Re: back-up

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Date: 19 Mar 2005 20:31:41 -0800

windandwaves wrote:
>
> I have a PHP, MySql website. I was wondering what you would
> recommend as a back-up system for the data (and if pos) also
> the pages.

Let's do away with pages first. Pages you have on the production
server should be considered expendable copies. The original code
should be stored away (on your home/office computer and perhaps
on a CD-ROM). This way, in the event of catastrofic loss, you
can restore your application quickly and painlessly.

Now, data. The simple answer is, it depends. Ideally, you want
replication -- the entire server is mirrored on a separate physical
machine, usually located elsewhere. This, however, is not feasible
to expect, unless you are running a really expensive setup. Most
hosting providers don't even allow you remote access to their
database servers.

> I can think of several ways to do this (e.g. just download it
> everyday), but I was wondering if anyone had any "best practice"
> kind of concepts.

OK, for starters, you should ask yourself these questions:

1. How much data can I afford to lose?

   The less data you can afford to lose, the more often you should
   back up. By deciding to back up daily, you essentially decide
   that you can live with a loss of day's worth of data. The
   ultimate form of data loss aversion would be replication,
   which is essentially continuous backup.

2. If I do lose that much data, will I be able to live without
   it or will I have to restore it somehow, even if it means
   reentering it manually?

   The more serious the consequences of data loss, the more money
   and effort you should be willing to spend on fault protection.

Sorry to be vague, but withount knowing how important and expensive
data is it's difficult to recommend ways of protecting it...

Cheers,
NC

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