Designing a Real-World Recovery Strategy for SQL Server: From Theory to Survival

In many SQL Server environments it is assumed you are protected—until the moment you have to recover. Backups exist, availability features are enabled, yet when corruption, ransomware, or data loss strikes, teams discover that recovery plans are incomplete, untested, or misaligned with business expectations.

In this session, you will learn how to design a practical and defensible recovery strategy for SQL Server databases. We will translate RPO and RTO requirements into concrete technical decisions and walk through real-world failure scenarios that demand different recovery approaches. You will learn how to evaluate backup designs, validate restore readiness, and understand the role—and limitations—of high availability features in recovery planning.

This session is for DBAs who want confidence that their SQL Server platforms can survive real incidents, not just pass audits. You will leave with clear actions you can immediately apply to assess and strengthen your recovery strategy before it is tested under pressure.

What do RPO and RTO really mean
Mindset of Recovery rather than Backed Up
How to Test Recovery rather than believe/assume