{"id":54181,"date":"2024-04-25T11:35:09","date_gmt":"2024-04-25T10:35:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.n-able.com\/?p=54181"},"modified":"2024-05-13T18:14:25","modified_gmt":"2024-05-13T17:14:25","slug":"immutability-with-cove-fortified-copies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.n-able.com\/de\/blog\/immutability-with-cove-fortified-copies","title":{"rendered":"Immutability with Cove Fortified Copies"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cove Fortified Copies offer a fresh approach to immutability\u2014protecting servers, workstations, and Microsoft 365 backups<\/a>, without compromising the ease-of-use Cove is known for<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Immutability became a hot topic in the data protection space when ransomware groups started targeting backups to thwart victims\u2019 recovery attempts.<\/span><\/p>\n

What is Immutable Data Backup?<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

\u201cImmutable\u201d simply means that backups are stored in a way that makes them impossible to change or delete. Since they cannot be changed or deleted, immutable backups provide recoverability from ransomware and malicious deletion. Nice! \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

However, the methods available (WORM locking, object storage) to provide immutability using most backup products can incur significant storage and administrative costs associated with data retention, expiration, and cleanup. These methods also cannot protect against lower-level attacks, such as a factory reset of an entire storage system.<\/span><\/p>\n

We\u2019ll explore immutability in more depth below, but first a note about Cove\u2019s architecture. When we say that Cove is \u201ccloud-first,\u201d<\/a> we mean that the primary backup resides in N‑able\u2019s private cloud\u2014even if you choose to keep an optional local copy. This is a significant point of difference between Cove and most BDR products, where the primary backup is local. This architectural difference means that backups are isolated by default, reducing your attack surface and helping to minimize risk (for you and your customers).<\/span><\/p>\n

Storing backups in this way (off the local network) is sometimes called \u201cair gapping,\u201d as you are literally creating a physical gap between the protected environment and the backup data. Air gapping is an important piece of the ransomware protection puzzle. However, in the event that a threat actor uses ransomware to gain access to the backup environment, you need another layer of protection. That\u2019s where immutability comes in.<\/span><\/p>\n

Immutability With No Compromises<\/span><\/h2>\n

Cove Fortified Copies are secondary, immutable backups stored in an isolated environment, not accessible from Cove\u2019s management console, API, or CLI. Because there is no connection to the backup environment, these copies cannot be accessed, deleted or compromised by a threat actor. Fortified Copies can <\/span>only<\/span> be accessed by designated N‑able employees, and their access is limited and audited. So, you can be confident your customers\u2019 data will be recoverable no matter what.<\/span><\/p>\n

Unlike other backup immutability methods, there\u2019s no additional hardware or labor required with Cove. You don\u2019t need to make choices about which devices or data sources „deserve“ immutability or even configure retention policies. Fortified Copies are automatically created hourly and retained for 30 days with no manual intervention needed. They enable recovery of all<\/span> protected data within the retention period.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For comparison, let\u2019s look at how Veeam provides immutability<\/span><\/a>. According to a blog posted on their website, immutability requires<\/span>:<\/span><\/p>\n