Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity Flashcards

A hot site is activated but the team realizes the replicated database is corrupted due to logical errors propagated from production. Which DR concept addresses this scenario?

Answer: Point-in-time recovery

Point-in-time recovery allows restoration to a known-good snapshot before the logical corruption occurred, bypassing data that was replicated in an error state.

Which component of a Business Continuity Plan addresses how an organization will communicate with employees, customers, and stakeholders during a crisis?

Answer: Crisis communication plan

The crisis communication plan within a BCP defines messaging protocols, spokespersons, communication channels, and notification sequences for all stakeholder groups.

Which DR testing method provides the most realistic validation of recovery capabilities but carries the highest operational risk?

Answer: Full interruption test

A full interruption test actually shuts down primary systems and switches to DR infrastructure, providing realistic validation but risking actual service disruption.

What is the primary purpose of establishing a Maximum Acceptable Outage (MAO) or Maximum Tolerable Downtime (MTD)?

Answer: To define the longest period the business can survive without a critical function before suffering irreversible harm

MAO/MTD represents the absolute limit of downtime tolerance before the organization faces catastrophic consequences such as bankruptcy, legal liability, or irreversible customer loss.

During recovery, a team finds that a critical application requires a license key stored only on the now-destroyed primary server. What DR planning failure does this illustrate?

Answer: Failure to document and escrow software license and configuration information

DR plans must include documentation and secure storage of license keys, configuration files, and other intangible assets needed to rebuild systems.

A company uses a cloud-based DR strategy where infrastructure is pre-provisioned but idle until a disaster is declared. Which model does this describe?

Answer: Pilot light

The pilot light model keeps a minimal core of critical infrastructure running (like a pilot light on a furnace) and scales it up quickly upon disaster declaration.

Which standard provides internationally recognized guidance for Business Continuity Management Systems (BCMS)?

Answer: ISO 22301

ISO 22301 is the international standard specifically focused on Business Continuity Management Systems, providing requirements for planning, implementing, and improving BCM.