To clarify the difference, let’s start with what a backup is. Generally, a backup is a short-term retention copy of a file or record that is made in case the original is lost or damaged beyond repair. Making a backup of your files is meant to create a snapshot of something so that you can restore your data back to a certain point.

Therefore, you’re really not concerned that you’re going to be backing up the same data over and over and over again. All you’re really concerned with is, if this application goes down, can I restore the data?

An archive is similar with the difference being its life span. An archive is typically viewed as a means to meet a requirement to retain a record for future reference.

Many companies archive information as a way to retain company records and meet regulatory requirements. The SEC had changed regulation 17A, which has required companies to retain specific electronic records.

An archive is set up so that information can be accessed relatively quickly in the event of an audit. In the old days, when everything was on paper, archiving meant storing numerous files in cabinets with an offsite vendor, for a certain period of years. Electronic archiving is similar. At the end of the retention period, your files can be deleted.

When archiving, it is important to date information so that one knows when the expiration date comes about. In this way, archiving is different from backup information. Traditional backups are usually part of a sequence, which is typically a series of weekly full backups followed by daily incremental backups that are kept for a predetermined amount of time (e.g., 30 days). In order to keep a copy for a longer period than usual, an out-of-sequence copy must be created. This is where the attributes of an archive start to take shape. We can think of an archive as an out of sequence copy; a copy that is not associated with other copies for retention purposes (i.e., full and incremental).

Other attributes that differentiate an archive from a backed up file are:

1. Archives should not be retained simply based on the number of existing copies. Each archive should be a unique object bearing a time stamp, descriptor and a retention parameter.

2. Data is backed up to protect it from being lost or altered and because it must remain readily available; it would therefore go against the rules to delete a file after backing it up. Conversely, data is often archived so it can be deleted from its original location because immediate access is no longer required.

3. Archived data can be extracted from its original context and catalogued or indexed for later retrieval. This is the case for CAS or email archiving products where a message or attachment is taken out of its usual structure and stored elsewhere.

To summarize, if a record is copied for protection, we can probably call it a backup. If the same record is stored on some media with particular concern with immediate access, it’s probably safe to call it an archive.