You're a System Administrator and your business has just experienced a disaster. What's your next move?

1 Assess the damage

The first thing you need to do after a disaster is to assess the damage and the impact on your business. How severe is the disaster? How long will it last? How many systems, devices, and users are affected? What are the critical functions and data that need to be restored first? You need to gather as much information as possible, and communicate with your team, your management, and your clients about the situation and the expected recovery time.

2 Activate your backup plan

The next thing you need to do is to activate your backup plan. This is where your disaster recovery (DR) and business continuity (BC) strategies come into play. A DR plan is a set of procedures and tools that help you restore your IT systems and data after a disaster. A BC plan is a set of policies and processes that help you maintain your business operations and minimize the disruption to your customers and stakeholders. You should have both plans in place before a disaster happens, and test them regularly to ensure they work as expected.

4 Resume your operations

The fourth thing you need to do is to resume your operations and reconnect with your users and customers. You should notify them that your systems and services are back online, and apologize for any inconvenience caused by the disaster. You should also monitor your systems and networks for any signs of instability or vulnerability, and troubleshoot any problems that may arise. You should also document the lessons learned from the disaster, and update your DR and BC plans accordingly.

5 Review your security

The fifth thing you need to do is to review your security and prevent future disasters. If the disaster was caused by a cyberattack, you should investigate the source and the extent of the breach, and take measures to protect your systems and data from further attacks. You should also review your security policies and practices, and implement best practices such as encryption, authentication, firewall, antivirus, and patching. You should also educate your users and staff on how to avoid common security threats, such as phishing, malware, and ransomware.

6 Test your backup plan

The sixth thing you need to do is to test your backup plan and ensure it works as intended. You should simulate different scenarios and types of disasters, and measure how well your DR and BC plans perform. You should also evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of your backup methods and sources, and optimize them if needed. You should also review your backup frequency and retention, and adjust them according to your business needs and risks. You should also update your backup plan as your IT environment and requirements change.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?