How Barracuda helps one of the Czech Republic’s oldest universities protect on-premises data, simplify recovery and support NIS2 readiness.
Key takeaways
- Palacký University Olomouc added a Barracuda Backup V90 appliance to protect on-premises data and complement its existing Barracuda Cloud-to-Cloud Backup deployment.
- Centralized management, straightforward deployment and reliable recovery have helped the university strengthen resilience without creating a heavy administrative burden.
- The university is also adopting Barracuda CloudGen Firewall for secure VPN access as it works toward meeting NIS2 requirements for backup, recovery and access security.
Cloud adoption may have changed where organizations keep their data, but it has not eliminated the need to protect information that must remain on premises. For Palacký University Olomouc, one of the Czech Republic’s oldest universities, creating a more comprehensive backup and recovery strategy was both an operational priority and an important step toward compliance with the EU’s NIS2 directive.
The university had already deployed Barracuda Cloud-to-Cloud Backup to protect Microsoft 365 data stored in OneDrive, SharePoint, Teams, and Exchange Online. Its next challenge was safeguarding local user data, university databases, information systems, and virtual server images against ransomware, storage failures and accidental deletion.
Protecting data on premises and beyond
Although the university’s on-premises data was already backed up to disk storage, Head of IT Infrastructure Petr Volak wanted an additional layer of protection and the option to replicate data off site.
“Even though that data was backed up via our disk storage, we still wanted to have something really solid in case all that storage blew away. If all our copies were gone, we wanted to have something stored not on our premises, in order to restore the data.”
— Petr Volak, Head of IT Infrastructure, Palacký University Olomouc
Working with technology reseller SoftwareOne, the university selected a Barracuda Backup V90 appliance. The solution gives Petr and his team a centralized, cloud-based console for deployment, configuration, reporting, and ongoing management. It also complements the university’s existing Cloud-to-Cloud Backup environment, extending protection across both cloud-based and on-premises data.
Making reliable recovery easier to manage
For a busy university IT team, backup is only useful if data can be recovered when it is needed. Palacký University performs restoration tests as part of its obligations, and its experience with the Barracuda appliance has been reassuring.
“We restored from backups around 10 times last year, and everything worked perfectly.”
— Petr Volak
Petr also highlights the appliance’s affordable pricing, fast time to value and low maintenance requirements. A single management environment provides access to the university’s primary and backup appliances, with room to add more appliances if its needs grow.
Supporting the university’s NIS2 journey
NIS2 gives the project added urgency. As a state university, Palacký University is subject to national implementation of the EU directive, which calls for stronger cyber-risk management measures, including backup management, disaster recovery and secure access.
The combination of Barracuda Backup and Cloud-to-Cloud Backup helps the university address both compliance and operational resilience. Its security strategy also includes Barracuda CloudGen Firewall, which the team is looking to use for secure VPN access and identity verification.
“It’s about resilience and securing access to verify the right people. That’s also a requirement for NIS2.”
— Petr Volak
Explore the complete customer story
The university’s experience shows why cyber resilience cannot depend on a single product or one layer of protection. The full case study explains how Palacký University is combining on-premises backup, Microsoft 365 data protection and network security to reduce recovery risk, support NIS2 compliance and prepare for future requirements.
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