Backup and restore drills

A backup is useful only if the intended operator can recover the required state without damaging the current system. Define what is being recovered and test it; do not equate an archive upload, process exit code, or database integrity check with application recovery.

Define the recovery contract

Read the repository's backup tools, database/storage documentation, data model, key custody, deployment topology, and runbooks. Confirm the exact scope and authorization before accessing backups or running tools. For a drill identify:

• authoritative databases, object/filesystem state, configuration and versions;
• consistency boundaries between them and the backup's actual recovery point;
• encryption identities, key availability, restore tool versions and prerequisites;
• required application invariants and the acceptable data-loss/recovery targets;
• isolated destination, resource budget, cleanup ownership, and abort conditions.