💾 Continuity, backup and emergency recovery (DR)
Six topics on how an organisation experiences interference - from backup to full business continuity - by international practice (ISO 22301, ISO/IEC 27031, NIST SP 800-34). Figures and deadlines are illustrative, for training.
Basic concepts and scope
Backup - IT recovery - business continuity
Backup answers to "whether data is" - DR - "or systems return," BCP - "or business continues to work." Copies without recovery plan and plan without verified copies both fall into a real disorder.
Application
Common Language of Management and IT: When it comes to data, when about systems and when about the whole business. Do not confuse layers - each one has its own responsibility and budget.
Reference
ISO 22301:2019 (BCMS) · ISO/IEC 27031:2011 (IRBC) · NIST SP 800-34 Rev.1 · ISO/IEC 27002:2022 (8.13, 8.14, 5.29, 5.30).
Safety Note
The most common mistake - 'we have backups, so we are protected'. A copy without a regular renewal test is an assumption, not a guarantee.
Recovery objectives and business impact analysis
RPO ← incident → RTO, and where they are determined by BIA
RTO and RFMO are not IT choices, but business decisions from BIA. Lower RTO/RPO costs more - therefore, targets are determined by the decline of the process, not by everyone alike.
Application
RFMOs determine how often copies should be made; RTO determines how fast recovery should be. Both together choose DR strategy and its cost.
Reference
ISO 22301:2019 (8.2.2 business impact analysis) · NIST SP 800-34 Rev. 1 · ISO/IEC 27031 (in the context of RTO/RPO IT).
Safety Note
"Nule" RTO and RFMO are theoretically attractive, but rarely economical. Set fair goals and test them - promised, but unachieved RTO is more dangerous than honest.
Copies strategy and sustainability
regulation 3-2-1-1-0, copy types and non-variability
3-2-1 is a minimum; an additional fixed and offline copy (1) and verified renewal (0) is a modern response to the spying virus that targets directly on backup copies.
Application
Practical checklist copy for architecture: how many copies, to whom, where, how isolated and or checked. The choice of types balances the copying window against the speed of renewal.
Reference
ISO/IEC 27002:2022 8.13 · NIST SP 800-34 Rev. 1 · CISA #StopRansomware (constant, offline copies) · US-CERT 3-2-1 principle.
Safety Note
If backup copies are reachable from the same network with the same rights, the ejector viruses shall also destroy them. At least one copy shall be isolated and non-replaceable.
Emergency recovery strategies
Spectrum - less RTO/RPO, higher costs
There is no one-size-fits-all strategy - it is active for a critical payment process, it is enough for the archive to copy-and-renew. Often within one organization there are several.
Application
Helps to choose recovery architecture after budget and criticalness - from cheap copy-and-renew approaches to full duplication, each process according to BIA.
Reference
NIST SP 800-34 Rev.1 (cold / warm / hot site • ISO/IEC 27031 · Cloud DR models (Pilot Light, Warm Standby, Active-Active).
Safety Note
The hot reserve and active-active replicate the attack or damage immediately. Synchronous replication is not a back-up copy - a separate, time-shifted copy is also required.
Life Cycle of Continuity Management
ISO 22301 BCMS - and how it is checked
The cycle is continuous: each change in infrastructure, personal or processes can aging the plan. Regular inspections are the only way to know that RTO/RPO is realistic.
Application
Structure the continuity work over a manageable cycle that can be audited and certified (ISO 22301). The test ladder allows you to start cheap (table exercise) and grow to a real failover.
Reference
ISO 22301:2019 (BBCMS requirements) · ISO 22313:2020 (Guidelines) · NIST SP 800-34 · NIST SP 800-84 (testing and exercises).
Safety Note
A plan in a document stored only on an encrypted network may not be available during an incident. Critical procedures and contacts shall also be kept offline.
Standards, frameworks and compliance
ISO 22301 to NIS2 and DORA
Standards compatible, not competitive: ISO 22301 gives management systems, NIST SP 800-34 technical methodologies, ISO 27002 specific control, NIS2 and DORA legal obligations.
Application
Map to search for requirements and methodology: for management of ISO 22301, for technical implementation of NIST SP 800-34, for controls of ISO 27002, for compliance with NIS2 and DORA.
Reference
ISO 22301:2019 · ISO 22313:2020 · ISO/IEC 27031:2011 · NIST SP 800-34/800-84 · ISO/IEC 27002:2022 · NIS2 · DORA · binding national and international regulations.
Safety Note
Article 21 (2) (c) of the NIS2 makes continuity and reserve management a legal obligation for essential and important entities, not only good practice.
Abbreviations
All abbreviations used in the guide (original and meaning).
- BCP
- Business Continuity Plan - business continuity plan.
- BCMS
- Business Continuity Management System - Continuity Management System (ISO 22301).
- DR / DRP
- Disaster Recovery (Plan) - emergency recovery and its plan (IT systems).
- BIA
- Business Impact Analysis - Business Impact Analysis.
- RTO
- Recovery Time Objective - the permissible restoration time.
- RPO
- Recovery Point Objective - permissible amount of data loss during time.
- MTPD / MAO
- Maximum Tolerable Period of Disruption / Maximum Acceptable Outage - maximum permissible interference window.
- WRT
- Work Recovery Time - time to restore data and work after starting systems.
- MBCO
- Minimum Business Continuity Objective - minimum acceptable service level during the event.
- 3-2-1
- 3 copies, 2 media types, 1 out of the space (extended: +1 invariable, +0 error).
- GFS
- Grandfather-Father-Son - copy rotation (month/week/day).
- PITR
- Point-In-Time Recovery - renewal at any point through transaction logs.
- WORM
- Write Once Read Many - one-time writing, multiple-reading (invariable copy).
- air gap
- physically or logically isolated copy without network connection.
- cold/warm/hot site
- cold, warm and hot spare space - increasing readiness and costs (NIST).
- Pilot Light
- DR strategy - critical core ready, the rest measured as needed.
- Warm Standby
- DR strategy - reduced but working system copy ready.
- Active-Active
- DR Strategy - full duplication where both parties serve the work (RTO/RPO close to zero).
- COOP
- Continuity of Operations Plan (NIST).
- ISCP
- Information System Contingency Plan - Information System Emergency Plan (NIST).
- IRBC
- ICT readiness for business continuity (ISO/IEC 27031).
- PDCA
- Plan-Do-Check-Act - continuous improvement cycle.
- CSF
- Cybersecurity Framework - NIST cybersecurity framework (Recover function).
- NIS2
- Network and Information Security Directive 2.
- DORA
- Digital Operational Resilience Act - EU Financial Sector Resilience Regulation.
- GDPR
- General Data Protection Regulation - General Data Protection Regulation (32th p. - availability).
- saistošie normatīvie akti
- Cabinet Regulations No. 397 (Implementation of CIS2 in Latvia).
- ISO 22301
- international business continuity management standard.
- NIST SP
- NIST Special Publication.