Your Least Favorite Topic: Backups

Our new cloud backup solutions are here and make backup and recovery easy and worry-free!

Divio uses Git-based version management to handle all configuration and code and so, by default, all code is securely backed up and rolling back changes is as straight-forward as selecting a version and deploying with the Divio Desktop tools.

Also, since containers are built from repositories, there are no messy or long-forgotten configuration tweaks across multiple servers to remember and backup. This ensures a good general code of practice - all changes are centralised, logged and can be easily traced to commits and versions.

What is Cloud Backup?

Cloud backup is the process of storing copies of your essential files and data on remote servers that can be accessed via the internet. Unlike traditional storage solutions, such as external drives or on-premise servers, cloud backup offers enhanced security by storing your data offsite. This provides extra protection against data loss due to accidents, hardware failure, or even natural disasters. Additionally, cloud backups can be automated, meaning you don’t need to worry about manually managing them—everything is handled for you. For businesses, cloud backup in the cloud services ensures that crucial data is always accessible and recoverable, providing peace of mind.

Types of Cloud Backup Methods

There are two types of backups that can be used when storing data in the cloud. Each of these data backup methods comes with its own set of advantages depending on what your organization needs.

Backup-as-a-Service (BaaS)

Backup-as-a-Service (BaaS) is a fully managed backup solution where a third-party provider handles all aspects of your backups for you. From automatically backing up your data to providing quick recovery options when needed, BaaS takes the hassle out of data protection. This type of cloud-based solution is especially beneficial for businesses that don’t want the complexity of managing their own infrastructure and want reliable, hands-off backup and recovery methods.

Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS)

Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) integrates backup methodology into a broader cloud infrastructure. In this approach, backups become part of a larger cloud platform that may include application development, testing, and hosting. This gives businesses more control over how their backups are handled and ensures that data is saved and recovered according to their specific needs.

What’s the Difference of  Cloud Storage vs. Cloud Backup

While cloud storage and cloud backup may sound similar, they serve very different purposes. Here’s a quick breakdown:

• Cloud Storage:

  • Focused on file accessibility and sharing.

  • Great for collaboration and remote work.

  • Stores files in the cloud, making them easy to access from any device with an internet connection.

  • Does not provide the same level of data protection in the case of data loss or corruption.

• Cloud Backup:

  • Designed specifically to protect your data and ensure recovery.

  • Creates regular copies of your files and stores them in a secure, offsite location.

  • Essential for recovering files in case of accidental deletion, corruption, or system failure.

  • Provides peace of mind by offering a way to restore lost data.

In short, cloud storage is for making files easy to access from anywhere, while cloud backup is all about making sure your data is protected and recoverable.

4 Ways of Cloud Backup

There are four mai used in cloud services, each providing a unique way to save and protect your data:

1. Full Backup: This is the most comprehensive form of backup where all your data is saved each time. It’s thorough but can be time-consuming and requires more storage space.

2. Incremental Backup: An incremental backup only saves the changes made since the last backup. This makes the process faster and saves space, but restoring files may take longer as multiple backups need to be combined.

3. Differential Backup: This data backup method saves all changes made since the last full backup. It’s a balance between speed and completeness, requiring less time than a full backup but more than an incremental one.

4. Mirror Backup: This backup methodology creates an exact copy of your data. It’s fast and easy to maintain, but it doesn’t keep older versions of files, which means that if something is deleted from the source, it will be deleted from the backup too.

Benefits and Drawbacks of Cloud Backup?

Cloud backup provides many benefits, but there are also a few potential drawbacks to be aware of when choosing your backup in the cloud services.

Benefits of Cloud Backup?

• Automation: With cloud backup, you can set it and forget it. Backups are automated, reducing the need for manual processes.

• Scalability: Cloud backup can scale alongside your business, ensuring that as your data grows, your backup solution can handle it.

• Cost-Effectiveness: By moving backups to the cloud, companies can avoid the hefty upfront costs of physical infrastructure.

• Data Recovery: One of the most important aspects of cloud backup is its ability to recover lost or corrupted data quickly.

• Security: Many cloud backup providers offer robust security measures, such as encryption, to ensure your data is safe from breaches.

Drawbacks of Cloud Backup

Internet Dependency: Restoring data from a cloud backup requires a stable internet connection, and large file transfers can be time-consuming.

Cost Over Time: While cloud backup might seem affordable at first, long-term storage costs can add up, especially if you store large amounts of data.

Privacy Concerns: Businesses must ensure that their cloud backup service complies with their industry’s data privacy and security regulations.

Why Cloud Backup is Crucial for Databases and Media Files

When it comes to critical assets like databases and media files, cloud backup is essential. Databases, especially those containing customer or transactional data, need to be protected to maintain data integrity and avoid operational disruptions. For businesses running a SQL database, having regular, automated backup SQL database procedures ensures that any errors, corruption, or failures can be swiftly addressed by restoring to the most recent backup.

Media files also require specialized backup strategies since they tend to be larger and more difficult to manage. Cloud backup allows you to store and recover vast amounts of media data without worrying about physical storage limitations or data loss.

Backups Designed to Handle Databases and Media Files

The more complex and often nerve-racking part of backups is handling databases - how to rewind and restore data integrity in the event of a bug or code that leads to unexpected data changes? When was the last snapshot made and how long is the database down for during recovery and verification?

Media files can also be a challenge - especially if users are uploading material by themselves. Typically media files won't be stored in Git and so require a separate backup process. To compound things, media files referenced in a database could lose their reference index and leave a vast collection of orphaned files.

We wanted to simplify and streamline backups and make the process of backing up and recovery faster and easier. After extensive testing, we have just released our refreshed backups tools which we hope make backups even easier to manage!

New backup tools now available!

How Our Updated Backup Tools Work

Divio’s updated backup tools are designed to offer enhanced functionality and greater efficiency. Here’s how they work and the key features you’ll benefit from:

• Visual Backup Insights: The new tools provide visual cues, showing whether the backup is for media, databases, or both. This makes it easier to understand the type and relevance of each backup at a glance. Additionally, each backup is associated with the last commit hash, allowing you to trace a specific backup to a code deployment.

• Backup Scheduling Options: You can choose between scheduled (automated) and on-demand (manual) backups, with the same retention policies you’re familiar with. Scheduled backups run automatically according to your project settings, while on-demand backups allow for instant, user-triggered snapshots.

• Faster Backup Speeds: The new backup tools have dramatically improved performance. In our testing, on-demand backups are around 44% faster than before, reducing wait times when pushing changes or testing new deployments.

• Commit Tracking: Each backup includes the last commit hash, making it simple to track changes and ensure backups align with specific code deployments.

• Upcoming Backup Visibility: The tools also show you when the next scheduled backup will take place, giving you better control and planning over your data protection strategy.

If you’re looking for further cloud advice on how to manage backups and optimize cloud based infrastructure, these updated tools from Divio offer a streamlined solution to ensure your data remains secure and easily recoverable.

How To Restore a Backup With Divio

Restoring from a backup is easy - simply choose your preferred backup and target environment, and your environment will be restored momentarily. As with backups themselves, the restore process is fast and reverts your chosen environment while minimising the time your site is inaccessible. Once you have restored an environment, you can deploy update code through the Divio Desktop tools.

Downloading your backups gives you the ability to restore your local environment and store your backups in your preferred secure location. In order to minimise wait-time, you can prepare and schedule a download and choose your backup contents. Your download notification is mailed to your registered email with links to the requested backups.

You can try the new backup tools immediately including on-demand backups for free subscriptions and both scheduled and on-demand backups for economy plans and upwards!

Further Support

Need some guidance? We have updated our how-to guides to cover the new backup tools.

You can also find more detailed information on how our backups tools work in our essential knowledge series.