A bad day, and the way back.
A backup only counts if your files come back from it. Pick one of three bad days, choose a copy from before it went wrong, restore it and check that the file opens.
- About 2 minutes
- Made-up business, made-up customers
- Runs in your browser. Nothing is sent.
Three bad days at Example Drain Co.
Pick a bad day and read what happens. Then restore from the backup: choose a copy from before it went wrong, restore it and check that the file opens. Or press Play to watch it done.
DemoA made-up business, three made-up bad days and a scripted restore. The screens are simplified illustrations, not any real backup product. Nothing here touches a real file.
Pick a bad day
Pick a copy and restore it
From the cloud backup, off-site
Restore points, newest first
Simplified illustration. Made-up business, made-up files.
Bad day 1 of 3
Ransomware locks the front-desk PC
Tuesday the 15th, 2:10 PM
What happens
- A ransom note fills the screen on FRONT-DESK, minutes after the office manager opened an “invoice” attachment. Files in the shared Office folder now end in “.locked”.
- The office manager pulls the network cable, leaves the PC on and calls the owner.
- The owner calls Callsmith. Nobody pays, and nobody replies to the note.
- The hourly backup copies the locked files as new versions. The older versions are kept, untouched.
- Restore the Office folder from the last copy before 2:10 PM. FRONT-DESK stays unplugged until it’s wiped and set up again.
From the written recovery plan
If a screen says your files are locked
- Pull the network cable or switch off Wi-Fi. Leave the computer on.
- Call the owner, then Callsmith. Don’t pay and don’t reply to the note.
- Restore from the last copy before it started. Wipe the computer and set it up again before it goes back online.
Restore points for the Office folder
- Tue 15th, 3:00 PM Locked files Made after the attack
- 2:10 PM Ransomware hits FRONT-DESK
- Tue 15th, 2:00 PM Last clean copy The one to restore
- Tue 15th, 1:00 PM Clean
- Tue 15th, 12:00 PM Clean
- Mon 14th, 11:00 PM Clean Nightly backup
Restored: the whole Office folder, 1,284 files, from Tuesday at 2:00 PM, back into the shared folder. Then the owner opened this week’s jobs to check them.
| Day | Customer | Job | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon | Customer 4, unit 4B | Running toilet repair | $149 |
| Tue | Customer 1, 123 Example St | Water heater, 50-gal gas, installed | $1,850 |
| Wed | Customer 3, 9 Cedar Ct | Camera inspection | $249 |
| Thu | Customer 4, unit 2C | Drain clearing, tub | $189 |
| Sat | Customer 2, 48 Maple Ave | Drain clearing, kitchen sink | $189 |
Not in this copy: anything saved between 2:00 and 2:10 PM. The office manager re-entered one booking by hand.
Test restore logged: the owner opened the file and it looked right.
Bad day 2 of 3
The technician’s laptop is stolen from the truck
Thursday the 17th, 12:40 PM
What happens
- The technician’s laptop backs up as usual, between two jobs.
- The technician comes back to the truck at Customer 4’s apartment building. A window is broken and his laptop bag is gone.
- The technician calls the owner, who signs the laptop out of the business email and files, and changes the technician’s password.
- The technician reports the theft to the police, with the serial number from the recovery plan.
- A new laptop for the technician. His files come back from the last copy, Thursday at 11:00 AM.
From the written recovery plan
If a laptop or phone is lost or stolen
- Call the owner. The owner signs it out of business email and files, and changes the password.
- Report it to the police. Serial numbers are on the last page of this plan.
- Set up a replacement and restore the files from the last copy.
Restore points for the technician’s laptop
- Thu 17th, 2:00 PM Didn’t run Laptop not reachable
- Thu 17th, 1:00 PM Didn’t run Laptop not reachable
- 12:40 PM Laptop found stolen
- Thu 17th, 11:00 AM Last copy The one to restore
- Thu 17th, 9:00 AM Complete
- Wed 16th, 4:00 PM Complete
Restored: everything from the technician’s laptop, 3,819 files, from Thursday at 11:00 AM, onto his new laptop. Then the technician opened his job notes to check them.
| Date | Customer | Job | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 14 | Customer 4, unit 4B | Running toilet | New flapper and fill valve |
| Tue 15 | Customer 1 | Water heater, 50 gal | Drain pan added, old one hauled |
| Wed 16 | Customer 3 | Camera inspection | Clay pipe, roots. Quote to the owner |
| Thu 17 | Customer 4, unit 2C | Slow tub | Cleared, hair in the trap |
Not in this copy: notes the technician typed after 11:00 AM on Thursday. He re-typed two lines from memory.
Test restore logged: the technician opened the file and it looked right.
Bad day 3 of 3
The office manager deletes “Customers 2025”, and the sync deletes it everywhere
Wednesday the 16th, 4:32 PM
What happens
- The office manager tidies the shared Office folder. She deletes “Customers 2025.xlsx”, thinking it’s an old copy, then empties the recycle bin.
- The sync does what it’s built to do: the file disappears from the owner’s laptop and from FRONT-DESK too.
- The owner goes to look up Customer 3’s address. The file is gone on every computer.
- The office manager checks the shared folder’s recycle bin. It’s empty.
- Restore the file from the backup: a separate copy that the sync can’t reach.
From the written recovery plan
If a file or folder is deleted
- Look in the shared folder’s recycle bin first.
- If it isn’t there, restore it from the backup. Pick the last copy from before it was deleted.
- Open the restored file to check it, then tell whoever needed it.
Why the sync didn’t save it
Sync keeps every computer the same, so a delete on one is a delete on all.
- FRONT-DESKGone
- Shared folderGone
- Owner’s laptopGone
Why the backup still has it
A backup is a separate copy that keeps older versions. Deleting the file didn’t touch it.
Wed 4:00 PM copy: the file is there
Restore points for the Office folder
- Thu 17th, 8:00 AM File not in it
- Wed 16th, 11:00 PM File not in it Nightly backup
- Wed 16th, 5:00 PM File not in it
- 4:32 PM Office manager deletes the file
- Wed 16th, 4:00 PM Last copy with the file The one to restore
- Wed 16th, 3:00 PM Has the file
- Tue 15th, 11:00 PM Has the file Nightly backup
Restored: Customers 2025.xlsx, from Wednesday at 4:00 PM, back into the shared folder. The sync then put it back on every computer, and the office manager opened it to check it.
| Customer | Phone or email | Address | Last job |
|---|---|---|---|
| Customer 1 | (555) 555-0187 | 123 Example St | Water heater |
| Customer 2 | [email protected] | 48 Maple Ave | Kitchen sink |
| Customer 3 | [email protected] | 9 Cedar Ct | Camera inspection |
| Customer 4 | [email protected] | Units 4B and 2C | Toilet and tub |
| Customer 6 | (555) 555-0163 | Not given yet | New caller |
Not in this copy: any change made to the file between 4:00 and 4:32 PM. The office manager hadn’t touched it that afternoon.
Test restore logged: the office manager opened the file and it looked right.
In this demo a restore takes seconds. A real one depends on how much data there is and on the internet connection: one file comes back quickly, a whole computer can take hours.
Backup monitor
The 11 PM nightly backup, last 14 nights. The hourly copies are watched the same way.
- 1Tuesday the 1st: ran
- 2Wednesday the 2nd: ran
- 3Thursday the 3rd: ran
- 4Friday the 4th: ran
- 5Saturday the 5th: ran
- 6Sunday the 6th: ran
- 7Monday the 7th: ran
- 8Tuesday the 8th: ran
- 9Wednesday the 9th: didn’t run
- 10Thursday the 10th: ran
- 11Friday the 11th: ran
- 12Saturday the 12th: ran
- 13Sunday the 13th: ran
- 14Monday the 14th: ran
Night of the 9th, WednesdayDidn’t run
- Didn’t run. FRONT-DESK was switched off.
- An alert email went to the owner.
Missed backup: FRONT-DESK, night of the 9th
From Backup monitor · To the owner
Last night’s 11 PM backup of FRONT-DESK didn’t run because the PC was switched off. The laptops and the shared Office folder backed up as usual. Please leave FRONT-DESK on tonight so it can catch up.
- Ran, and caught up on both days’ changes.
3-2-1: where the copies live
The simple rule the backup follows.
At the office
Off-site
- 3copies The working files and two backups.
- 2kinds of storage A drive in the office and the cloud.
- 1off-site The cloud copy, out of reach of a fire, flood or break-in at the office.
Check your own setup with the free Backup health check Seven quick questions, about a minute.
What’s real, and what’s made up.
The same in real use
Backups that run by themselves on a schedule, older versions kept, an alert when a run fails, every restore opened by a person and logged, and a written recovery plan you can follow without us.
Made up for this demo
Example Drain Co., its files and all three bad days. Here a restore takes seconds. A real one depends on how much data there is and on your internet connection, and we tell you what to expect before you need it.
What stays with you
You choose what gets backed up, how often, how long older versions are kept and who gets the alerts. No backup brings back work saved after its last copy, so your plan says what could be lost. The work is scoped and quoted in writing.
More demos.
Cloud migration
Example Drain Co. moves off one old PC: see what’s there, pick where it goes, watch the Saturday move and run the Monday checks.
Try the demoShared job board
Four spreadsheets disagree about the same jobs. Bring them together, settle the two conflicts, then watch one change reach the office, the crew and the customer.
Try the demoAI paperwork and data entry
A supplier invoice, the technician’s handwritten job sheet and an email from the city. Watch each one get read, answer the one question, then file it yourself.
Try the demoWould your backup bring it back?
Tell us what you have today. We’ll say what we’d back up, where the copies would live, how a restore would work and what it would cost, in writing, before anything changes.