If your organization uses GitHub, source code may be the most valuable asset within your company.

As a CTO, Head of IT, CISO or Security Architect – you can probably imagine the cost of losing the code your team has been working on for months…

Given that GitHub is an external service provider, hosting projects there means security responsibilities are split between both the user and the provider. Data breaches, service disruptions, as well as policy changes, can limit your access to repositories and metadata on GitHub, and result in your intellectual property being at risk. Don’t treat production data as backup, and implement reliable security measures, to guarantee business continuity.

Key reasons for GitHub backup

GitHub (and Microsoft) rely on shared responsibility models that outline the division of security duties. Some are handled by the service provider, others depend on your organization – there are duties that both parties share too. 

? GitHub takes care of operating systems, network along with controls, applications, physical hosts, and data centers, and partly the identity and directory infrastructure.

? Your responsibility to ensure data confidentiality, accessibility, and recoverability. You are responsible for managing the information within your accounts, the users, access to your data, and any third-party apps you implement.

The main risks backup helps to address include:

• Human errors and accidental deletions 
• Outages and service disruptions
• Ransomware 
• Compliance
• Hardware & software errors 

Backup scripts vs third-party backup vendors

Teams may opt for scripts and manual backups. While in the beginning, it might seem cost effective, from a long-term perspective maintenance costs and working hours spent on managing backups can cost you a fortune.

The critical capabilities third-party backups:

• Any-storage compatibility 
• Full automation (“set-and-forget”) & central management
• Predefined backup plans or advanced plan customization (so you can adjust backup performance to your company requirements, specification and pipeline)
• A wide range of recovery options (including granular, point-in-time recovery, cross-user recovery, and disaster recovery technologies)
• Security level that meets SOC 2 and ISO27001 compliance requirements

Ideally, you should be able to define different retention and performance schemes for every type of copy (full, incremental, and differential).

? SaaS deployment, means you are not obligated to allocate any additional device that could be used as a local server – the service runs within the provider’s cloud infrastructure. You do not have to worry about its maintenance

? On-Premise deployment grants that you install the software on a machine of your provision and control so it works in your environment locally

What is required in terms of backup performance? 

Your GitHub backup software should allow you to add an unlimited number of storage instances (on premise or cloud) to replicate backups between storages, eliminate any outage or disaster risk and meet the 3-2-1 backup rule. Make sure you have the possibility to replicate from any to any data store – cloud to cloud, cloud to local, or locally with no limitations.

Set different retention for every backup plan by:

• Indicating the number of copies you want to keep,
• Indicating the time of each copy to be kept in the storage (those parameters should be set Separately for the full, differential, and incremental backup),
• Disabling rules and keeping copies infinitely (to use it for GitHub archive purposes).

Central management console is an important aspect to simplify user experience. By notifications being sent directly to the software, you and your team use as a daily routine you get a 100% guarantee that you won’t miss any important information. With dedicated GitHub accounts users shall also be able to bypass throttling, after they exhaust the number of requests to the API.

Backup security check-list 

Your chosen repository and metadata backup should provide you with numerous security features that will grant data accessibility and recoverability. DevSecOps demands increasingly stronger security measures, these include:

• Encryption in transit and at rest
• Secure credential handling
• Ransomware-proof backup (immutability / WORM-compliant)
• Monitoring & visibility
• Email & Slack notifications
• Task status & alerts
• Advanced audit logs

Implement a strong disaster recovery plan 

Backup can be the final line of defense against data loss scenarios, but it only fulfills its role if data can be reliably restored. GitHub service disruptions, accidental or intentional deletions, ransomware incidents, or infrastructure failures may all require immediate access to data backups of repositories and even metadata.

A proper GitHub backup solution should enable: 

• Point-in-time restore
• Granular recovery capabilities
• Cross-over restore 
• Full data recovery

By introducing multiple recovery plans, organizations can reduce downtime, maintain development continuity, and regain control over their intellectual property regardless of the failure scenario.

Keep your GitHub data protected and dive into more security details with our GitHub Backup Guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

Isn’t my code already safe since GitHub is a professional cloud service?

While GitHub secures its own servers and network, you are responsible for the actual data you put inside your account. This is called a shared responsibility model, which means the provider protects the platform while you must protect your own intellectual property from human error or local issues. Without a separate backup, you risk losing everything if your account is locked or a file is accidentally deleted.

What are the main risks that could cause a total loss of my source code?

The most common threats include accidental deletions by tired employees, account takeovers by hackers, and dangerous ransomware attacks that lock your files. Large service outages can also prevent your team from working for hours or days, which costs your company money and slows down development. Having an independent copy of your repositories ensures that work continues even when the main service is down.

Why shouldn’t I just write my own scripts to handle backups?

Writing your own backup scripts might seem cheaper at first, but they are often difficult to maintain as your team and project list grows. Manual scripts lack advanced features like point-in-time recovery or automatic alerts that tell you when a backup fails. Professional tools are more reliable because they are fully automated and built to meet strict security standards like SOC 2 or ISO compliance.

How does the 3-2-1 backup rule apply to my GitHub repositories?

The 3-2-1 rule means you should keep three total copies of your data on two different types of storage, with at least one of those copies kept at a separate location. For a remote team, this might mean keeping your code on GitHub, a secondary cloud storage like AWS, and a local physical server. This setup ensures that no single accident or service failure can destroy your most valuable digital assets.

What is the difference between SaaS and On-Premise backup systems?

A SaaS backup runs entirely in the provider’s cloud, meaning you do not have to buy any new hardware or manage any servers yourself. On-Premise deployment allows you to install the backup software on your own machines so that you have total physical control over where the data lives. Both options are effective, but SaaS is usually faster to set up while On-Premise is often chosen by companies with very strict security rules.

Can I choose how long my backup copies are kept in storage?

Yes, a high-quality backup system allows you to set specific retention rules for different types of data. You can choose to keep daily snapshots for a month while saving full monthly archives forever to meet legal or compliance requirements. This flexibility helps you save storage space and money while making sure you can always find older versions of your work if needed.

What does “point-in-time” recovery mean for a developer?

Point-in-time recovery allows you to roll back your entire repository to the exact moment before a mistake or a cyber attack happened. Instead of just having the latest version, you can access a “snapshot” of your code from a Tuesday morning or a Friday night. This is a lifesaver when a bad piece of code is merged or when a virus infects your current files.

Is it true that a backup is only useful for recovering deleted files?

It is a common myth that backups are only for emergencies; in reality, they are also used for auditing and moving data between accounts. They provide a secure archive that helps you track who changed what over many years, which is vital for passing security inspections. Backups also allow you to quickly restore your entire workspace to a new account if your original provider changes its policies or prices.

How do notifications help me stay on top of my code security?

Modern backup tools send instant alerts to Slack or email so your team knows immediately if a backup fails or if a security threat is detected. This visibility means you don’t have to manually check logs every day to make sure your data is safe. Constant monitoring ensures that your final line of defense is always ready to go when you actually need it.

How do I get started with a professional backup plan today?

The first step is to link your GitHub account to a trusted third-party backup service that handles both repositories and metadata. Once connected, you should set up an automated schedule that performs incremental backups, which only save the changes made since the last copy. This keeps your protection up to date without slowing down your internet or using too much storage.