It’s not just a little ironic that the often quoted Murphy’s Law was coined long before data storage changed from boxes in a warehouse to zeroes and ones on a magnetic disc. Anything that can go wrong will go wrong is a truism in the IT arena. As anyone who has experienced the loss of critical files on a hard drive, memory stick, or even a phone number scrawled on a napkin can tell you- there’s nothing like that feeling in the pit of your stomach when you know the information is well and truly gone.

As maddening as it can be to lose personal data, when it comes to your business it’s a mistake that could be catastrophic. As a result, data backup solutions are a multi-million dollar industry, and to be sure, there are many options to consider. From automated robotic tape rotation machines to software driven RAID disc arrays, there are solutions to fit any scenario. Unfortunately they also share a common weakness: unless your core business actually is data backup, managing your backup solution in house assumes responsibility for a complex process without the human resources it takes to do it correctly. That’s a complicated way of saying if you handle your own backups, chances are you’re going to run into Murphy’s Law, and it won’t be pretty.

Smart companies know it’s more cost effective and efficient to outsource needs that don’t fall under their primary skill sets. This is especially true when it comes to the Information Technology component of a business. In a lean economy, it makes no sense to invest time and money in equipment and training for things that don’t generate revenue. Outsourcing IT needs to a managed dedicated and virtual server host isn’t simply cost effective, it adds value to those budget lines by doing the job better than you would otherwise be able to. Outsourcing to an enterprise class provider like NaviSite increases those benefits exponentially.

It starts with NaviSite’s Always There™ support. It’s more than a slogan; it means live people, on site, 24/7/365. Consider the cost of around the clock IT staff, and the economies of scale gained from outsourcing become readily apparent. As it pertains to your data security, it means a backup solution that’s fully managed and able to meet even the most rigorous requirements. You’re able to choose what you want backed up, when you want it backed up, and how long you want it retained. File restorations are fast, easy, and hassle free, and pay as you go pricing is designed to fit every budget.

Leveraging managed services to protect your data should go further than websites, applications, databases or other key information. It’s important to remember the heart of most modern business communications: e-mail. A thorough backup solution needs to include e-mail, and the best, most flexible way to accomplish that is with a managed, hosted Exchange service. The benefits of a hosted mail service over a traditional POP3 e-mail account is evident in the widespread popularity of services like those offered by Google and Yahoo, but those services don’t come with the robust features and service level guarantees that businesses require. Managed hosted Exchange from NaviSite isn’t just backed by a tough SLA, it’s delivered on world class hardware and network infrastructure, and easily integrated with a larger data backup strategy.

For most businesses, providing reliable data backup is a losing proposition, consuming a disproportionate amount of resources and, in true Murphy’s Law fashion, breaking down at the most inopportune times. Done correctly, backups should be a transparent, set it and forget it procedure that just works. The answer is outsourcing that backup solution and other related critical services to an enterprise class provider like NaviSite.

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Tags: hosted exchange, managed backup solution, Managed Dedicated Hosting, managed exchange hosting