Backup is one of the most common methods of protection against data loss. The first backup applications were introduced 20 years ago and Microsoft has integrated in each Windows version a backup application. These applications have come to a great development from a functional point of view, considering the graphic interface and the portability.

Analyst group Wikibon held a live event yesterday, where a forum of industry leaders discussed the trials and tribulations of backing up data. James McNeil, the new CEO of FalconStor showed up as a guest at the event.

There are two main pains backup administrators refer to, as outlined by Fadi Albatal in a post-event analysis. The first is the “backup window,” the time available to perform and finish the backup process, which is directly related to the backup process itself; the second is related to efficiency of the restore and recovery process, the recovery time and recovery point objectives.

Albatal has interpreted the forum discussions, saying:

“To cross the last chasm towards next-generation backup and recovery solutions, and in order to completely eliminate the backup window, we need to change the backup batch job into a continuous or near-continuous process that has limited to no impact on the server and application infrastructure.

“This is especially true in a virtual server infrastructure environment, where CPU and network resources are highly utilized. This continuous data protection method (CDP) also has the benefit of reducing RPO from 24 hours to near zero data loss. In addition, CDP can transform the restore process into a recovery process to meet very aggressive RTOs that are measured in minutes instead of hours or days.”

FalconStor’s new CEO Jim McNiel joined Wikibon’s Peer Incite Research Meeting to discuss his theory on why backup is broken.

Albatal’s main call to action action was for companies to evaluate the backup process and make changes for cloud backup starting from this point. This of course is a major obstacle for business especially in the small-to-medium business sector thus creating a pathway for start-ups like FalconStor offering several services for smoothing the process of backup.