For smaller businesses across Phoenix, Scottsdale, and Paradise Valley, keeping your data safe isn’t optional — it’s essential. Yet many companies confuse backups with disaster recovery, assuming they’re the same thing. They’re not.
At ARCCOMP, we often help businesses understand the difference — and make sure they have both. This blog breaks it down clearly, so you can protect your business from data loss, downtime, and costly disruptions.
A backup is a copy of your data stored somewhere safe. It can include:
Documents
Databases
System files
Emails
Application data
Backups are used to restore individual files or entire systems in case of:
Accidental deletion
Ransomware or malware
File corruption
Hardware failure
🧠 Think of it as your safety net — the last clean version of your data, ready if something goes wrong.
Disaster Recovery is the full strategy for restoring systems, applications, and business operations after a major disruption.
It includes:
Backups (as the foundation)
System recovery processes
Recovery Time Objectives (RTOs)
Recovery Point Objectives (RPOs)
Access protocols
Cloud failover or alternate environments
🛠️ Think of DR as the emergency plan that ensures your business keeps running — not just your data.
| Feature | Backup | Disaster Recovery |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Protect and restore data | Restore full operations |
| Scope | Files, folders, databases | Entire systems, apps, networks |
| Speed | Varies (can be slow) | Prioritized for quick recovery |
| Strategy | Reactive | Proactive and documented |
| Location | Often local/cloud | Local + cloud failover |
| Example Use | Recover a deleted file | Recover after a ransomware attack |
Some businesses believe regular backups are enough. But backups alone won’t:
Restore server configurations
Rebuild a virtual environment
Get your business running again within hours
Meet compliance requirements
If your systems go down — especially from a cyberattack, fire, or flood — you need a plan to get back online quickly. That’s where disaster recovery steps in.
An accounting office had nightly backups to a USB drive. One morning, a ransomware attack locked down every system — including their backup.
Because they didn’t have disaster recovery in place, it took:
4 days to rebuild their systems
$7,200 in emergency IT fees
2 lost clients due to delayed responses
After partnering with ARCCOMP, we implemented:
Encrypted, cloud-based backups
A DR plan with a 1-hour recovery window
Endpoint protection to stop future threats
We offer tailored solutions for Arizona businesses that include:
Automated backups stored both onsite and in the cloud for redundancy.
We help you define recovery time (RTO) and recovery point (RPO) goals — and meet them.
All data is encrypted at rest and in transit to protect against theft or misuse.
We create and test customized DR plans that ensure business continuity in a crisis.
We simulate recovery scenarios to confirm your plan actually works when it counts.
When was your last backup?
Where is it stored?
Can you recover a file within minutes?
How long would it take to fully recover your system?
Do you have a plan if your office is offline for 3+ days?
If you’re unsure about any of these, it’s time for a conversation.
Backups and disaster recovery work together — but they are not interchangeable. A solid backup protects your data. A solid DR plan protects your entire business.
At ARCCOMP, we help local businesses create affordable, secure, and tested backup and disaster recovery strategies that keep them operational no matter what happens.
Don’t wait for a crisis to realize your plan has holes. Schedule a free risk assessment at https://arccomp.com today.
Keywords: backup vs disaster recovery, DR solutions Phoenix, small business backup Arizona, managed IT backups Scottsdale, ARCCOMP IT support, data recovery Paradise Valley, cloud disaster recovery, local IT disaster planning