Trades, logistics & industry
Backup for logistics companies: planning, tachograph and order data
Mindtime backs up the servers, databases, laptops and Microsoft 365 accounts behind your planning and warehouse operations to its own Tier III data centres in the Netherlands and Germany. Copies are immutable, one is air-gapped, and Disaster Recovery adds standby infrastructure for systems you cannot do without.
In Dutch, German or English.
- NL · DEStored only in our own Tier III data centres in the Netherlands and Germany
- ImmutableObject Lock storage plus an air-gapped copy; every backup job is checked
- ISO 27001 · NEN 7510Audited security, with a data processing agreement in every contract
- NL · DE · ENSupport from people, no offshore call centres or chatbots
In short
Logistics and transport companies need backup because planning data, tachograph downloads and shipment records keep trucks moving and must be shown to inspectors. Mindtime backs up the servers, databases, laptops and Microsoft 365 around your TMS and WMS, keeps immutable copies in the Netherlands and Germany, and offers Disaster Recovery with quarterly tests.
What's at stake
The data logistics and transport companies can't afford to lose
Tachograph downloads
Driver card and vehicle unit files have to be downloaded on schedule and kept for inspection. A lost archive becomes a problem at the next ILT check.
Planning and order data
Orders, routes, delivery windows and proof of delivery sit in your TMS or WMS. Without them, dispatch cannot plan tomorrow and finance cannot invoice yesterday.
Customer and shipment documents
Waybills, customs paperwork and customer instructions arrive by email and end up in shared folders. You need them when a claim or an audit comes in.
Rules and obligations
What the rules ask of logistics and transport companies
Summarised from the sources listed at the bottom of this page. This is general information, not legal advice.
Tachograph data: download and keep for a year
The ILT requires driver card data to be downloaded at least once every 28 days and vehicle unit data at least once every 90 days. Electronic data and record sheets must be kept for at least one year under the Arbeidstijdenbesluit vervoer; other rules, such as tax rules, may require longer. [1]
NIS2: which transport is listed
Annex I of the Cyberbeveiligingswet covers air, rail, water and road transport. In road transport, the listed entities are road authorities and operators of intelligent transport systems; water transport includes transport companies, and postal and courier providers are an Annex II sector. [2]
Size thresholds
The law applies to medium-sized organisations in listed sectors, with at least 50 employees or an annual turnover and balance sheet total above €10 million, and to large organisations with more than 250 employees. [3]
In scope? Register, protect, report
The Cyberbeveiligingswet took effect on 15 August 2026. In-scope organisations must register, take measures that include business continuity such as backup management and recovery plans, and give an early warning of significant incidents within 24 hours. For transport, the supervisor is the ILT. [2]
GPS in trucks needs a DPIA
The AP names GPS trackers in employees' cars or trucks as an example of systematic monitoring that requires a data protection impact assessment. If you have a works council, its consent is needed for staff tracking rules. [5]
When it goes wrong
A failed host in the server room
Illustrative example: a regional haulier runs its planning software and tachograph archive on a virtual server in its own server room. A power surge damages the host overnight. With Mindtime Disaster Recovery, the company fails over to standby infrastructure and dispatch keeps working while new hardware is ordered. The tachograph archive is restored from the immutable backups, complete for the next inspection.
How Mindtime protects it
Backup for logistics and transport companies, workload by workload
- VMware and Hyper-V backupOn-premise planning and warehouse systems usually run as virtual machines that can be restored or failed over as a whole.
- Database backupTMS and WMS data sit in SQL Server, PostgreSQL or similar databases that need consistent backups.
- Microsoft 365 backupCustomer orders, waybills and exceptions are handled by email and shared folders.
- Laptop and endpoint backupPlanners' laptops and the PC that holds tachograph downloads are single points of failure.
- Disaster RecoveryTrucks keep driving during an outage, so planning has to keep working too.
- NIS2 ComplianceLarger transport companies in listed subsectors must show business continuity measures, including backup management.
The software you use, and what we protect around it
| Boltrics 3PL Dynamics | WMS, TMS and finance built on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, delivered as a cloud subscription. Check Boltrics's export and retention terms; Mindtime protects the Microsoft 365 mail, files and laptops your planners use around it. |
|---|---|
| Webfleet | Cloud fleet management that includes tachograph download features. Keep your own copy of the downloaded files; if they are stored on your server or NAS, Mindtime backs that up. |
| Tachograph archive on a PC or server | Files from download tools are often kept on one office PC. Mindtime backs up that PC or server, so the archive survives a hardware failure. |
| Self-hosted TMS or WMS databases | If your planning system runs on SQL Server or another database on your own hardware, Mindtime backs up the database and the virtual machine it runs on. |
Before you switch
What logistics and transport companies ask us first
Our TMS supplier already makes backups.
Check what they cover and how long they keep it. Your own servers, tachograph archive, mailboxes and laptops still need protection, and Mindtime backs those up with an extra air-gapped copy.
We can't afford to stop operations for a recovery test.
Mindtime Disaster Recovery runs on standby infrastructure. The first test failover typically happens within 10 days, and DR tests are repeated every quarter, so you know recovery works before you need it.
Will our data leave the EU?
No. Mindtime stores backups only in its own Tier III data centres in the Netherlands and Germany, and a data processing agreement is part of every contract.
FAQ
Questions about backup for logistics and transport companies
Is my transport company in scope of NIS2?
It depends on what you do and how big you are. Road hauliers are not listed as such: the road subsector covers road authorities and intelligent transport system operators. Water transport companies and postal and courier providers are listed. In general the law applies from 50 employees, or above €10 million in annual turnover and balance sheet total.
How long should we keep tachograph data?
At least one year, according to the ILT, which bases this on the Arbeidstijdenbesluit vervoer. The ILT also notes that other rules, such as tax rules, may require a longer period. Backing up the archive with Mindtime means a failed PC or ransomware does not wipe the files you have to show.
Can Mindtime back up our planning database?
Yes, if it runs on your own hardware or in your own cloud environment. Mindtime backs up SQL Server, MySQL, PostgreSQL, MariaDB and Oracle databases, VMware, Hyper-V and Proxmox virtual machines, and workloads in AWS, Azure and Google Cloud. For a SaaS TMS, the supplier holds the data, so check its export options.
What does Mindtime do for the NIS2 backup requirements?
The Cbw duty of care includes business continuity, such as backup management and recovery plans. Mindtime helps meet that backup part: immutable copies, an air-gapped copy, checked backup jobs, malware scanning and quarterly DR tests give you evidence to show a supervisor. Risk analysis, incident reporting and governance remain your own responsibility.
How do we start?
Book a free 15-minute demo with a Mindtime specialist to map your servers, databases, tachograph archive and mailboxes. If your office runs on Microsoft 365, a 7-day free trial lets you protect mail first. Support is in Dutch, German and English, and you deal with people rather than a chatbot from the first call.
See it with your own data
Book a 15-minute demo
We show you a backup and a restore, and answer your questions in Dutch, German or English. No offshore call centres, no chatbots.