Questions and answers
Straight answers on restore-testing risk, what happens when a restore fails, how NorthFirn handles your data, how work is scoped and priced, and who does it.
Restore testing
It should not be, and we design it that way. A test restores to a separate, isolated location. Your live data stays where it is. We agree on the boundary, the operators, and a stop condition in writing before anyone touches a console.
Restore testing
That is the useful outcome, not the bad one. Better to find it on an ordinary Tuesday than during a real incident. We record where it stopped, why, and what it would take to fix, then agree on a retest once the gap is closed.
Your data
We work to a written data-handling standard: least access, a named boundary for what we can see, and no copies kept beyond the engagement without your say-so. Evidence packs record facts and screenshots, not your customers' protected records.
Your data
No. We do not take custody of your backup data. The test runs on your systems and your storage. What we keep is the record of the test: scope, timing, results, and findings, in a form you approve.
Scope and cost
Our productized work has published starting prices, so you can see what a snapshot, assessment, restore test, or assurance tier costs to begin. Larger or bespoke work is a fixed fee against a written scope, so you know what is included and what a change would cost before it starts.
Scope and cost
Yes. We plug in as the restore-testing or recovery specialist and keep your existing provider in the loop. Everyone's role is agreed before setup or testing starts.
About NorthFirn
No, and we say so on purpose. NorthFirn is an independent recovery-assurance practice: backup, storage, restore testing, evidence, and practical automation. We stay in that lane and work with your security team rather than replacing it.
About NorthFirn
One accountable person on every engagement. NorthFirn is run by Eli Dean, a U.S. Army veteran with over a decade in IT and security, operating as a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business.