How to back up your books automatically (and restore in 5 minutes)

Why automatic beats good intentions

Everyone means to back up. The backup that saves you is the one that ran on a Tuesday when you were busy and did not think about it. With desktop accounting software your books are a file on your computer, and the only copies are the ones you make, so a failed drive, a stolen laptop or ransomware can take years of records with it. Our earlier guide, how to back up your accounting data, covers the basics. This one is about taking yourself out of the loop: copies that make themselves, and a restore you have practised.

Three layers of automatic backup

A good setup has three layers, each protecting against something different:

Layer 1 is usually built into the accounting program. Layers 2 and 3 copy the backup folder, not the live company file. Copying a file while the program has it open can catch it half-written; backup copies are complete and closed.

Make it 3-2-1

CISA, the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, recommends the 3-2-1 rule: three copies of important data, on two different types of storage, with one copy off-site. It also recommends testing that you can restore, and keeping enough copies to go back at least seven days. Mapped to the layers above:

• 3 copies: the working file, the copies in the program's backup folder, and the copy on another device or off-site.
• 2 types of storage: the computer's own drive, plus an external drive, a network drive or cloud storage.
• 1 off-site: cloud storage or a drive kept somewhere else.

Two more points matter for ransomware and theft. Keep at least one copy that is not connected all the time: an external drive you unplug, or cloud storage with version history you can roll back. And keep backups encrypted: a backup of your books holds customer names, bank details and payroll, so a drive left in a car is a data breach. If your company file is encrypted, check that its backups are too (see how to encrypt your company file).

How many copies, for how long

• Daily copies: keep at least a week or two, so a problem noticed late can still be undone. Ten recent copies covers most small businesses.
• Month-end copies: after each month is closed and reconciled, keep a copy for that month.
• Year-end copies: keep a copy of each closed and filed year for at least as long as records must be kept. The IRS generally expects records for three years from filing (four for employment tax records, six or seven in some cases); the CRA generally expects six years from the end of the last tax year they relate to.

Your accounting program keeps the recent copies and deletes the oldest as new ones arrive. Move month-end and year-end copies to their own folder so that clean-up never reaches them.

The five-minute restore drill

A backup you have never restored is a hope, not a backup. Every few months, and after any change to your setup, time yourself doing this:

1. Pick a backup from your second device or off-site copy, not the one on the same computer. That is the copy you would need after a real disaster.
2. Restore it to a new file name, never over the file you are using.
3. Open it. If the file is encrypted, you need the password or recovery key. If you cannot find them, you have found the real weak spot.
4. Check it. Is the last transaction you entered before that backup there? Does the balance sheet match the original as of that date? Does a report open?
5. Close the test copy and move it out of the way, so nobody enters transactions in it by mistake.
6. Write down what you did and how long it took. If someone else has to do it one day, they need these notes.

If the drill takes more than a few minutes, the problem is usually finding the backup or the password, not the restore itself. Fix that while nothing is on fire.

Setting it up in AcboBooks

AcboBooks has two automatic options in Company Settings. One makes a copy in a Backups folder beside the company file each time the company closes, keeping the last five. Scheduled backups copy the file to the same folder every so many hours and/or daily at a set time while the company is open, keep the newest copies (ten unless you change it), check that each copy opens, and can remind you after a number of closes without a backup. A Back up now button makes a checked copy at once. Copies stay on your computer and nothing is uploaded, so layers 2 and 3 are yours: point your backup software, File History or cloud folder at the Backups folder. An encrypted company file stays encrypted in its backups.

File → Back Up Company File saves a dated copy anywhere you choose, such as an external drive. File → Automatic Backups lists the recent copies. File → Restore from Backup copies a backup to a new company file that you name and opens it, leaving your current file exactly as it is, which makes the restore drill safe to run. File → Copy for Your Accountant makes a password-protected copy, which Restore from Backup can also open.

Frequently asked questions