easyMultiple Choice
CISA Practice Question: Designing its backup strategy for a critical…
A company is designing its backup strategy for a critical database that must be available 24/7. The database experiences high transaction volumes. Which backup method minimizes data loss while allowing continuous operations?
⚠ Common exam trap
A common mix-up: candidates confuse 'differential backup' with 'transaction log backup,' assuming differential backups provide the same granularity of recovery, when in fact differentials only capture cumulative changes since the last full backup and cannot restore to an arbitrary point in time.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Online backup with transaction log backups
Online backup with transaction log backups (Option C) is correct because it allows the database to remain fully operational (24/7 availability) while capturing every committed transaction in the transaction log. In the event of a failure, you can restore the most recent full backup and then apply all subsequent transaction log backups to recover to the exact point of failure, minimizing data loss to only uncommitted transactions.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Offline full backup performed weekly
Why it's wrong here
An offline full backup requires the database to be shut down, directly violating the 24/7 availability requirement, and weekly intervals leave up to seven days of transactions unrecoverable. It suits non-critical systems with generous maintenance windows where downtime is acceptable, not a continuously operating high-volume database.
- ✗
Differential backup performed daily
Why it's wrong here
Differential backups capture only changes since the last full backup, so recovery still depends on that full plus the latest differential, leaving a recovery point gap of up to a day. It suits environments tolerating daily data loss where backup windows and storage are constrained, not continuous 24/7 transaction processing.
- ✓
Online backup with transaction log backups
Why this is correct
Online backups capture the database while it remains accessible, and transaction log backups capture every committed change between full backups, enabling point-in-time recovery. This combination minimises data loss to the last log backup while the database continues serving transactions around the clock.
- ✗
Full backup performed during low-usage periods
Why it's wrong here
A full backup captures the entire database only at scheduled intervals, so every transaction committed since the last run is lost on failure, and the copy itself consumes I/O during production hours. It suits small, static datasets where a periodic complete restore point is acceptable, not a 24/7 high-volume system requiring minimal loss.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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