CISSP 18.4 - Recovery Plan Development (Part 2 of 2)

This episode of the ISC2 Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) exam prep series finishes recovery plan development in Domain 7, Security Operations. It closes the quiet gaps that leave a plan looking solid but failing when called, covering modern storage, the backup habits people overlook, and the support pieces that a real recovery quietly depends on.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do disk-to-disk and cloud storage change your backups?

They answer the problem that data has outgrown tape. With drives now measured in terabytes, many organizations back up disk-to-disk, sometimes using virtual tape libraries that make disks look like tapes to existing software, but some of those disks must still sit off-site. Cloud storage takes this further, offering scalable, geographically diverse copies you can retrieve from anywhere, often with built-in redundancy and lower cost, though storing data across jurisdictions makes regulatory compliance part of the design.

What best practices make backups actually reliable?

Backups are heavy on the network, so schedule them for off-peak hours, and build in capacity for expansion before data growth strains your media. Every periodic backup leaves a gap where failures love to strike, so consider continuous methods where that gap is unacceptable. Back up only what you need, letting your recovery time objective decide, and above all actually test your recovery, because trusting a green success message without ever restoring is a leading cause of backup failure.

What is a software escrow arrangement and when do you need one?

It is a safeguard against a software vendor disappearing or abandoning support. The developer deposits their source code with a neutral third party who holds updated copies securely, and the agreement defines trigger events, like the vendor breaching a service-level agreement or going out of business. When one fires, the third party releases the code so you can maintain the product yourself. Focus these agreements on smaller suppliers you fear might fail, since a giant vendor is hard to negotiate with and unlikely to vanish.

How do you plan for utilities, logistics, and supplies?

Your plan should carry contact information and troubleshooting steps for critical utilities like power, water, gas, and sewer, so a service problem during a disaster does not become a second crisis. Logistics can be enormous, because you may suddenly need to move large numbers of people, equipment, and supplies to a recovery site. And if people will live at that site for a stretch, the plan must provide for food, water, shelter, and facilities, closer to running a small temporary town than relocating a server room.

Why do we separate recovery from restoration?

They are two different jobs on two different clocks. Recovery means getting business operations running again, usually at an alternate site, and the recovery team works against a hard deadline set by the maximum tolerable downtime or recovery time objective. Restoration means bringing the original facility back to a workable state, and the salvage team has more breathing room. Returning to the primary site is itself risky, so the salvage team moves the least critical processes back first to stress-test the rebuild.

Reference: This article is based on concepts discussed in CISSP 18.4 - Recovery Plan Development (Part 2 of 2).