Which backup type should be performed for a disaster recovery exercise at a company cold site?

In a disaster recovery exercise, especially at a cold site, performing a full backup is essential. A full backup captures all the data across the systems, ensuring that you have a complete and consistent snapshot of the workload at a specific point in time. This type of backup is critical for disaster recovery scenarios where the goal is to restore systems to their operational state from scratch.

At a cold site, which typically lacks the latest data and active processing systems, having a full backup means that all necessary information is readily available to restore operations quickly. If only partial backups like incremental or differential were used, there may be dependencies on previous backups or additional steps required to fully restore the environment.

Therefore, a full backup provides comprehensive coverage, making it easier to meet recovery time objectives and maintain business continuity in the event of a disaster.