Backup and Recovery Service Overview
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Data backup schedule
The IT Services Backup and Recovery Service is a centralized, network-based file backup system for desktop systems or servers. This service has been in use at Stanford University since 1997.
Backups are scheduled Monday through Friday and can be scheduled to run at one of the following times:
- 9 am
- 12 Noon
- 3 pm
- 6 pm
- 9 pm
- 12 Midnight
- 3 am
Workstations can be used during the time a backup is taking place, and must be left powered on for after-hours backups to occur. Manual backups may also be initiated by the client at any time on demand.
Data backup retention schedule
The first time BaRS creates a backup ALL files on the workstation or server are backed up. The software checks for differences in the file structure in subsequent backups. After the initial backup, only new or CHANGED files are backed up, and deleted files are removed from the current backup.
Three versions of files are held in the backup system:
- the current file or most recently active and backed up version
- the next most recently backed up version, and
- the version backed up previous to that.
After 30 days the oldest version is removed from the backup system to make room for more current backups. In other words, if a backup results in more than two inactive versions, the oldest inactive version is removed from the system. An unchanged file will be kept indefinitely.
Data recovery
You can initiate a data restore at any time, day or night, using the Restore feature of the TSM Backup software. Or, you can request that an IT Services consultant help you with the restore. Note that the restore of a single file might take only a few minutes; the restore of an entire system may take several hours to several days depending upon size of stored data.
Data security
Client data is secure; with the exception of IT Services Systems Administrators, who administer the backup system, only you have access to your data. IT Services System Administrators must have access to the data in order to operate the service, however, they are bound by strict confidentiality agreements and by University policy to protect the security of the data. All backups are kept on tape in a secure facility on campus and later off-site at the University's remote data storage site.
Data privacy and HIPAA compliance
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) contains standards and rules which govern the privacy of individually identifiable health information. This act includes the HIPAA Privacy Rule, which was finalized in December, 2000. The rule gives patients more control over how their personal health information is used, and also specifies how it must be protected.
The Stanford Hospital and Clinics works with IT Services to ensure that the Backup and Recovery Service is in full compliance with HIPAA regulations and complies with the HIPPA Privacy Rule. At the present time, however, we cannot guarantee that data maintained as part of this program will be HIPAA compliant. Hospital and clinic faculty and staff are urged to contact IT Services for more information before signing up for the Backup and Recovery Service.
Rates
Software license fees and ongoing software maintenance are included. A BaRS Administrator must be designated for each backup node; usually your departmental Local Network Administrator (LNA).
Note: Rates are currently under review as the service model is re-evaluated.
