What to Look for in a Data Protection Solution

For Office 365

As organizations migrate from older versions of Microsoft Office to Office 365, it’s essential that they add data protection and backup capabilities.

The data protection functionality native to Office 365 is limited and cannot provide the certainty that important files and data won’t be lost. Organizations need full protection against either accidental or malicious deletion of files.

In addition, the use of Microsoft OneDrive, while it adds some protection, exacerbates the problem of data loss, since deletions and infected files with ransomware are replicated to the cloud.

This isn’t a knock against Office 365 or any of its components. It’s simply a recognition that, for organizations using Office 365, the platform will contain a large amount of critical business data and, therefore, a comprehensive data backup and protection solution is required.

Furthermore, there are specific capabilities that a best-in-class solution must deliver.

First, the solution must back up the data from all apps and services in Office 365, not just some of them.

Collaborative apps such as SharePoint, Teams, and Planner are increasing in use, but because their files aren’t “owned” by one user, the way more traditional Excel and Word files are, they may not be backed up or protected by some solutions.

Because these collaborative files have multiple users, they change constantly, making centralized and constant backup necessary. 

Why Auto-Discovery and Other Features Are Essential

Auto-discovery is another mandatory feature. IT cannot depend on employees to drive the backup and protection processes, and IT itself is unlikely to have the time or resources necessary to keep up with changed files that need to be backed up, especially when teams are using collaborative applications such as Planner, Teams and SharePoint.

Auto-discovery eliminates many account administration tasks or the need to implement backup policies in a repetitive manner.

Another issue that plagues compliance regimes, and which is not directly addressed by O365, is the ability to wipe lost or stolen devices quickly. Wiping such devices is a necessary part of cyber security. 

In addition, wiping data may prevent a compliance issue if personal or protected data is stored on the device.

Remember that Office 365 is a cloud solution, and the data protection/backup solution should also be a cloud service. A cloud solution simplifies many aspects of this. Eliminating the management of backup infrastructure is the most obvious.

The ability to scale on-demand in the cloud is very important since data growth can be substantial, particularly as increasing numbers of employees cycle away from using client-based versions of Office.

The Managed Services Function

Whether working as your IT team or supplementing the team you already have, a Managed Service Provider (MSP) can be of great assistance.

An MSP simplifies the flows and production within your company discovering any weak points and ensuring your staff is trained and the necessary policies and practices are followed for your data preservation, security, and handling.

As a #Top-Notch MSP, Sequentur stands ready to ensure your business can withstand not only attacks but also incidents of any kind with proper backups and disaster recovery solutions. Call us today and get started.

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