What is Recovery Time Objective?

Recovery Time Objective | Election Security Glossary

In plain English

The maximum amount of time a system can stay down after a failure before it seriously hurts the organization's work.

Definition

The overall length of time an information system's components can be in the recovery phase before negatively impacting the organization's mission or mission/business functions. (SP 800-34) (NISTIR)

Also known asRTO · Recovery Time Objective (RTO) · Recovery Time Objective(s)

1 sources cited4 related termsReviewed by Martins Ogundare · Aug 10, 2026

— The Cyber GlossaryView source

Example

An election office sets a recovery time objective of four hours for its e-pollbook servers so voter check-in is not disrupted on Election Day.

Why this term matters

If critical election systems stay down too long, voters can be turned away and results delayed. Defining the objective in advance drives backup planning and keeps Election Day operations resilient.

How it is used in election security

Election IT teams set recovery time objectives as part of continuity planning, then build redundant systems, failover procedures, and manual workarounds that restore service within that window.

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TCG

The overall length of time an information system's components can be in the recovery phase before negatively impacting the organization's mission or mission/business functions. (SP 800-34) (NISTIR)

The Cyber Glossary · 2024

Cite this term

Permanent URL · stable across revisions

Election Security Glossary. (2026). Recovery Time Objective. In Election Security Glossary. Retrieved September 15, 2026, from https://electionsecurityglossary.com/glossary/recovery-time-objective