Managing your Salesforce data requires a multi-pronged approach. There are a series of considerations that will affect the levels of security, functionality, and efficiency within your Salesforce environment.
We’ve discussed the importance of a reliable backup and restore system, but there are more methods that can be utilized to replicate and secure your system’s information.
Salesforce data that is no longer used—but could be important at a later date—can be moved out of the production system and put into long-term storage. This is known as Data Archiving.
There are multiple levels of importance within your Salesforce data set. Some data and metadata are essential to the basic operations within your environment. And some data will inform future processes and strategies. However, not all data is always needed. Data archiving can be used to keep this information available without crowding your live environment.
Salesforce data archiving is often overshadowed by data backup and recovery. And while backups are incredibly important to a successful data management plan, data archiving also deserves some attention and consideration.
A backup of your Salesforce data creates a copy and puts it into storage to be accessed should the original file become damaged, lost, or otherwise compromised. Data archiving moves the file itself to a secure location.
Here are 7 benefits you can expect from archiving Salesforce data:
1. Increased Capacity
The amount of data and metadata in your Salesforce system is likely to grow quite large over time. More development projects, more processes, and more clients will create a large repository of information that will need to be managed.
Large—and growing—sets of data can overload your platform and lead to a slowing down of processes as you reach the limits of your storage capacity.
The data included in these data sets is going to be associated various levels of importance. Some of this data will need to be referenced frequently, and some will not. Archiving this unused data frees your system up to efficiently process and access information that is more immediately needed.
2. Easier Backups
If you’re following Salesforce data management best practices, you’re frequently backing up your system data. The frequency of this process will vary depending on your type of business, amount of data, and regulatory compliance standards.
Salesforce data backups can be performed much quicker when you don’t have to bother creating copies of inactive data.
What’s the point of creating backups of data that isn’t going to be used? Archiving these files keeps them safe and available should a need to access them eventually arise. However, your backup system won’t need to bother making copies which speeds along the process of backing up more immediately important data.
3. Helps with Compliance
Many industries handle sensitive data. This information likely pertains to the customers, which could have a negative effect should the information become compromised. Social security numbers, account numbers, or other personally identifiable information is subjected to a series of government regulations that stipulate how this data is to be handled, stored, and treated within a company’s system.
Data archiving helps companies secure sensitive data and reach compliance standards.
Government regulations will vary depending on the industry—the financial and medical industries, for example, are subjected to a series of regulations relating to the handling of sensitive information.
The length of time sensitive data is kept within your system as well as proper methods to ensure data security are likely included in applicable regulations. Data archiving allows companies to demonstrate proper adherence to these stipulations.
4. Enhanced Productivity
Locating necessary data is much harder when there is a large repository to weed through. Any reduction in time spent looking for information equates to more time that is available to team members to spend on daily tasks.
Archiving unused Salesforce data enables reduced efforts for maintaining and managing software and infrastructure for on-site backup and storage.
Streamlined processes are essential to a profitable company. Any wasted time or efforts has a negative impact on the overall productivity, which reduces output and profits.
Archiving data clears some of the obstructions from your Salesforce environment so team members can focus on what’s important and complete their duties more quickly.
5. Saves Money
Data storage can become expensive. Your Salesforce environment will continue to grow in complexity over time. Hopefully, your business will grow as well, which will be reflected in increased amounts of data and performance needs.
Data archiving allows you to move unused data to external, long-term storage which won’t need high performance capabilities.
These outside repositories will be cheaper to maintain since you are essentially using them as a safe. They won’t need to be maintained for high levels of responsive functionality, which will in turn make them cheaper.
This also reduces the load within your Salesforce environment, which will make it more economical to maintain and operate.
6. Heightened Data Security
Data security is a constant concern. Cybercriminals are always finding new ways to gain entry to systems they have no business entering. Malware, phishing attempts, ransomware—there are a variety of threats to your Salesforce data at any given time.
Moving unused files to long-term storage adds another layer of security to this data and reduces the amount of information to protect in the live environment.
Aside from cyberattacks, user error is a main contributor to data loss. Removing team member access to certain pieces of information—as when it’s archived—also removes any possibility they could accidentally delete or corrupt a piece of data.
7. Adjustable Retention Period
Data archiving tools—such as AutoRABIT Vault Data Backup & Recovery—allow for users to adjust settings to best fit their needs.
The retention period for archived data can be adjusted all the way up to 99 years so you are able to maintain access to these files for generations.
Data security tools provide the greatest benefits when they are tailored to your exact specifications. Archiving your Salesforce data is no exception. Utilize a powerful data backup tool to get the most from your Salesforce environment.
FAQs
Data archiving is the practices of moving unused data that might be useful at a later date out of the production system and into long-term storage.
- Increased Capacity
- Easier Backups
- Helps with Compliance
- Enhanced Productivity
- Saves Money
- Heightened Data Security
- Adjustable Retention Period
Data archiving and data backups serve different purposes but they can be performed with a singular tool such AutoRABIT Vault.
