Recovery Priority Worksheet

Purpose

Use this worksheet to decide what should be restored first after a major disruption.

The goal is to restore business capability in the correct order rather than simply restoring whichever system is easiest.

Recovery Scenario

Scenario or incident: ____________________

Recovery lead: ____________________

Date: ____________________

Critical Business Processes

List the business processes the company needs to restore.

Priority Business Process Business Owner Maximum Acceptable Disruption Minimum Capability Needed
1        
2        
3        

Supporting Systems and Data

For each critical process, identify what it depends on.

  • Business process: ____________________

  • Required systems: ____________________

  • Required data: ____________________

  • Required accounts: ____________________

  • Required devices: ____________________

  • Required vendors: ____________________

  • Required network or internet services: ____________________

  • Other dependencies: ____________________

Recovery Priority

Assign a recovery priority:

  • Priority 1 – Immediate: Required to restore essential business operations.

  • Priority 2 – High: Required soon after essential operations are available.

  • Priority 3 – Normal: Important but can wait while higher priorities recover.

  • Priority 4 – Deferred: Can remain unavailable for a longer period without serious impact.

  • Priority: ____________________

Recovery Requirements

System or service: ____________________

Recovery owner: ____________________

Backup or restore source: ____________________

Recovery method: ____________________

Credentials required: ____________________

Vendor support required: Yes / No

Estimated recovery time: ____________________

Business validation owner: ____________________

Dependencies

What must be available first?

  • Identity services: ____________________
  • Network: ____________________
  • DNS: ____________________
  • Email: ____________________
  • Database: ____________________
  • Storage: ____________________
  • Cloud services: ____________________
  • Vendor service: ____________________
  • Other: ____________________

Temporary Workaround

Can the business operate temporarily without this system?

  • Yes / No

If yes, describe workaround:


Maximum safe duration of workaround: ____________________

Recovery Decision

Approved recovery order:


Approved by: ____________________

Date: ____________________

Practical Rule

Restore business capability, not just technology.