Backup Validation

restore_test_process:
  frequency: "Monthly for critical services, quarterly for others"

  steps:
    - step: "Select backup"
      details: "Choose most recent backup and one from 30 days ago"
    - step: "Restore to isolated environment"
      details: "Restore backup to test environment, not production"
    - step: "Verify data integrity"
      details: "Run consistency checks, verify record counts"
    - step: "Verify data freshness"
      details: "Confirm data matches expected time period"
    - step: "Document results"
      details: "Record restore time, any issues, data integrity status"

  success_criteria:
    - "Backup restores without errors"
    - "Restore completes within RTO target"
    - "Data integrity checks pass"
    - "No data corruption detected"

  documentation:
    - "Date and time of restore test"
    - "Backup selected (date, type, location)"
    - "Restore duration"
    - "Data integrity check results"
    - "Any issues encountered"
    - "Pass/fail status"

  automation:
    tool: "Custom script or cloud-native backup validation"
    schedule: "Monthly, automated"
    notification: "Slack channel + email"

checksum_verification:
  purpose: "Verify backup data has not been corrupted"

  process:
    - "Generate checksum when backup is created"
    - "Store checksum separately from backup"
    - "Verify checksum when backup is restored"
    - "Alert if checksum mismatch detected"

  checksum_types:
    - name: "SHA-256"
      use: "Standard for file integrity"
      speed: "Fast"
      collision_risk: "Extremely low"

    - name: "MD5"
      use: "Legacy systems"
      speed: "Very fast"
      collision_risk: "Low but possible"

  storage:
    location: "Separate from backup storage"
    retention: "Same as backup retention"
    access: "Read-only, immutable"

  automation:
    script: |
      # Generate checksum for backup
      sha256sum backup.tar.gz > backup.tar.gz.sha256

      # Verify checksum after restore
      sha256sum -c backup.tar.gz.sha256
    schedule: "After every backup and every restore"

retention_policy:
  daily_backups:
    retention: "30 days"
    storage: "Standard storage"
    cost: "Low"

  weekly_backups:
    retention: "12 weeks"
    storage: "Standard storage"
    cost: "Low"

  monthly_backups:
    retention: "12 months"
    storage: "Standard storage"
    cost: "Medium"

  yearly_backups:
    retention: "7 years"
    storage: "Archive storage"
    cost: "Minimal"

  compliance_requirements:
    financial_data: "7 years"
    healthcare_data: "6 years"
    general_business: "3 years"
    test_data: "30 days"

  deletion_process:
    - "Automated deletion after retention period"
    - "Verify deletion before removing from inventory"
    - "Document deletion for audit trail"

immutable_storage:
  purpose: "Protect backups from ransomware and accidental deletion"

  aws_s3:
    configuration: |
      # S3 Object Lock configuration
      aws s3api put-object-lock-configuration \
        --bucket backup-bucket \
        --object-lock-configuration '{
          "ObjectLockEnabled": "Enabled",
          "Rule": {
            "DefaultRetention": {
              "Mode": "COMPLIANCE",
              "Days": 365
            }
          }
        }'

    benefits:
      - "Cannot be deleted by anyone, including root"
      - "Cannot be modified"
      - "Retention period enforced by AWS"
      - "Compliance with regulatory requirements"

  gcs:
    configuration: |
      # GCS bucket lock
      gsutil retention set 365d gs://backup-bucket

  azure:
    configuration: |
      # Azure Blob Storage immutability
      az storage blob service-properties delete \
        --enable true

  best_practices:
    - "Use compliance mode for regulatory data"
    - "Use governance mode for operational flexibility"
    - "Set retention based on compliance requirements"
    - "Test restore from immutable storage"

audit_evidence:
  backup_evidence:
    - "Backup schedule and completion logs"
    - "Backup size and duration"
    - "Storage location and encryption status"
    - "Retention policy compliance"

  restore_evidence:
    - "Restore test dates and results"
    - "Restore duration and success rate"
    - "Data integrity verification results"
    - "Any issues encountered and resolution"

  compliance_reports:
    - "Monthly backup compliance report"
    - "Quarterly restore test summary"
    - "Annual disaster recovery test results"

  retention:
    evidence_retention: "7 years"
    storage: "Audit storage bucket"
    access: "Compliance team only"