That 3 AM call from a dentist office in Tulsa changed how I handle backups

I got a frantic call last week from a small dental practice I support (been their guy for about 2 years). Their reception computer just died mid-appointment scheduling and they had no idea where their patient records were stored. Turns out the previous tech never set up any offsite backup, just relied on a single external drive sitting right next to the tower. That conversation with the office manager made me rethink how I pitch backup plans to clients who think 'it'll be fine'. Has anyone else had a moment where a client's panic made you change your standard setup recommendations?

2 comments

2 Comments

faithb761mo ago

Man I had a similar wake up call but it was with an accounting firm that had their backup drive sitting in the same fireproof safe as their server... never thought about that angle until they had a small electrical fire and realized they baked both at the same time. Now I always tell clients about the 3-2-1 rule and make sure their offsite backup is literally in a different building, not just a different room. The real kicker was when the insurance adjuster asked where their offsite copy was and they just stared at me... lost a lot of data that day.

allen.amy1mo ago

Respectfully, I see it a little different. A lot of small businesses just don't have the cash to pay for a separate offsite backup service every month. Telling them to follow the 3-2-1 rule is ideal but it's like telling someone who's broke to just buy a house. Yeah, you should have something offsite, but a fireproof safe that's rated for electronics is still way better than nothing for most people. The real failure here was the safe being a cheap one that didn't protect against heat, not that the backup was in the same building.