On Dec. 13th, I tested my backup system the best way I know how; I put an empty hard drive in my computer and got myself back to my original configuration with only my remote and local backups.

It worked, but it was a little bumpy at times and showed that I still have a couple holes in my system, as far as speed of recovery is concerned. I also found some things that I need on a remote backup that I don't currently have. Here are some things I learned:

1. Make a list

   There were a couple of applications I knew I didn't have to backup since I could just download them from the internet once I had my computer back up. The problem was, once I had my computer back up, I couldn't remember what those applications were! If I had made a list in a text file of what those applications were and where to get them, it would have made things a lot easier.

2. When you install new applications, make sure their settings are included in the remote backup

   There were a couple of application settings that I didn't have in the remote backup. I did have them on the Drobo, but I would have been in trouble if I only had the remote backups. I'll be setting up a periodic remote backup setting review so that these don't fall through the cracks again.

3. Properly backup SQL databases

   This doesn't apply for most, but it did for me. I was backing up my PostgreSQL database via the file system, but I should really be exporting the data to a file first. I was able to recover the data, but it wasn't quick or pretty. I'll need to figure out a way to dump that data somewhere on my file system so that it can get backed up remotely.

4. It's good to test

   There are some things I found out that I never would have known if I hadn't run this test. I'm not quite ready to say that everyone should do this, but I'm close. I think that the Merlin Mann quote I put up earlier is exactly correct: Backup is a little like Taekwondo; it's hard to know whether you're really good at until you're in the midst of getting your ass kicked.

   I'm now planning on running a recovery once every six months or so. My biggest realization: I don't have a solid process around my recovery. I'm backing everything up better than I thought, but it still wasn't easy to get up and running and took way too much time. I need certain lists and procedures written up before hand before I'd feel comfortable with the whole thing. And I need to shorten the time from the current record of six and a half hours.

All in all, it went well. I still have my recovered drive in the computer and plan on keeping it there. I don't see a big difference between this new hard drive and the old one except this one is faster (attributable to a fresh install of the operating system). As I figure out ways to streamline everything, I'll be sure to let you all know.

I've also been writing up quick little procedure/checklists and putting them on a folder in Dropbox. It's little things that I didn't know I didn't know until I ran a recovery. Now they're captured in text in a place I know I can get to when my computer decides to give up the ghost. Future posts will flesh out what you might need to write down to make your own recovery successful.

Bottom line? I did good, but I've got a long way to go to get great.