Most small businesses have backups but have never actually tested recovery. Backups that cannot be restored do not exist. Here is how to validate yours.
Why Backup Testing Matters More Than You Think
Backups are worthless if you cannot recover from them. Yet most small businesses set up a backup solution, run it for months, and never actually test whether recovery works. Then when a ransomware attack or hardware failure forces a recovery, they discover too late that backups are corrupted, incomplete, or encrypted alongside the original data.
Recovery testing serves two purposes: it proves that your backups are actually complete and usable, and it ensures your team knows how to perform a recovery under pressure.
Testing Your Backup Strategy
For file-level backups, pick a random folder from several weeks ago and restore it to a test location. Open files and verify they are not corrupted. For email backups, restore a few messages and verify they are readable. For database backups, restore to a test database server and run a test query to confirm data integrity.
Document the recovery process as you test: how long does it take, what tools or credentials do you need, where do you restore the data to first. This documentation becomes critical during a real incident.
Recovery from Ransomware and Disasters
If you have experienced ransomware or a major infrastructure failure, recovery planning becomes critical. Test the scenario where your primary systems are completely unavailable - can you restore workstations to new hardware, can you restore to the cloud, how long does it take?
Establish a clear Recovery Time Objective (RTO) - how long your business can tolerate each system being down - and test whether your backup solution meets it. Testing reveals gaps before they cause business-destroying disasters.