Business Backup and Disaster Recovery in Northern Virginia
Immutable backups, restores tested every quarter and a written plan your team can follow under pressure.
A backup is only worth something if you have restored from it, and if ransomware cannot delete it first.
This service is for offices that depend on a file server, a line-of-business application or Microsoft 365 and have never tested what happens when one of them is gone. DistrictConnects designs layered backups, monitors every job, tests restores every quarter and writes the recovery plan your team follows on a bad day.
- QuarterlyRestore tests with documented results
- 3 copiesOn-site, off-site and immutable or air-gapped
- 7+ yearsRetention available for records you must keep
Why backups fail on the day you need them
Most businesses have a backup. Very few have tested it, and fewer still have a recovery plan their team could follow under pressure. These are the failures we find most often:
- It was never tested. The job says “succeeded” every night, but nobody has restored from it, so missing files and broken jobs surface only during an outage.
- Ransomware deleted it first. Backups on the same network or in a reachable cloud account are a target. CISA warns that many ransomware variants try to find and delete or encrypt backups before they strike.
- Retention was too short. If an infection is found two weeks after it started, every recent copy may already hold the encrypted or damaged files.
- Microsoft 365 was not covered. Exchange Online keeps deleted items 14 days by default, 30 at most, and SharePoint recycle bins hold files up to 93 days.
- It failed silently. Storage filled up, an agent license expired or a network change broke the job, and no alert went to anyone.
- Nobody knows the plan. What comes back first, who makes the call and how long it will take get decided in the middle of the outage.
A backup job that says succeeded is not proof; a backup you have restored from is.
Two numbers that set the design
Before choosing storage or schedules, we agree two targets with you for each critical system.
- RTO, recovery time objective. The longest a system can be down. A 4-hour RTO means it has to be back within 4 hours, which decides how fast the restore path must be and what gets restored first.
- RPO, recovery point objective. How much data you can afford to lose, measured in time. A 1-hour RPO means backups run at least every hour; a file share might accept a day.
Backup is part of our managed IT service, and it works alongside endpoint protection and cybersecurity to keep ransomware away from the backups in the first place.
What is included
Backup architecture review
What is backed up today, where the copies live, how often jobs run, what is missing and how long a restore would really take, measured against the downtime and data loss your business can accept.
Layered backup
A local copy for fast restores, an off-site cloud copy for when the building or the hardware is lost, and an immutable or air-gapped copy for ransomware. Retention is set to your obligations, up to 7 years or more.
Immutable backups
Write-once storage designed so backups cannot be changed or deleted before their retention date, even with administrator credentials. It is the copy that survives when an attacker reaches your network and your admin accounts.
Microsoft 365 backup
Third-party backup for Exchange Online, SharePoint, OneDrive and Teams, with point-in-time restore of a mailbox, a site or a single file long after Microsoft's own deleted-item windows have closed.
Servers, computers and cloud systems
Backup agents on servers, computers and cloud platforms, with schedules matched to how much data each system can afford to lose. A payment or practice management system often needs a tighter schedule than a file share.
Monitoring and alerts
Missed jobs, storage running out and failing backup agents raise alerts to our monitoring team, so a backup that quietly stopped is found in days, not during an outage.
Quarterly restore tests
Every quarter we restore real data and record the timestamps, check that the data is complete, compare the time taken against your recovery target and sign off the result. You keep the test records.
Written recovery plan
Which systems come back first and why, who has authority to decide, step-by-step procedures for each critical system, message templates for staff and clients, and vendor and carrier contacts. Rehearsed in a yearly tabletop exercise.
How the work runs
Free backup assessment
We start with one question: when did you last restore from your backup? Then we review what is protected, where the copies sit and what happens to each system if it fails tomorrow.
Set recovery targets
With leadership, we set a recovery time (RTO) and a recovery point (RPO) for each critical system. Those two numbers decide the backup schedule, the storage and the restore order.
Design the layers
On-site, off-site and immutable copies, Microsoft 365 backup and retention periods, laid out in a design with an itemized quote.
Deploy and automate
Agents go on every server, computer and cloud platform in scope, jobs are scheduled to match the recovery point, and every failure alert routes to our monitoring team.
Test every quarter
Documented restore tests show the backups work and how long recovery takes. Anything that misses its target is fixed and tested again.
Plan and rehearse
We write the recovery plan, walk your team through it in a yearly tabletop exercise, and update it whenever systems, staff or vendors change.
Platforms we work with
- Veeam
- Datto
- Acronis
- N-able Cove
- Axcient
- Druva
- Commvault
- Rubrik
- Synology
- Backblaze
- Microsoft 365
- AWS
Industries we do this for
Related guides
Service area
On-site across Northern Virginia and DC.
Prince William
- Manassas
- Haymarket
Arlington and Alexandria
- Arlington
- Alexandria
DC and Maryland
Common questions
What is the difference between backup and disaster recovery?
Backup is copying data so it can be restored if it is lost. Disaster recovery is the wider plan for getting the business running again after an outage, a fire or a ransomware attack: which systems come back first, in what order, how fast and who decides. A backup without a tested recovery plan is just stored data. You need both, and they need to match each other.
What is an immutable backup, and why does it matter?
An immutable backup is stored so it cannot be changed or deleted before its retention date, even by an administrator account. That matters because ransomware groups look for backups and try to delete or encrypt them before they lock your files. A copy that cannot be altered, or one kept offline, gives you a way to recover without paying a ransom.
How often should we test our backups?
At least quarterly, with documented results. A test means restoring real data, checking that it is complete and timing how long it took. Annual testing is not enough for most growing businesses, because systems change often and a backup job can fail silently between tests. A job that reports success is not proof; a backup you have restored from is.
Does Microsoft 365 back up our data automatically?
Not in the way most businesses assume. Microsoft keeps its service running, but deleted email is kept for 14 days by default in Exchange Online, extendable to 30, and SharePoint and OneDrive recycle bins hold deleted files for up to 93 days. After that, or if ransomware corrupts your files, there may be nothing to restore. Separate backup for Exchange Online, SharePoint, OneDrive and Teams closes that gap.
What are RTO and RPO?
RTO, the recovery time objective, is the longest a system can be down. A 4-hour RTO means it must be back within 4 hours of a failure. RPO, the recovery point objective, is how much data you can afford to lose, measured in time. A 1-hour RPO means backups must run at least hourly. Without both numbers, a backup setup is a guess.
How long should we keep backups?
It depends on your industry, your contracts and your insurer. Most offices need recent daily copies for quick restores plus monthly or yearly copies kept much longer. We offer retention of 7 years or more for records you are required to keep. Your compliance lead or attorney sets the required period, and we build the storage and the schedule to meet it.
How much does backup and disaster recovery cost?
It depends on how much data you protect, how many servers, computers and Microsoft 365 users are covered, how long you keep copies, and how fast each system has to come back. We do not publish prices. After a free assessment you get a design and an itemized quote, so you can see what each layer costs. Plans are month to month, with no long-term contract.
Is backup part of your managed IT service?
Yes. In our managed IT service, backup health is checked as part of everyday monitoring, failed jobs raise alerts to our team, restores are tested every quarter and the recovery plan is kept current. Our team works 7 days a week, 7am to 7pm, and existing clients are covered by their SLA, from a 1-hour response to next day.