Backup of Onshape models

philippe_marin

Dear all,
I recently experimented a loss of data on a Google drive repository, due to a "ransomware" attack. In fact I supposed that a company as Google could provide some data redundency or other facilities to backup and recover data if needed. It seems to be not completely reliable, and the best way seems to make our own backup for important data.

So I wonder about the data hosted by Onshape servers. I would be more confident if I could in some way make myself a kind of local backup, as a native file, of some models that are important for my personal projects. And for sure as I try to promote the use of Onshape for bigger projects, and for companies ones, the first brake to register and adopt Onshape solution is lack of confidence in data security. People need confidence to work.
I do not speak of exporting as STL or STEP file that I cannot easily modify, but some file that I could then re-import in an Onshape workspace. Of course this backup will not be readable by any other CAD software but I don't care as this is not my goal.

Is there a way to do that, or could it be provided in a near future?

Regards.
Philippe

NeilCooke

Hi Philippe,

Onshape does not use files so your idea is not possible. All data is backed up regularly so even if you accidentally deleted a document and emptied your trash you could contact support to get it back. 

By the way, it is impossible for Onshape to be affected by ransomware or any other virus for that matter which is one of the main benefits of the system. 

philippe_marin

Thanks for this explanation. 
Philippe.

john_rousseau

Hi @philippe_marin. Good questions / concerns. Just a little more detail on what @NeilCooke said above...

Onshape's databases are replicated across multiple, geographically separated data centers. Your data is replicated in a matter of milliseconds as you work. In addition, we backup all of our databases every 3 hours. We restore from these backups and run integrity tests on all documents at least every 3 weeks. We are confident that our backup / restore strategy is effective and practical.

All the hundreds of servers that comprise the Onshape service only do one job: Run Onshape. Only software that is needed to provide the Onshape service is installed on these virtual servers and it is all done by automation. We also replace these servers regularly (sometimes within hours).

Security risks are real and we have a team that spends a lot of time staying ahead in the security arms race. Ransomware of our production data is not one of the attacks we are overly concerned about.

We take the securing and preservation of your data very seriously.

-John

philippe_marin

Hi John, thanks for this additional information :-)
Philippe

urs_egger099

NeilCooke said:

Hi Philippe,

Onshape does not use files so your idea is not possible. All data is backed up regularly so even if you accidentally deleted a document and emptied your trash you could contact support to get it back. 

By the way, it is impossible for Onshape to be affected by ransomware or any other virus for that matter which is one of the main benefits of the system. 

Hi Neil,
I discussed this topic recently. One question came up where I'm not so sure about: Isn't a database itself at least one file as well? Maybe you can explain this a bit more in detail. Why is the protection against malware better with this system than an on premise PDM. 
thank you,
Urs

NeilCooke

@urs_egger099 - please see John Rousseau's reply above. If you want some light reading about NoSQL databases, go here. With on-premise PDM you are still dealing with files being copied all over the place - it only takes one careless user to infect an entire company. 

john_rousseau

Hi @urs_egger099. The system that you have your checked out files on is the same system you read email with and browse the web on. That's the place where they are at risk from exploits. The PDM only works when files are checked in. You only work when files are checked out.

Onshape's servers only run Onshape software, all deployed by automation. Except for the load balancers (our front door), none of our hundreds of machines even have IP addresses that can be routed to from the internet.