Cloud backups: Should you be doing more?

The benefits of cloud accounting are now well established. If you aren’t aware of these, 您应该立即澳门赌场官网您的澳门赌场官网,讨论由于没有成为云软件社区的一部分而失去的业务利益.

云软件的好处之一是它通过利用像Xero这样的大型安全公司的服务器来提供安全性, Intuit and MYOB. However, like any other internet service, it is not 100% risk free. 一般来说,大型软件公司(包括微软、Xero、MYOB) & Intuit)不需要备份客户端数据,也不需要在发生安全漏洞时为您恢复数据.

So if something does go wrong or there is a glitch in the service, what remedies, or better yet, preventative measures, can you take?

BE AWARE OF YOUR TERMS OF SERVICE

所有主要的云计算提供商在其条款和条件中都隐藏了类似的信息,将备份的责任转移到用户身上, 坚持用户必须保留自己的备份,以便在数据丢失时恢复信息. 大多数供应商都强烈鼓励用户定期在云系统之外备份数据, Xero和Intuit对任何丢失的数据“不承担任何责任”.

服务条款协议通常包括以下条款:

You must maintain copies of all Data inputted into the Service. [公司]坚持其最佳实践政策和程序,以防止数据丢失, including a daily system data back-up regime, but does not make any guarantees that there will be no loss of Data. 【澳门官方赌场】明确不承担任何数据损失的责任,无论其原因如何.

随着越来越多的勒索软件攻击——比如锁定小企业数据的“CryptoLocker”病毒——仅仅依靠云的安全级别就足够了? 它至少应该让用户重新思考他们保护在线数据的方法.

WHAT ARE YOUR OPTIONS?

What preventative measures can you take? 您是否应该定期进行数据备份以确保应急和恢复计划到位? 我们在下面分析了一些可供您选择的选项,以及一些优缺点.

Option 1: Do nothing

Xero and Intuit both claim that their data is incredibly secure. 在这个阶段还没有任何大规模的数据丢失的例子,有理由认为这种趋势将继续下去. Up to this point, 服务很少宕机,大多数用户也从不需要备份来挽救局面.

Option 2: Export as much as possible via reports

Xero和Intuit表示,他们不支持用户备份自己数据的功能. 他们认为这损害了作为云软件卖点的“唯一真相来源”. 不过,他们建议提供一份报告清单,以便进行备份:

+总账+试算平衡表+详细总账
+明细账+应收账款+应付账款
+ Transactions Balance Sheet
+ Chart of Accounts                        + Profit & Loss                  + Business Activity Statements
+固定资产                                    + 澳门赌场官网人                       + 发票 & Bills

这些报告似乎捕获了云澳门赌场官网文件上的关键信息,可以导出并保存到用户的硬盘驱动器上以确保安全.

  • Cost:  
    Nothing, other than time
  • Pros:      
    No financial expense
    Captures all necessary data
    Doesn’t require 3rd party involvement
  • Cons:  
    有些信息可能是不必要的,需要复制两次+重新输入这些数据需要花费大量时间+需要用户在日常复制这些报告时非常谨慎

For the Intuit 用户,这似乎是最好的和唯一真正的选择,以便备份数据目前. An MYOB 用户应该能够让他们的文件离线,并采取备份.

Option 3 for Xero users: Utilise a third-party backup provider

For the Xero 用户,有一些选项可供第三方提供商创建他们的文件备份.

Control C: Uses daily backups to save data frequently.

  • Cost:          
    $50 annually per file
  • Pros: 
    Has an app
    Direct download to office
    Backs up transaction data including docs
    Easy access to historic backups
  • Cons:
    Cost bound by download size.
    Limited to 1,000 transactions saved a day

Boxkite: Takes daily backups and has comprehensive data including journals, bank transactions financial statements. Send files directly to a dropbox file linked to the account.

  • Cost:  
    $15 a month per file
  • Pros:  
    Backups saved within hours of new data in Xero
    Comprehensive data picked up
  • Cons:    
    Limited information regarding process
    Expensive
    Requires drop box for data to be sent to
    每天限制1,000个事务,因此初始备份将花费一些时间

Ledger backup: 文件以zip文件夹的形式存储,并通过电子邮件或微软OneDrive发送. Data is backed up on a schedule set by the user.

  • Cost:   
    $5 a month for single files, up to $150 a month for 100 backups
  • Pros:
    Data is saved as CSV
    Scheduled saves can be altered for larger clients
    保存Xero文件夹部分中的文件(不保存附加到特定事务的文件)
  • Cons:   
    Access to these files is questionable
    Does not restore files

定期进行云文件备份就像一份保险单——你希望永远不会用到它, but if you do, it is a worthwhile exercise. 有时候你只需要做最坏的打算,抱最好的希望.

Accru specialises in cloud accounting and can assist you to make the most of your cloud software. Please contact us if you need assistance.

By Gareth Livingston, Accru Melbourne

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Accru Melbourne
Accru墨尔本通过卓越的客户领导力提供积极的金融解决方案. 我们管理客户的财务需求已有150多年的历史,拥有一支由近100名专业人士组成的团队, 为个人和企业提供个性化和前瞻性的财务解决方案, audit and wealth management services.
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