---
title: "Control Archive Module: long-term offline | Firevault"
url: https://fire-vault.com/control/modules/archive
description: "Archive commits selected data to long-term offline custody in a Firevault bunker. Learn how retention rules, chain of custody and recall requests are handled."
lang: en-GB
---

Control Module - VAULT

# FV-Archive. Preserve what the business must be able to recover.

Archive preserves critical files and records on physically separate storage so they can be recovered, retained, attested to and relied on. Recovery, retention, compliance, continuity and evidential integrity are treated as a single discipline.

Back to Control: https://fire-vault.com/solutions/control

Control at a glance

Image: FV-Archive module artwork: preserve critical files and records for recovery and retention (https://fire-vault.com/__l5e/assets-v1/db835658-b9cd-4499-b685-76e5eccd0ad5/control-module-archive-hero.webp)

Control removes the physical path. Blueprints show where each module sits.

The exposure in numbers

01

Storage held apart from the live operating environment

Physically separate Storage held apart from the live operating environment

02

Cryptographic integrity confirmed on retrieval

Verified Cryptographic integrity confirmed on retrieval

03

Held for the period the policy requires, no less

Retained Held for the period the policy requires, no less

04

Designed to be brought back, not just stored

Recoverable Designed to be brought back, not just stored

The Problem

## Records that share the fate of the systems that produced them.

01

### Records on the live plane

Files and records kept on the same plane as the live environment can be altered, encrypted or deleted by anything that gains a foothold there.

02

### Backups that cannot be relied on

Backups that have never been verified, or that depend on the same infrastructure to read them, do not reliably support recovery when it is needed.

03

### Retention as an afterthought

When retention is bolted on, the periods are inconsistent, the evidence is incomplete and the next audit becomes a project rather than a query.

Control Module - VAULT

> A record you cannot recover is a record you do not have. A record anyone can edit is a record nobody will trust.

The Scenario

### Scenario: recovering what matters after a bad day

Following an incident that affects the live environment, the priority is to recover the records and files the business needs to continue operating, satisfy regulators and reconstruct the timeline. Because Archive holds them on physically separate storage with verified integrity, recovery is a defined operation rather than a salvage exercise. The records that come back are the records that were preserved, and they can be shown to be so.

"Archive is the difference between recovery as a plan and recovery as a hope."

FV-Archive in placement

## Where Archive holds the disconnected copy.

Archive places critical data in a copy that is not on the live network. The copy is reachable only through an authorised Transfer event into a time-bound Relay window.

Grounded in NIST SP 800-209, ISO 27001 A.8.13 Information Backup and NCSC offline backup guidance.

Inputs ─┐ Telemetry ─┐

Image: FV-Archive module icon (https://fire-vault.com/assets/archive-icon-B3rc85NY.png)

FV-Archive

Control layer

┌─ Outputs ┌─ Control

01 A.8.13

Operational data archive

Periodic copies of operational data are written into the offline vault. The vault is not on the live network.

02 PR.IP-1

Configuration and golden image archive

Authoritative configurations and golden images are stored offline, so the source of truth survives an incident.

03 A.8.15

Audit and evidence archive

Audit trails and attestations are sealed into the offline vault for the retention period.

04 A.5.34

Long-term legal hold

Material under legal hold is stored in a copy that is immune to in-place edit or deletion.

Relies on · prerequisites

- Storage that is not reachable on the live network at rest
- Tamper-evident write path
- Tested restore, not just tested backup

Pairs with · companion modules

Image: FV-Transfer module icon (https://fire-vault.com/assets/transfer-icon-DqGa0PQI.png)
Transfer
Image: FV-Validate module icon (https://fire-vault.com/assets/vault-icon-CD3Pv4ri.png)
Validate
Image: FV-Lock module icon (https://fire-vault.com/assets/lock-icon-UU3vOaKE.png)
Lock
Image: FV-Firebreak module icon (https://fire-vault.com/assets/firebreak-icon-7zSCkB1t.png)
Firebreak

Featured In

Read about Firevault on TechRadar Pro: https://www.techradar.com/pro/uk-startup-put-physical-disconnect-switch-in-its-cloud-storage-offering-to-mitigate-ransomware-attacks-but-will-that-be-enough
Read about Firevault on Yahoo Finance: https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/firevault-launches-help-businesses-directors-074500961.html
Read about Firevault on Channel Insider: https://www.channelinsider.com/security/tools-and-platforms/firevault-security-offline-platform-offering/
Read about Firevault on Security Buyer: https://securitybuyer.com/uk-cybersecurity-startup-launches-firevault/
Read about Firevault on SecurityBrief: https://securitybrief.com.au/story/firevault-unveils-offline-digital-vault-to-combat-rising-cyber-risks

Capabilities

## What you get with every deployment

01

### Physically separate storage

Archived records sit apart from the live operating environment, so a bad day there does not reach them.

02

### Verifiable integrity

Integrity is established when records are written and confirmed when they are retrieved.

03

### Policy-driven retention

Retention periods are set by policy and enforced by the system rather than maintained by hand.

04

### Recovery as an operation

Bringing records back is a defined operation with named owners, not an improvised salvage.

05

### Authorised access

Retrieval, restoration and release require the right authority and the right validation.

06

### Continuity and evidence as one

The same preserved store supports operational continuity, regulatory evidence and forensic reconstruction.

Demo to Live

## Adoption Guide

Step 1

#### Identify the records that matter

Catalogue the files, datasets and records on which recovery, retention, compliance and evidence depend.

Step 2

#### Set the policy

Agree retention periods, integrity expectations, retrieval authorities and approved destinations.

Step 3

#### Pilot the preservation

Move one critical class of records into Archive end-to-end, including a rehearsed recovery.

Step 4

#### Operate and review

Extend Archive across the remaining critical records and rehearse recovery on a regular cadence.

Step 1

#### Identify the records that matter

Step 2

#### Set the policy

Step 3

#### Pilot the preservation

Step 4

#### Operate and review

Organise a Demo: https://fire-vault.com/contact

Playbooks

## Which playbook covers this module

Each playbook shows where this module sits in a real deployment, who authorises it and how a pilot scales into rollout.

Firevault Legal Playbook

### Close the File. Protect the Record.

The closed-file chapters cover retained legal records, retention periods and evidential integrity on separate media.

Read the playbook: Close the File. Protect the Record.
https://fire-vault.com/playbook/legal

Firevault Aerospace Playbook

### A Control Blueprint for Aerospace & Aviation

Addresses type records, configuration baselines and continuing airworthiness data that must outlive the live system.

Read the playbook: A Control Blueprint for Aerospace & Aviation
https://fire-vault.com/playbook/aerospace

Firevault Leadership Briefing

### The Leaders' Playbook

Frames records and continuity as a board-level custody question rather than a storage cost.

Read the playbook: The Leaders' Playbook
https://fire-vault.com/playbook/leaders

## Explore More

### FV-Validate

Checks that govern retrieval and release.

Learn more about FV-Validate
https://fire-vault.com/control/modules/validate

### FV-Transfer

Approved paths into and out of Archive.

Learn more about FV-Transfer
https://fire-vault.com/control/modules/transfer

### FV-Lock

Authority to set retention, retrieve and release.

Learn more about FV-Lock
https://fire-vault.com/control/modules/lock

Questions

## Frequently Asked

## Structured data

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```