You read on to discover that the company, a well-respected employment agency, cannot predict when it will reopen for business because all of its vital computer data was destroyed in the fire.

You think to yourself, "What a shame. But I am sure it could never happen to me."

The hard truth of the matter is that it could happen to anybody. So instead of shrugging off the potential risk, do yourself a favor and ask, what would it be worth to recover all of my company's vital computer data if one day it suddenly disappeared? The number you come up with might be surprising.

Fortunately, with a little money and discipline, you can rest comfortably each night when you lock up the business, knowing that if disaster strikes you are prepared.

Data Backup: the Basics

Today, there are some superior products on the market to help small businesses inexpensively secure their precious computer files.

The most widely used devices are external tape drives and cartridge-based backup systems. There are several choices, most costing less than $300. Whichever model you choose, you will be able to store one hundred megabytes or more of data on a single small, removable tape or cartridge.

Critical: The procedure you develop for making backing up work well is much more important than the hardware you use for backing up.

If, for example, you have several employees whose computers are consistently used to generate important data, be careful not to leave backing-up to each individual's own devices. Invariably, some employees will be more diligent than others, and the forgetful ones often have the computers with the most critical information to reviving the business after a disaster strikes!

To avoid problems, assign a single employee, someone well respected in the company but not necessarily a computer wizard, to be responsible for ensuring that everyone who must back up regularly does so. This person should also be responsible for determining where backup tapes or cartridges are to be stored and make sure that offsite storage rules are being heeded. (In one- or two-computer businesses, the key to secure offsite storage is designating a drawer somewhere away from the business premises to store backup data).

Consistency and Frequency Issues

The next and equally important procedural question is how to back up data and when to do it. A widely practiced, and very effective method is called the Grandfather method of backing up data. Essentially it works like this:

• Day One - you back up all of your data and mark the tape or cartridge with a "1."

• Day Two - which could be a week or 10 days later - you repeat the process, and mark the tape or cartridge with a "2."

• Day Three - say, a week later - you follow the same procedure as Day Two.

• Day Four - you repeat the process, but you save your data on the Day One tape or cartridge and continue the procedure for Days Two and Three at the same intervals.

The effectiveness of this system lies in the fact that there are always two tapes or cartridges that are safe. If the office is hit by a tornado, say, on Day Two, your Day One and Day Three backups should be safely sitting in a drawer in your home. (Obviously, if there is a two-week span between Day One and Day Three backups, Day Three will contain the most up-to-date data. But for most businesses, this system still gives you dual backup for the majority of the company's most important computer information).

Final note: Have the person in charge of supervising the company's backup procedures check regularly, at least once every three months, to make sure that each employee's back-up hardware is working properly.