new complications. First, encryption is a CPU intensive process that can slow down backup speeds. Second, once data has been encrypted, it can notcannot be effectively compressed and the data compression function on many tape drives is ineffective. Third, the security of the encrypted backups is only as effective as the security of the key management policy.

Multiplexing is when there are many more computers to be backed up than there are destination storage devices. The ability to use a single storage device with several simultaneous backups can be useful.

Sometimes backup jobs are copied to a staging disk before being copied to tape. This process is sometimes referred to as D2D2T, an acronym for Disk to Disk to Tape. This can be useful if there is a problem matching the speed of the final destination device with the source device, as is frequently faced in network-based backup systems. It can also serve as a centralized location for applying other data manipulation techniques.

After the coding process, the next step is to figure out objectives, limitations, implementation and measurement. Objectives are the goal for the recovery, limitations are deciding which options will be chosen, implementation is tools and concepts, and measurement is monitoring key factors and maintaining historical data.

Backup windows are part of the limitations. A back up window is the period of time when backups are permitted to run on a system. This is typically the time when the system sees the least usage and the backup process will have the least amount of interference with normal operations. The backup window is usually planned with users’ convenience in mind. If a backup extends past the defined backup window, a decision needs to be made whether it is more beneficial to abort the backup or to lengthen the backup window.

All types of storage media have a limited capacity with a real cost. Matching the correct amount of storage capacity (over time) with backup needs is an important part of the design of a backup plan. Any backup plan has some labor requirement, but complicated plans have considerably higher labor requirements. The cost of commercial backup software can also be considerable.

Scheduling and authentication are a common part of implementing backups. Using an authentication mechanism is a good way to prevent the backup from being used for unauthorized activity.

Removable storage media are physical items and must only be handled by trusted individuals. Establishing a chain of trusted individuals is critical to defining the security of the data.
In larger configurations, reports are useful for monitoring media usage, device status, errors, vault coordination and other information about the backup process.

Activity and change logs are useful for monitoring backup system events. Many backup programs make use of checksums or hashes which validate that the data was accurately copied. These offer several advantages. First, they allow data integrity to be verified without reference to the original file. If the file as stored on the backup medium has the same checksum as the saved value, then it is probably correct. Second, some backup programs can use checksums to avoid making redundant copies of files, to improve backup speed.

We went over a lot in this, encryption, multiplexing, staging, objectives, limitations, implementation, and measurements. We suggest doing some more research and find out what process you feel comfortable with and what is comfortable for everyone.