A Simple Backup Plan for a One- or Two-Person Business
If your laptop died this morning, what would you lose? For a one- or two-person business the honest answer is often everything, with no clear idea where to start. The good news is that a simple backup plan for a very small business is not complicated. It comes down to a handful of decisions, made once and checked now and then.
Step one: decide what actually matters
Before you think about tools, make a short list of the things your business could not function without. For most owners that includes:
- Customer and client records, and anything in your accounting or invoicing software.
- Documents, contracts, proposals and spreadsheets.
- Email, calendars and contacts.
- Photos, designs or project files, if they are part of your work.
- Website content and any settings that would be painful to rebuild.
Do not forget data that lives only in one place by accident, such as a folder on your desktop or files on a phone. If something is not in the plan, it is not protected.
Step two: keep copies in more than one place
A single copy is not a backup. A good rule of thumb is to keep your working files, plus a second copy on a different device or service, plus a third copy somewhere away from your office. That way a stolen laptop, a spilled coffee, a fire or a failed drive cannot take out everything at once.
A cloud backup service handles the off-site part without you having to carry a drive anywhere. A drive plugged into your computer all the time is better than nothing, but it can be damaged or encrypted by the same problem that hits your computer.
Step three: make one copy that cannot be changed
Ransomware (software that locks your files and demands payment) often goes after backups too. It can delete or scramble any copy it can reach. To guard against that, keep at least one copy that cannot be changed or deleted, even by you or by anyone who steals your password. Some backup services call this an immutable or protected copy. Ask any provider directly whether they offer it and how it works.
Step four: choose a schedule you will not skip
How often should backups run? Ask yourself how much work you could stand to redo. If losing a day of invoices and emails would hurt, back up at least daily. If you work on files constantly, hourly is better. The best schedule is automatic, because a manual routine only works until the week you get busy.
Step five: test a restore
This is the step most people skip, and it is the one that matters most. A backup you have never restored from is a hope, not a plan. Once every few months:
- Pick a file or folder at random.
- Restore it to a different location.
- Open it and confirm it is complete and current.
Also check the backup report or email for errors. A backup can fail quietly for weeks if nobody is looking.
Step six: make sure someone else knows how
If you are the only person who knows how the backup works, then the plan fails when you are unavailable, sick or locked out. Write a one-page note covering:
- What is backed up and where the copies live.
- How to log in to the backup service, and where that login is stored safely.
- The steps to restore a file and, if possible, a whole computer.
- Who to call for help.
Give a copy to your business partner, a trusted family member or your IT provider, and keep another where you can find it without your own computer.
Where to start with a simple backup plan
If this feels like a lot, begin with the smallest useful version. Write down what matters, turn on automatic cloud backup for it, and restore one file this week. Then add the protected copy and the written note when you have a spare hour. A simple plan you actually follow beats an elaborate one you never finish.
Zippie IT is a veteran-owned small business in Meridian, Idaho, and our backup and disaster recovery service includes scheduled cloud backups on hourly and daily schedules, plus a protected copy that ransomware cannot change or delete. Call (208) 810-1795 or email info@zippieit.com.
