Unix® System Management Primer Plus

Disaster Drills

When you have completed all of the research, planning, and testing, you still have work to do to make sure you're prepared to keep your Unix system functioning throughout a disaster. Although you might have tested your recovery procedures, you probably did it in a controlled environment: Everybody was notified ahead of time, backup tapes were already at the secondary site, and your hardware was already racked and configured. Assuming your tests were successful, they still are only proofs of concept; they prove that your plan can work in controlled situations, but does it work in real-life situations?

As a Unix system administrator, you can conduct your own form of IT “fire drill” to test your disaster recovery plan in a less structured ...