Data backup is necessary for all businesses, even law firms. Traditional tape backups are not reliable means of fulfilling compliance levels. Tightening of legal requirements and unmanageable mounting of data volumes make it necessary to employ cloud technology.
For more than ten years, cloud backup has become the most established application that is employed in majority of business landscapes, because of its efficiency, reliability, and automation capabilities.
Cloud backup sector for law firms is literally saturated, and is providing lawyers and advocates an extensive range of services. Therefore IT support law firms comparison needs to be conducted for making an informed decision of selecting a data backup service provider.
Factors to consider while selecting law firm backup service provider
Performance and flexibility
- A cloud backup service enables the law firm to trim down its backup time, by minimizing total data volume transferred for storing daily.
- Due to advanced technology in data compression & reduplication, file scanning and competition has made service providers to provide you much faster backups as well as rapid restoration in comparison to traditional method like tape.
- The statistics about the effectiveness of backup data reduction differs from one provider to another, so ask for their concept proof, focus on server/s, which are probably most challenging aspect.
- Support to all the platforms and applications enable versatility allowing your practice to develop and develop in near future.
- Your law practice may be large and need high speed restoration of critical data. Select a data backup service, which can be deployed in hybrid configuration.
Security and compliance
- Reputable backup service providers assure to encrypt data prior leaving your infrastructure, while in transit as well as on their platform.
- Customers are provided complete control of the encryption key, which is not accessible to providers, as well.
- Make sure that the provider is ISO certified, which indicates that they comply to procedures, quality control, and security seriously.
- Location of the potential providers data centre is vital, because it will help to attain your data backup drive in case you lose connectivity or need large data restored, at short notice.
Pricing
- This aspect is evaluated well, because service costs need to balance the service levels.
- Basically, cloud backup billing is based on data amount being stored at data centre post reduplication & compression
- Even find out if the provider includes fees for download, setup fees, upload, couriered drive restores and general maintenance
Service levels availability
- Service levels availability will depend on providers’ initial investment in their data centre and connectivity
- Many providers give credits for downtime in their SLA (Service level agreement)
- Ask for references to find out the platforms reliability
Consider exit strategy
It’s no use to continue the services even though it does not meet your needs. Many businesses are forced by incumbent provider to transit to competitor’s service. Therefore, before you sign an agreement, it is worth asking, if they allow switching to an alternate service platform easily.
Customer support
The provider’s sales point has to be customer support, as well. This allows you to have peace of mind about the smooth administration of your law firm. Find a provider that gives importance to your data, and even treat the issues as if they were their own.