Being a Colorado native the past few months have been very hard for me. Between the fires in Ft. Collins, Boulder and Colorado Springs, I’ve seen some of the natural beauty that my state has to offer be burned to the ground. Seeing friends and clients in each of these locations having their lives changed has been difficult to deal with. But, as most of us here in Colorado do, when faced with challenges, we deal with them with a smile on our face and a positive attitude.
How does this relate to IT you might ask, well, having clients be so close to the fires reminded me about the need for true disaster recovery. Many times, IT professionals and business leaders, plan for the normal DR situations (electrical issues, equipment failure, etc…) but not for the DR situations that come from Mother Nature. One of my clients, located in Colorado Springs, was forced to evacuate their office as the fire approached. Luckily, they were not affected and business went on as normal; however, having their on-site data nearly wiped because of something that was not planned for was an eye opener for them. We’ve gone on to discuss the possibilities of cloud backups, having data centers in other parts of the state or in different geographies all together. I would want to make sure that as IT individuals you think outside the “box” when it comes to a DR plan because you never know what Mother Nature might send your way.
Arash M Zadeh, PEI
