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The HPMD Bullet
Summer '95
© Copyright 1995, HP Management Decisions Ltd., All Rights Reserved.
Vol. 1 Iss. 1

Five Disaster Recovery Lessons by Steve Happ


Here is the compilation of observations we have made about disaster recovery operations. Most of these were learned at the school of hard knocks. They are worth pondering.
  • Do not get creative and improvise during recovery. Trying something new usually fails.
  • Run the recovery like a military operation with battle-station positions and defined actions. When under fire, the roles and actions must be automatic.

  • The key roles are the Field General, the Diagnostician, and the Communicator. Choose these people carefully.
  • Restoring the system is as important as recovery. In other words, after switching to backups, restoring the primary system correctly must follow. Failing to do this right prolongs the perception of unreliability.
  • It is not recovered until the customer says it is recovered.


  • For a complete list of the 27 tips on Disaster Recoveryor if you would like to receive articles on the following topics, hotlink to our bullets database:
  • Product Management Proverbs
  • Measurement: Keeping Score
  • Meeting Proverbs
  • A Measurement Bibliography
  • Rewards