Recently, one of the main file servers at our company failed. It was using a 4 disk RAID array, but apparently 3 of the disks died, and all the data on the server has been lost.
Speaking to the sys admin, he says that he has been warning the upper management about the backup situation for months. He had been trying to get approval to buy an enterprise-level backup solution, but he never got the budget approved for it - because management thought it was over the top.
The sys admin is a dedicated properly certified sys admin, whereas his managers are not IT-oriented.
His manager is asking why he didn't buy a cheap external drive and use this to backup the file server. The sys admin thinks that this is just a mickey-mouse solution that's suitable for use at home, but not a professional IT company - which is why he did not do it.
It seems to me that the sys admin wants proper, text-book IT strategy that costs a lot more money, whereas the management (without a deep IT understanding) wants cheaper solutions that they think are adequate.
I'm wondering what is the opinion of other sys admins? Was this sys admin correct in his actions? Or should he always make sure there is a backup of the important data, even if he believes that the cheaper way is not good enough?
Edit: based upon the answers, I'll add that the sys admin has an IT manager who would've known of the situation. He reports to the ultimate boss. I don't know if the manager ever reported the full situation to the boss. I think it is quite tough for the manager, as he is stuck in the middle, and he wants to be diplomatic with both sides.