IT disasters can strike without warning, causing massive disruptions to business operations. The recent CrowdStrike outage serves as a stark reminder of this reality. No matter the size of your business, having a solid recovery plan in place is essential to minimizing downtime and protecting your operations.
The CrowdStrike Outage: A Case Study
On July 19, 2024, CrowdStrike, a leading cybersecurity firm known for its advanced endpoint protection and threat intelligence services, made headlines for all the wrong reasons. A routine update, meant to improve system performance, instead triggered a global IT disaster. The update introduced a bug in a specific system driver file, leading to widespread crashes of computers running Microsoft Windows.
This wasn’t a result of a cyberattack, as some initially feared. CrowdStrike clarified that “the outage was caused by a defect found in a Falcon content update for Windows hosts.” Despite their swift communication, the damage was done—approximately 8.5 million systems were affected, marking one of the largest global IT outages in recent memory.
The Aftermath: What Recovery Looks Like
The recovery process from this incident was anything but smooth. The bug required a manual fix, meaning IT teams had to physically repair and reboot each affected system. For companies with thousands of systems, this was a monumental task.
Delta Airlines faced significant challenges. With over 5,500 flights canceled during the busiest travel weekend of the summer, the outage hit them hard—both operationally and financially. The estimated cost? A staggering $500 million. The situation worsened as Delta found itself in a legal battle with CrowdStrike, arguing over who was at fault for the prolonged downtime.
Could Your Business Survive an Unexpected IT Disaster?
The CrowdStrike outage is a wake-up call for businesses everywhere. It raises an important question: Could your business survive an unexpected IT disaster? The fallout isn’t just about immediate operational disruption; it also includes, cybersecurity vulnerabilities, financial losses and potential damage to your company’s reputation.
CrowdStrike argued that Delta’s extended downtime was partly due to their outdated IT infrastructure. Delta, on the other hand, contended that the responsibility lay with CrowdStrike for not thoroughly testing the update. This blame game highlights a critical point—no matter the external factors, businesses need to ensure their IT infrastructure is resilient and prepared for any disaster.
Understanding Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery
This incident underscores the importance of both business continuity and disaster recovery—two concepts that are often confused but are vital to keeping your business afloat during and after a disaster.
Business Continuity
Business Continuity is the overarching strategy that ensures your entire business can continue operating during and after a disruptive event. It covers everything from maintaining essential functions to minimizing downtime across the board. The goal is to keep your business running as smoothly as possible, regardless of the situation.
Disaster Recovery
Disaster Recovery is a critical component of business continuity, specifically focusing on restoring your IT systems, data, and infrastructure after a disaster. Whether it’s a system failure, cyberattack, or natural disaster, disaster recovery ensures that your technology is back online as quickly as possible.
In short, while business continuity keeps your business moving during a crisis, disaster recovery gets your IT systems back up and running afterward.
Planning Your IT Disaster Recovery
Today’s IT infrastructure is more complex than ever, with businesses relying on a mix of on-premise servers, cloud services, and third-party software. While you can’t control everything—like the weather or a vendor’s software update—you can mitigate the risks by having a well-thought-out IT Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP).
A good DRP provides a clear roadmap for your business to follow in the event of an IT disaster, reducing chaos and helping your team respond effectively.
5 Steps to Building an IT Disaster Recovery Plan
A strong DRP doesn’t just happen overnight. It requires careful planning and execution. To guide you in this critical process, here are five essential steps to building a reliable IT Disaster Recovery Plan that can help safeguard your business against unexpected disruptions.
#1 Risk Assessment and Impact Analysis
Start by identifying the risks that could disrupt your business, like natural disasters, cyberattacks, or system failures. By doing this, you’ll better understand what’s most critical to protect and how to prioritize your recovery efforts.
#2 Set Recovery Objectives
Determine how quickly your business needs to recover and how much data you can afford to lose. These are known as your Recovery Time Objective (RTO) and Recovery Point Objective (RPO). Setting these objectives ensures that your recovery strategy is aligned with what your business can tolerate.
#3 Develop and Document the Plan
Create a clear and detailed disaster recovery plan. This should include step-by-step instructions for restoring operations, communication procedures, and assigned roles for your recovery team. Having a documented plan ensures everyone knows what to do in a crisis, reducing confusion and speeding up recovery.
#4 Implement and Test Backups
Regularly back up your critical data and systems, and store them securely, whether offsite or in the cloud. Just as important as backing up is testing those backups to make sure they can be quickly restored if needed. Running drills or simulations will help you find and fix any weaknesses in the plan, ensuring your team is ready to respond.
#5 Review and Update
Your disaster recovery plan needs to evolve with your business. Regularly review and update it to reflect changes in your operations, technology, or emerging risks. Continuous monitoring and improvement keep the plan effective, so your business is always prepared for the unexpected.
Stay Ahead of IT Disasters with Strategic Planning
The CrowdStrike outage is a powerful reminder that no business is immune to IT disasters. By taking proactive steps, you can ensure that your business is prepared to weather any storm—whether it’s a faulty software update or a natural disaster. Remember, the key to surviving an IT disaster lies in preparation, clear communication, and a resilient IT infrastructure. Partner with Just Solutions for comprehensive managed IT services and expert support in building a resilient IT disaster recovery plan that keeps your business protected.