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Choose a utility disaster recovery solution by first deciding which services must return, in what order, and what systems, people, facilities and supplies they depend on. Then assess whether the utility can restore those services safely: its procedures, verified backups, alternate capacity, trained responders and coordination with outside partners all matter. A backup generator or recovery-software platform may address one part of that work, but neither is a complete recovery strategy.
Define what the utility must recover
Start with the consequences of losing each service, not with a list of products. Identify the functions the utility must restore, the customers or operations affected by an interruption, and the sequence in which services can safely return. Set acceptable interruption and data-loss limits for each function through the utility’s own impact analysis and applicable obligations; the cited DOE and NERC materials do not establish universal recovery-time or recovery-point targets.
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Map the dependencies behind those functions. A control system, for example, may rely on communications, power, a staffed facility, current configuration information, specialist access and replacement materials. Include dependencies that cross organizational boundaries, such as fuel deliveries, vendors, mutual assistance partners and public-sector responders.
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Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstallDOE’s energy-security planning framework treats risk assessment, mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery as connected activities. That makes the recovery plan more useful when it follows the utility’s actual operating priorities and dependencies instead of treating every application or facility as equally important.
Plan for the hazards that can interrupt service
Recovery planning should cover physical damage, cyber incidents, natural disasters, human-caused events and technology failures. The same disruption can affect several layers at once: a storm may damage a facility and communications, while a cyber incident may make otherwise intact systems unsafe to restore until their integrity is established.
For each important service, consider how recovery changes under different scenarios. The aim is not to predict every event, but to identify what must be protected, which recovery actions are safe, and what resources or decisions could delay restoration.
- Physical and environmental impacts: assess site access, building damage, equipment loss, power availability and alternate operating locations.
- Cyber and technology incidents: account for compromised systems, unavailable recovery information, malware persistence and the need to preserve evidence while investigating the cause.
- People and supply dependencies: consider staff availability, specialist skills, communications, fuel, replacement equipment and materials.
DOE’s energy-sector response material addresses physical and cyber attacks, natural disasters and human-caused events. For U.S. utilities, NERC’s April 2024 final-draft CIP-009-7 material also lists natural disasters, computing equipment failures, computing environment failures and cybersecurity incidents as possible recovery-plan activation conditions for the applicable BES cyber-system scope.
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Coordinate operational-system and enterprise recovery
A utility’s operational technology and reliability functions have different recovery risks from enterprise IT, customer-facing systems, records and office facilities. An operational-system recovery may depend on safe configuration, communications and qualified staff; an enterprise system may have different data, application and access needs. Treating them as one undifferentiated recovery checklist can obscure those differences.
Decide whether the organization needs one overarching continuity and disaster recovery plan with system-specific procedures, or multiple linked plans with clear owners and activation paths. Whatever the structure, connect the plans so that restoring one system does not create unsafe conditions or block another service’s recovery. The NERC draft notes that a recovery plan can be part of a larger business continuity or disaster recovery plan, while its requirements concern specified BES cyber systems rather than every utility system.
Assess whether recovery can actually be performed
A plan is operational only if responders can find and use it under pressure. For each critical service, check whether the plan identifies activation conditions, decision authority, responder roles, recovery steps, current recovery information and required resources. Include data-preservation steps when the incident may need investigation.
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Assess recovery capability across the full restoration chain:
- Procedures and artifacts: confirm that restoration procedures, installation media, configuration information and contact details are current and accessible when normal systems are unavailable.
- Backups: review backup-job evidence and test restores. Confirm the media can be read, the information is usable and current, and the restored data and systems meet operational needs. A successful backup job alone does not demonstrate a successful recovery.
- People and access: identify the staff, credentials, approvals, vendor support and specialist skills needed to execute each procedure, including when the primary site or communications are unavailable.
- Incident integrity: where cyber compromise is possible, coordinate recovery with investigation and evidence-preservation needs so that restoration does not destroy information needed to understand the incident.
The NERC April 2024 final draft’s technical basis discusses checking that backup media are usable and contain readable information, and that recovery information is current. Treat that as a useful readiness principle, not as a statement of binding requirements: verify the current approved standard, its effective dates and its applicability before making a compliance decision.
Compare recovery approaches against the utility’s needs
The available evidence supports comparing capabilities and planning approaches, not ranking named vendors or products. Use the options below as components that may fit into a broader recovery program.
| Approach or capability | What to evaluate | What the evidence establishes |
|---|---|---|
| System-specific cyber recovery plans | Scope, activation triggers, roles, current recovery artifacts, backup verification and exercises | NERC’s April 2024 final-draft material covers these elements for its applicable BES cyber-system scope; confirm current status and applicability. |
| Utility-wide continuity and disaster recovery | Critical functions, interdependencies, command structure, mutual aid, logistics and restoration sequence | DOE energy-sector planning and response materials support coordinated all-hazards planning; they do not prescribe a vendor or software platform. |
| Backup generation | Critical-load coverage, fuel access and duration, siting, maintenance and testing | DOE business guidance discusses generators for businesses facing utility disruptions; it is not a recommendation for a utility’s enterprise recovery solution. |
| Solar plus storage or other islandable power | Islanding capability, load served, storage duration, recharge, siting and system integration | DOE describes islanding solar-plus-storage to support selected loads and notes that stored solar energy can avoid dependence on fuel deliveries in relevant scenarios; it does not provide a complete utility procurement comparison. |
Compare each candidate against the same criteria, based on the service and scenario it is intended to support:
- Does it meet the utility’s recovery sequence and its service-specific interruption and data-loss limits?
- Which hazards and dependencies does it address, and which remain outside its scope?
- Can it preserve data integrity and support safe return to service?
- Will it interoperate with operational technology and existing communications, facilities and procedures?
- Can the utility’s workforce operate and maintain it, and is vendor support available when needed?
- Can the utility test it realistically, and what are its lifecycle, logistics and regulatory-fit implications?
For backup power specifically, compare actual critical loads, required operating duration, site constraints and fuel or recharge needs. A generator’s fuel supply and maintenance are part of its recovery dependency; islandable solar-plus-storage has different siting, integration and duration considerations. Neither option should be assumed to cover all critical services.
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Build coordination and exercises into the solution
Restoration often depends on organizations beyond the utility. Establish roles and communications with vendors, mutual assistance partners, state and local authorities, and relevant federal responders. Identify how the utility will request staff, equipment, materials, emergency power coordination or logistics support, and who can make decisions when normal channels fail.
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In the United States, DOE’s Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER) leads federal preparedness and coordinated response for energy-sector disruptions and serves as lead for Emergency Support Function #12 under FEMA’s National Response Framework. DOE describes ESF #12 support including damage assessment, restoration and logistics expertise, resource coordination, regulatory waivers and shared situational awareness. Its response-and-recovery overview also describes longer-term coordination with local utilities, affected states, FEMA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers around temporary emergency power, mutual assistance and equipment and material needs.
DOE’s Energy Emergency Response Playbook provides states and territories with a customizable planning framework and templates aligned with state energy security plans. It is a public-sector planning resource, not a recommendation for utility recovery software.
Exercise the plan with scenarios that test activation, communications, backup restoration, logistics and safe return to service. Exercises can reveal whether roles are understood, recovery information is usable and outside support can be coordinated. Record gaps, assign corrective actions and update procedures, contacts and recovery artifacts as systems or dependencies change.
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Confirm regulatory scope before procurement
For a U.S. electric utility, determine whether the relevant systems and entity fall within the scope of an applicable NERC standard, and confirm the standard’s current approved text and effective dates. The cited CIP-009-7 document is a final draft dated April 2024 and contains draft material; it should not be presented by itself as proof of a current binding requirement. Compliance conclusions require checking the authoritative current standard and the utility’s applicability.
More broadly, do not select a solution solely because it claims to satisfy a standard. Confirm which systems, procedures, evidence and testing obligations apply to the organization, then evaluate whether the proposed capability supports those duties alongside operational recovery needs.
Make the selection decision traceable
Document the critical services and scenarios the utility used to evaluate options, the recovery targets it set, important dependencies, assumptions, test evidence and unresolved gaps. Record why a capability was selected and what remains to be handled through procedures, mutual aid or other controls. This gives operators and decision-makers a concrete basis for reviewing readiness as equipment, threats and service priorities change.
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