DOCUMENT INFORMATION SHEET

Title: Disaster Recovery Plan

Subject: Name the Plan Subject

Date: [Publish Date]

Author: Author Name

Job Title: What is your job title?

Department: What is your department?

Phone: What is your contact phone number?

Email: What is your contact email?

Version: 1.0 [tip: Use small increments (1.1., 1.2 etc.) for minor changes and
larger increments for major changes (2.0, 3.0, etc.)]

Status: Choose an item.

 Disaster Recovery Plan
Name the Plan Subject
Author Name

Contents
DOCUMENT INFORMATION SHEET ..................................................................................... 1
DOCUMENT NOTES...................................................................................................................... 4
1.0 STATEMENT OF GOALS AND OBJECTIVES................................................................. 5
2.0 PLANNING ASSUMPTIONS ................................................................................................ 6
2.1 Requirements Assumptions .................................................................................... 6
2.2 Recovery Assumptions .............................................................................................. 6
3.0 PLAN ACTIVATION CRITERIA ......................................................................................... 7
3.1 Plan Activation Criteria .................................................................................................. 7
3.2 Plan Activation Procedures .......................................................................................... 7
4.0 SCENARIOS AND RESPONSE STRATEGIES ................................................................ 8
5.0 DISASTER RECOVERY REQUIREMENTS ..................................................................... 9
5.1 Technology Requirements............................................................................................ 9
5.2 Operational Requirements ........................................................................................... 9
5.3 Communications Requirements ................................................................................. 9
5.4 Backup Requirements ................................................................................................. 10
5.5 Documentation Requirements ................................................................................. 10
5.6 Supplies Requirements ............................................................................................... 10
5.7 Training Requirements ............................................................................................... 10
6.0 DISASTER RECOVERY PROCEDURES ........................................................................ 11
6.1 Communications Procedures ................................................................................... 11
6.2 Remote Access Procedures ....................................................................................... 11
6.3 Technical Implementation Procedures ................................................................ 11
6.4 Backup and Data Recovery Procedures ............................................................... 11
6.5 Temporary Access Procedures ................................................................................ 12
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 Disaster Recovery Plan
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6.6 Technical Support Procedures................................................................................. 12

6.7 Alternative Operating Procedures ......................................................................... 12
7.0 ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES................................................................................... 13
7.1 Disaster Recovery Team Mission Statement ..................................................... 13
7.2 Organizational Chart .................................................................................................... 13
7.3 Resource Requirements.............................................................................................. 14
8.0 PLAN ADMINISTRATION ................................................................................................ 15
8.1 Plan Approval Procedures ......................................................................................... 15
8.2 Plan Distribution Procedures ................................................................................... 15
8.3 Plan Maintenance Procedures ................................................................................. 15
9.0 SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION ................................................................................ 16
END OF DISASTER RECOVERY PLAN ................................................................................ 17
Appendix A: Approvals ...................................................................................................... 17

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 Disaster Recovery Plan
Name the Plan Subject
Author Name

DOCUMENT NOTES

Disaster Recovery Plan Purpose:

The purpose of this Disaster Recovery Plan is the high level documentation of
disaster recovery related strategies, procedures, decisions and related
practices.

Document Control:

Use this space to record notes and information regarding DRP preparation
and version control. Add rows to the table to make additional entries.

Entry # Date Version Notes

1 Click here to 1.0 The first draft of the Disaster Recovery
enter a date. Plan is created.

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 Disaster Recovery Plan
Name the Plan Subject
Author Name

1.0 STATEMENT OF GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

Use this space to present an overview of the purpose and content of your
Disaster Recovery Plan. As this section is documented, the following
questions should be considered:

What are your disaster recovery planning goals?

Examples:

 To provide operational continuity and quick recovery for all critical

systems impacted by a technology related disaster event.
 To ensure that the disaster recovery program is properly communicated
to all staff, clearly identifying all essential roles and responsibilities.
 To ensure adherence to established safety procedures, exit plans and
related emergency requirements.
 To maintain an orderly process for business resumption and systems
recovery.
 To ensure that disaster recovery activities and strategies are continually
tested and revised as needed.

How will this plan be used and distributed within your organization?

How will this plan be integrated with other business recovery and employee
safety plans?

Why is this plan important and valuable to your organization?

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 Disaster Recovery Plan
Name the Plan Subject
Author Name

2.0 PLANNING ASSUMPTIONS

2.1 Requirements Assumptions

 State the plan “subjects” (identifying the systems and services to which
this plan applies).
 State the business locations and operational units to which the plan
applies.
 List the established disaster recovery “priorities”:
o Identify critical business operations and functions.
o Identify critical systems and related IT services.

2.2 Recovery Assumptions

 List the systems covered and the capacity to be restored, as in this
example:
o 50% of critical functions will be restored within 24 hours.
o 100% of critical functions will be restored within 48 hours.
 List the scenario conditions covered by the plan. (Examples: Business
Site Down, Technology Site Down, All Sites Down, Technology Down)
 Specify the outage duration addressed by the plan. (Example: This plan
applies to disaster events lasting no longer than 60 days)
 List the dependencies. (Example: List the vendors, external support
providers or internal support groups upon which the plan performance
relies).
 List the exclusions. (Identify any disaster conditions not covered by the
plan. Example: “This plan is not designed to address disasters occurring in
foreign locations”)

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 Disaster Recovery Plan
Name the Plan Subject
Author Name

3.0 PLAN ACTIVATION CRITERIA

As this section is documented, the following questions should be addressed:
3.1 Plan Activation Criteria
 What types of events will trigger plan activation?
3.2 Plan Activation Procedures
 How will these events be evaluated to ensure that plan activation is
appropriate?
 Who will be involved in this event assessment process?
 How will assessment recommendations be escalated to the appropriate
decision makers?
 Who must approve plan activation?
 How will the plan be activated?
 What are the activation approval requirements?
 How will plan activation be communicated?

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 Disaster Recovery Plan
Name the Plan Subject
Author Name

4.0 SCENARIOS AND RESPONSE STRATEGIES

This section is used to identify the disaster scenarios covered by this plan, and
the designated response strategy associated with each. Add rows as needed
for additional scenarios.
Scenario Planned Response Expected Response Post-disaster
Description Strategy Results Expectations
Describe the scenario. Describe the planned Describe the expected Describe expected post-
Example: Temporary loss response. response result. disaster activities.
of access to main office Example: Activate the Example: 75% of all Example: Once the main
site. hot-site. critical functions will be office is accessible, data
active at the hot-site in 4 entries created at the
hours. hot-site will be restored
to production systems.

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 Disaster Recovery Plan
Name the Plan Subject
Author Name

5.0 DISASTER RECOVERY REQUIREMENTS

5.1 Technology Requirements
 What types of critical systems are currently in place?
 How are these systems configured?
 Where are these systems located?
 What role do these systems play in business operations? (Issues to
address: how are they used, by whom, and for what purpose?)
 Why have these systems been designated as critical and essential to
business continuity?
 What types of hardware and software devices (including data) will be
required to establish and maintain critical business operations in the
event of a technology related disaster?
5.2 Operational Requirements
 How does your business/organization/department operate?
 What are the most critical business operations?
 What are the most critical job functions?
 How is technology used to support these critical business operations
and job functions?
 What types of services does [the department] provide to the
organization?
 What role do these services play in the disaster recovery and business
resumption process?
 How will these services be maintained during a disaster condition?
 Will external or temporary resources be required to maintain
technology related support services during a disaster condition?
5.3 Communications Requirements
 How will internal communication be ensured and maintained during,
and after a disaster event?

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 Disaster Recovery Plan
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Author Name

 How will communications systems (telephones, wireless, email,

internet, and intranet) be used to communicate during and after a
disaster event?

5.4 Backup Requirements

 What types of backups will be required?
 What is the required backup schedule?
 Where will backups be stored?
 How much time is required to restore critical data?
5.5 Documentation Requirements
 What types of documents will be required to support the disaster
recovery process?

5.6 Supplies Requirements

 What types of business equipment (non-computing) and office supplies
will be needed to support the disaster recovery process?

5.7 Training Requirements

 What types of training will be provided to technology staff to support
the disaster recovery process?
 What types of training will be provided to non-IT staff and employees to
support the disaster recovery process?
 What types of training (and/or information) will be provided to
external service providers and customers (if applicable) in support of
the disaster recovery process?

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 Disaster Recovery Plan
Name the Plan Subject
Author Name

6.0 DISASTER RECOVERY PROCEDURES

This section should be used to specify “step-by-step” procedures to be followed in the event
of a covered disaster event:

6.1 Communications Procedures

 Emergency contact information for employees, customers, vendors and
any other groups or individuals as needed for plan support (including
primary and alternate contact designations).
 Communications Step-by-Step: detailing the “disaster-related” use and
availability of telephones, wireless devices, voicemail, email, intranet
and the company web site.
 Escalation procedures to be followed in the event of a declared disaster
considering the recovery and response “chain of command” and the use
of one or more Command Center locations.
 Steps and procedures to provide ongoing “how-to” information during
the crisis event (to keep staff informed on current status, and day-to-
day business procedures).

6.2 Remote Access Procedures

 What types of job functions and internal operations can be performed
from a home office location?
 What type of hardware and software will be required?
 Will end-users require any special training?
 How will alternate systems and remote access procedures be activated
and communicated to end-users?

6.3 Technical Implementation Procedures

 How will systems be installed, configured and administered during a
covered disaster event (considering alternate work locations and
alternate operating procedures)?
6.4 Backup and Data Recovery Procedures
 How will backups be retrieved in the event of disaster plan activation?

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 Disaster Recovery Plan
Name the Plan Subject
Author Name

 How will data backups be restored for emergency and long term access?
6.5 Temporary Access Procedures
 How will access be provided to alternate hardware and software
systems (considering user-ids, passwords, applications and data)?
 How will access be provided to any alternate office/business
resumption sites?
6.6 Technical Support Procedures
 Who will be responsible for technical support during a covered disaster
event?
 What types of technical support services will be provided?
 During what period of the day will support services be available?
 How will support requests be submitted, organized, resolved and closed
during the disaster event?
6.7 Alternative Operating Procedures
 Which business operations can be met with the use of standalone
computers?
 For how long can these standalone operations be used to serve
temporary business needs?
 What steps must be taken by technology support staff and/or end-users
to complete the transition to any standalone computing operations?
 How will critical data files be made available during the crisis period?
 Which business operations can be met with the use of manual
operational procedures?
 For how long can these manual operations be used to serve temporary
business needs?
 What tools will be required to maintain these manual operations (i.e.
forms, information, policies and procedures)?
 What are the hardware and software requirements needed to support
alternate operating procedures?

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 Disaster Recovery Plan
Name the Plan Subject
Author Name

7.0 ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

7.1 Disaster Recovery Team Mission Statement
Use this space to document your team mission
missi statement:

 What is the purpose of your Disaster Recovery Team?

 What primary goals and objectives for team organization and structure?
 How will the team operate within the overall organizational structure?
7.2 Organizational Chart
The following chart illustrates managerial roles and reporting relationships
for the Disaster Recovery Team.

DRP Steering
Committee

DRP
DRP Auditor
Coordinator

Technology Operations Administration

Planning Team Support Team
Team Team Team

Sample Organizational Notes:

Notes

 The DRP Steering Committee has management oversight and

executive authority over the disaster recovery program.
 The DRP Auditor is responsible for disaster recovery planning
verification and compliance.
 The Disaster Recovery Coordinator has day-to-day day management
authority over the execution and maintenance of the disaster recovery
program.
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 The Planning Team is responsible for all disaster recovery planning

activities including data collection, requirements analysis, test planning,
and end-user liaison activities.
 The Technology Team is responsible for the specification and design of
all technology based disaster recovery solutions.
 The Operations Team is responsible for the implementation and
execution of the disaster recovery plan, including test plans.
 The Support Team is responsible for any technical support and
customer service tasks and activities needed to execute the disaster
recovery program
 The Administration Team is responsible for all administrative aspects
of maintaining and supporting the disaster recovery program.
7.3 Resource Requirements
 What types of resources and skills are required to properly plan and
support disaster recovery activities?
 How many staff resources (in numbers and/or hours) are required to
implement and maintain your disaster recovery program?
 How many additional staff resources (in numbers and/or hours) are
required to manage and maintain systems in accordance with disaster
recovery and business resumption requirements?
 What are the required DRP roles and responsibilities?
o DRP Leadership
o DRP Planning
o DPP Technical Design
o DRP Activation
o DRP Support
o DRP Compliance
o DRP Verification
o DRP Maintenance
 Who will fill these DRP roles and responsibilities?

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 Disaster Recovery Plan
Name the Plan Subject
Author Name

8.0 PLAN ADMINISTRATION

When documenting this section, the following issues and questions should be
considered:
8.1 Plan Approval Procedures
 How will the plan be approved?
8.2 Plan Distribution Procedures
 How will the plan be distributed?
 Who must receive the plan?
8.3 Plan Maintenance Procedures
 How will the plan be maintained and updated?
 How should questions and feedback be submitted?
 How will the plan be tested and verified?

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 Disaster Recovery Plan
Name the Plan Subject
Author Name

9.0 SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION

This section should be used to identify all related documents and information
needed to support the plan and all related implementation procedures.
(Note: Add rows to insert additional items).
Document Title Date Version Location Contact
DRP Team Click here 1.0 Attachment Name/Title/email
Contact List
to enter a
date.
Company Phone Click here 1.0 Attachment Name/Title/email
List
to enter a
date.
Organization Click here 1.0 Attachment Name/Title/email
Chart
to enter a
date.
End-User Support Click here 1.0 Server/Folder Name/Title/email
Procedures /Filename
to enter a
date.
Service Level Click here 1.0 Server/Folder Name/Title/email
Agreement /Filename
to enter a
date.

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 Disaster Recovery Plan
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Author Name

END OF DISASTER RECOVERY PLAN

Appendix A: Approvals

Name: Who is approving this Disaster Recovery Plan?

Title: What is that person’s title?

Department: What is that person’s department?

Contact Phone: What is that person’s contact phone?

Contact Email: What is that person’s contact email?

Date: Click here to enter a date.

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