This topic describes what to do in the event that you need to use backup copies if you lose information on your system.
Computers in general, and the IBM® eServer™ iSeries™ server in particular, are very reliable. You might run your system for months or even years without experiencing any problems that cause you to lose information on your system. However, as the frequency of computer problems has decreased, the potential impact of problems has increased. Businesses are more and more dependent on computers and the information that is stored in them. The information that is in your computer might not be available anywhere else.
Saving the information on your system is time-consuming and requires discipline. Why should you do it? Why should you spend time planning and evaluating it?
Because you might have a problem. You will need to use your backup copies of information. Every system needs to restore some or all of its information at some point in time.
The Backup and recovery timeline provides a high level overview of the events that occur during the backup and recovery process.
After you study the backup and recovery timeline, you are ready to start planning your strategy. Follow these steps:
- Know what to save and how often to save it.
- Find your save window.
- Choose availability options.
- Test your strategy.
You might also find the Plan disaster recovery useful as a planning resource.
This topic contains information about how to plan your strategy
and make the choices you need to make as you set your system up for backup,
recovery, and availability. For information about how to perform the tasks
that are related to these topics, see Backup and Recovery
and the Back up your server topic. The Availability roadmap
provides information about the common types of failure that can occur.