Winter Storm Pax Is Coming! Is Your Data Backed Up? Are You Prepared To Telework When The Bad Weather Hits?

Winter Storm Pax will most likely hit the Mid-Atlantic area (MacMedics territory and from the looks of it we will be ground zero!), and it will likely destroy some data in some way.
Here in the Mid-Atlantic area, MacMedics clients and friends should un-plug their computer and remove and store backup hard drives in a dry place if you’re not going to be around when the snow and power outages hit us. If the power is off, or it goes out, it’s a smart idea to go ahead and just unplug your computer from the power and from your network if you have hardwired EtherNet.
Pro Tip: When disconnecting your computer system from power, unplug everything attached to your network, even the COAX cable from your cable or satellite box as that appears to be #1 surge source (based on past repairs). In regards to power surges, if your power DOES goes out (or starts to flicker), disconnect from power, as surges can also occur when the power comes back on as well!
If you are going to be working from home during the snow day, ensure you have access to your company’s VPN or have remote access to your server. Also, if you collaborate with co-workers on Dropbox or other services that let you share data, you should double check that you have access to that today.
This might also be a good time to enhance your back up plan by adding an off-site back up. MacMedics has our own off-site backup plan for our clients. Contact us if you’d like to get a backup configured for you.
For our friends and clients in the Mid-Atlantic region, MacMedics recommends that you back up your hard drive via a “clone” use Super Duper or Carbon Copy Cloner, as that way you can “test” your back up to insure you have a good, bootable copy.
The important thing is to PLAN AHEAD. Your back up is not complete if it’s not:
1. Automatic
2. Redundant
3. Off-Site
Here’s a few more tips from MacMedics:
1. If you do not have Ultra Call Forwarding at your office, be sure to forward your business phone lines to your cell phone BEFORE you lose phone and/or power to your phone system.
2. Your alarm system should contain a small back up battery, but you can extend that greatly, by plugging your alarm system into a high capacity UPS system.
3. If your server is not set to Auto Restart after a power failure, it’s not to late to turn that on.
We have tons of posts on Time Machine and we even have a free White Paper on it If you’d like a copy, let us know. If you’re not using an automatic backup, your data is at risk!