What is it?
Disaster Recovery (DR) testing and Tabletop Exercises are a way to validate state agency continuity plans in a controlled environment. They are used to identify any gaps in the plans and to facilitate coordination and communication between NDIT and the agency.
DR refers to the plans an organization puts in place for responding to a catastrophic event as it relates to technology. It involves the measures an organization takes to respond to an event and return to safe, normal operations as soon as possible.
What do you get with the service?
Disaster Recovery Testing
NDIT will ensure system and data properly fail over to an alternate data center. DR testing helps establish if predetermined recovery time objectives can be met; provide feedback to an agency so DR plans can be amended should issues arise; and ensure that the system recovers properly after new upgrades or changes are made to the system.
Tabletop Exercises
NDIT will also facilitate tabletop exercises upon request. A tabletop exercise involves a made-up but possible scenario and then walks through the steps of recovery from both the agency’s and NDIT’s perspectives.
These exercises are a walk-through of plans for both NDIT and the requesting agency to ensure that both agencies are in accord on the process and expectations of recovery and to identify and remediate any gaps on our processes.
How do you request service?
NDIT’s Self Service Portal may be used to submit an “Schedule a Disaster Recovery or Tabletop Exercise" service request. Requests for a DR test or tabletop exercise must be submitted to NDIT at least three (3) months in advance of the requested test/exercise date. DR tests are to be scheduled for the predetermined quarterly test dates.
NDIT's Enterprise Service Level Agreement includes Service Level Objectives and in-depth details about Disaster Recovery procedures and Tabletop Exercises.