A single incident can shut your business down for days. A server that catches fire, ransomware that locks up your files, a human error that wipes a database: without a disaster recovery plan, every hour of downtime costs money. Yet most small and medium businesses in Quebec have no tested procedure for getting back up after a disaster.

At OKTO Solutions, we help SMBs in Trois-Rivieres and the Mauricie region build a real, working disaster recovery plan. This guide walks through the core concepts first, then breaks down the steps to protect your business. You’ll also see how Microsoft Azure makes the whole process easier.

1. Why a disaster recovery plan matters more than ever in 2026

Cyberattacks increasingly target small businesses. They’re easy targets, since most rarely have a dedicated IT team. On top of that, hardware failures and floods can strike at any time. The question isn’t whether an incident will happen, it’s when.

A disaster recovery plan answers one simple question: how do you get your operations running again quickly after a disaster? Without one, you’re improvising under pressure. With one, you follow a clear, tested procedure.

2. RTO and RPO: the two numbers that define your disaster recovery plan

Before picking any technology, you need to set two targets for each critical application. These two values drive every decision that follows.

RTO (Recovery Time Objective)

RTO is the maximum acceptable time for an application to be back up and running. Can your invoicing software stay offline for 4 hours? A full day? The answer changes everything. The shorter the RTO needs to be, the more resources the solution requires.

RPO (Recovery Point Objective)

RPO is the amount of data you’re willing to lose. In practice, it measures the age of your last restore point. Back up once a day, and you risk losing up to 24 hours of work. Some databases, though, need an RPO of just a few minutes.

These two numbers directly shape the cost of your disaster recovery plan. That’s why our team helps you set them based on your business’s actual needs.

3. Azure Backup or Azure Site Recovery: choosing the right tool

Microsoft offers two complementary services, and a lot of business owners mix them up. In reality, they serve different needs.

In practice, the two services work together. Azure Backup protects against human error and ransomware. Azure Site Recovery covers total site loss. Most SMBs start with backup, then add site recovery for their truly critical applications. For more detail, see the official Azure Backup documentation from Microsoft.

4. Building your disaster recovery plan in 5 steps

A solid plan follows a structured process. Here are the five steps we apply with our clients in Trois-Rivieres.

Step 1: Inventory your applications and data

Start by listing everything that keeps your business running: servers, databases, mailboxes, shared files. Then rank each item by how critical it is.

Step 2: Set the RTO and RPO for each application

For every critical application, set the two targets covered above. This step directly shapes the budget for your disaster recovery plan.

Step 3: Choose the right technology

Depending on your targets, combine Azure Backup and Azure Site Recovery. You can also protect your Microsoft 365 data with dedicated backups.

Step 4: Isolate and secure your backups

Store your backups in a separate region from your production data. Azure also enables soft delete by default, and you can make your vaults immutable. That way, an attacker can’t destroy your backups, even with ransomware.

Step 5: Test your disaster recovery plan regularly

An untested plan isn’t a plan. That’s why we run failover drills with our clients. These tests validate both the technical side and the human processes, so your team knows exactly what to do on the day it counts.

5. Ransomware protection: a critical piece

Ransomware often targets backups directly, since attackers try to destroy your safety copies first. Fortunately, Azure Backup includes protections that are on by default.

• Soft delete: Azure keeps deleted backups for 14 to 180 days, so you can recover them after an attack.
• Immutable vault: once created, a restore point can’t be deleted before it expires. You can even make this protection irreversible.

These mechanisms turn your disaster recovery plan into a real safety net. To understand how these threats work, read our article on ransomware protection for Quebec SMBs.

Frequently asked questions about disaster recovery plans

What’s the difference between a backup and a disaster recovery plan?

A backup copies your data. A disaster recovery plan describes how to restore your full operations after a disaster. In short, the backup is a tool, the plan is the strategy.

How long does it take to put a plan in place?

It depends on the size of your business. That said, a typical Mauricie SMB gets a working plan in place within a few weeks. Our team speeds up the process thanks to our experience.

Is my Microsoft 365 data already protected?

Microsoft guarantees the availability of its infrastructure, but protecting your data stays your responsibility. That’s why a dedicated Microsoft 365 backup remains essential.

Protect your business with OKTO Solutions

A well-designed disaster recovery plan protects your revenue, your reputation, and your data. At OKTO Solutions, we build and test these plans for businesses across Trois-Rivieres and the Mauricie region, so you can rest easy even in the face of a major incident.

Discover our managed IT services or contact our team for a free assessment of your current setup.