Daily Dental Data Backup -- Monthly Test Restore

How it works

A simple software program is installed on your file server. We configure this software to select your practice management data files for backup.  Since we will be later testing your data by restoring it on our servers, you are guaranteed that the proper data files are being selected for backup. 

When we configure the software we also tell it when to create a backup data set and transmit the files to our secure server location. This is usually set for a late evening time period.

Automatically, each evening, the program starts up and transmits the file changes that have occurred that day.  The files are encrypted before transmission for Hipaa privacy compliance. 

The data is received in our data center and stored in your customer area.  For each file in your database we maintain the last 5 versions of the file.  This feature is useful if you need to restore an older version of a particular file. 

The data transmission process occurs automatically each day.  An automatic process is a key to a reliable backup system since no human interaction is necessary for success.

The next morning when you look at your server you will see a message on the screen that the backup was complete.  If any errors had occurred you would be notified here.  Additionally, our technicians are notified if there are any errors or exceptions with your backup.  The most common problem occurs when the practice management software is left running on a single workstation.  This causes important files to be locked and errors will occur when attempting to backup the files. 

Each day our technicians review the backup reports from all the customers.  If we notice that your office has had a problem with their backup, we will notify your staff by phone and discuss the problem and ways to avoid the situation in the future.  This is an important part of the Digital Shelterservice.  Many offices have created backups on their own, for years, only to find out too late that the files were locked, destroying the ability to restore the backup when it was really needed.

So, daily you will have feedback regarding your backup both from a success/no success screen prompt, as well as the ability to view a daily log of the file backup.

The most valuable part of the Digital Shelter service is our testing process.  Any backup is only as good as the last time it was tested.  Each month our technicians restore your practice management data files to a server at our facility.  We install a copy of your practice management system on the testing server and actually run the same software you are operating in your office with your restored data.  We then login and print a daysheet or other daily financial report to match the data from the day the backup set was created.  This report is then faxed or emailed to your office.  You or your staff can compare the report we fax with the same report that was produced in your office on that same day and verify that your data has been able to be restored correctly.

We then erase your data from our testing server for that month.  We never retain any of your unencrypted data permanently on our testing servers.

As a bonus service at the end of the year we transfer your year end practice data set to cd and send them to your office.  You should keep this data off site, as it could come in handy for use in future situations, legal or otherwise.

Your backup data on our servers are available to you or your staff to restore any of your files you need directly from our data storage server to your server.  We can guide you through this process or you can do it yourself.  The file restore interface is similar to  many file backup programs on the market.

Remember, Digital Shelter is unique in that we test your backup dataset on a regular basis.  Your backup data is only as good as the last time it was tested.