Information Technology Services

Iron Mountain - Data Backup Solution

Overview

UNCG has entered into an agreement with Iron Mountain to provide a remote backup solution for UNCG-owned computers, using their Connected PC Backup software. The Iron Mountain service provides an online backup and recovery solution for all your critical data, no matter where it's located on your PC. Your entire hard drive can be backed up using this software, which allows us to recover a backed up computer even if the hard drive is replaced or if the computer is stolen. Iron Mountain ensures your backups happen automatically, consistently, and securely.

• Connected BackupPC happens in the background, with minimal user intervention and without getting in the way of business.
• SendOnce technology allows fast backups by only copying users' unique data and cataloging data files that are already in the Iron Mountain SendOnce data pool. Please note that the first backup should be done on UNCG's high speed wired network and takes an average of 3 hours to complete. Your initial backup may take substantially more or less time depending on the amount of unique data stored on your hard drive. Initial off-campus backups can take significantly longer due to the upload limits imposed by ISPs. Following backups will only take an average of 2 minutes.
• Access your backed-up data for recovery or management any time via the Account Management website.
• Recovery is fast and easy - simply use the software installed on your computer to restore files. Or, log into the Account Management website from any computer and recover individual files in minutes.
• Your data is encrypted and securely stored in Iron Mountain's data vaults in redundant remote locations. Iron Mountain also backs up our vaults to tape, so your data is off-line, protected from viruses and worms.

Who is Eligible?

In order to be eligible you must meet both of the following requirements:

• You must be an active, full-time faculty member at UNCG [75% Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) or greater].
• You must opt-in. Opting in includes the process of accounts being authorized for funding through the Office of the Provost. To begin the process, please contact your dean or department head.

Note: ITS is planning in the near future to make licenses available to all faculty and staff members who receive funding from their Dean or Department Head.

Data and Backups

Iron Mountain backs up your entire hard drive. This includes your data files (Word documents, Photos, Music, etc.), your software (AIM, Adobe, etc.) and your system files (Windows Registry, drivers, etc.). This means that if your computer is stolen, you can use Iron Mountain's Heal feature on a new replacement computer and it will look IDENTICAL to your original computer. You won't have to setup your software again or customize your desktop background picture, etc. Iron Mountain also keeps deleted files for 30 days and the last 10 versions of each file.

The speed of the Iron Mountain backups are typically faster than most of the services provided by other companies, especially the free web-based services. This is a result of Iron Mountain being an established company with a huge infrastructure to support large institutions. Many of the free/cheap solutions found on the web are much slower and are designed for individual users with small amounts of data.

With Iron Mountain, the first backup can take 2 hours or 3 days, depending on how much unique data is on your computer. Their "Send Once" technology makes backups much more efficient by comparing your files to files that are already on their server. If someone else has already backed up that file, it is noted in your file catalog and is not sent to the server.* The software operates in the background with no user input, unlike the manual methods of burning your data to a CD-R or USB hard drive.

Note: Restricted data must be backed up ONLY on the University approved network file storage (e.g., the Novell R: drive), and should NOT be included in your data that is backed up to Iron Mountain. For information about what constitutes restricted data, read the Data Classification Policy. In addition, you are responsible for compliance with any data storage guidelines you are subject to beyond University policy (e.g., grant or funding agency guidelines).

Security

Iron Mountain encrypts all of your data on your computer before sending it to the Iron Mountain server. All access to your data is secured behind your Iron Mountain Password.

Restorations

You can retrieve files, directories or your entire hard drive on your own and immediately. Iron Mountain provides a web-based solution for restoring files from any computer as well as software to restore files directly to your main computer. Go to the Data Retention & Deletion webpage for a list of scenarios where your files may or may not be available for restoration.

Support

Iron Mountain provides Information Technology Services (ITS) with technician accounts so that they can customize and troubleshoot the software for our clients. This means that ITS 6-TECH staff can assist you with any problems related to your data. Simply call (336) 256-TECH (8324) or email 6-TECH@uncg.edu.

The information on this site was adapted from documentation on the UNC Help site.