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The Best Ways to Backup Your Data

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Top Five Ways to Backup Your Files

So you want to backup your files. Maybe your are worried about your data. Maybe you were like me, you lost your files, recovered them, and you now know you need to backup your files. Well, here are the best ways to backup your files.

1. Online Backup

The pinacle of file protection

Pluses
*Convenience - To backup your files online you just need to install some software and let it work. Your files will automatically be backed up on your schedule.
*Security - With online backup, your files are stored off site, which means if you get a virus, or there is a fire, or anything, your files will still be there.
Minuses
*Cost - The only major minus is cost, but even that is not bad. For about $5 a month there are multiple companies that offer unlimted backup space.
*Speed - As you use your internet connect to backup your files, it can take a long time to backup everything. I believe my first backup took a month, but from then on each backup is incremental. Thus, my files are secured each day.

Summary
Online backup is clearly the best solution. It can cost more than other solutions, but it is still relatively inexpensive. It is certainly cheaper than loosing your files. I personally use Mozy for my online backup, and it works well. They will even give you 2GB of space for free. If you decide to get their unlimited backup, it is about $5 a month.

Mozy Online Backup. 2GB Free or $4.95/mo for Unlimited Backup. It's simple, automatic and secure!


You may also want to look at Carbonite, but I can't provide much information on their solution.

Try Carbonite Online Backup FREE for 15 days and back up your irreplaceable files automatically and securely. No credit card required!

2. External Hard Drive

Pluses
*Easy - With an external hard drive, like and internal one, you can simply hook up your drive and hit a key to back up your files. Or you can set up your computer to automatically back up your files.
*Cheap - While it is not as inexpensive as an internal hard drive it is still pretty cheap
*Portable - You can take your files anywhere, which is great if you want to store your backed up files off site.

Negatives
*Not the ultimate convience - It will still be a chore to take your external hard drive offsite for the maximum backup protection.

Conclusion
An external hard drive moves the price vs. convience point closer to a higher price, but it is still much cheaper than loosing your files.
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3. Extra Internal Hard Drive

Pluses
*Easy - With an internal hard drive you can setup your computer to automatically backup your files every day. You can even setup your computer for a RAID configuration that will backup your files instantly at all times.
*Cheap - Data space is cheap now day, so getting an extra hard drive for your computer won't set you back much.

Minuses
*Data safety - With an internal hard drive as your backup method you are not protected in the case of something catastrophic happening to your computer. Yes, your files are backed up if your primary hard drive fails, but what happenes if you get a virus that wipes out all of your files or a fire happens?

Conclusion
Adding an internal hard drive for your backup solution is quick, cheap, and easy, but it does not offer the maximum data security.
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4. BluRay

Pluses
*Cheap (kinda) - BluRay discs are pretty cheap for each of your backups, but the initial cost of buying a blu-ray player is not cheap.
*Portable - Just like CDs and DVDs, you can take your blu-ray disc with you, so you can store your files off site.

Minuses
*Expensive - The discs may be cheap, but getting that first drive will be expensive.
*Time consuming - They are not as bad as CDs of DVDs, but they do take time. At least you won't have to switch your discs back and forth a lot.

Conclusion
Like CDs or DVDs, Blu-Ray is a nice option for backing up your data if you have small amounts of data (under 25GB). However, it is just too time consuming if you need to back up a lot of information.
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5. CDs or DVDs

Pluses
*Cheap - You can buy about 250 gigabytes of space for under $50. (One spindle of 50 dvds) And you can get a drive to burn them all even cheaper, if you don't have one.
*Portable - It is easy to take your backed up data anywhere with a cd or dvd. This is good if you want to keep your off site, and have your data backed up in case of a fire or something.

Minuses
*Time Consuming - It takes tons of your time to back up large amounts of data using CDs or DVDs. Yea, each disc may only take minutes, but if your are backing up tons of data, then that can turn to hours of time.

Conclusion
Backing up data with CDs or DVDs is great if you only need to backup a little information (less than 5GB), but if you have much more it is just not convenient. If you decide to backup with CDs or DVDs then this is the stuff you need. If not, then skip below.
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How Do You Backup Your Data?

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What's your backup solution?

  • Oneshotvariety Apr 29, 2012 @ 1:17 pm | delete
    This is all very important infomation. Thanks for the great lens
  • backupsoftwarereview Apr 1, 2012 @ 1:02 pm | delete
    Backing up data is very important especially if you store lots of documents or valuable files. I usually back up data to an external hard drive and DVDs
  • Shawn Sep 13, 2011 @ 5:04 am | delete
    A backup system contains at the very least one copy of all knowledge value saving, the information storage requirements are considerable. Organizing this storage space and managing the backup process is a sophisticated undertaking. A knowledge repository model can be used to offer structure to the storage. Within the modern period of computing there are lots of various kinds of data storage units which might be helpful for making backups. There are additionally many different methods during which these gadgets could be organized to supply geographic redundancy, information safety, and data capture.
  • nutroearth Jul 25, 2011 @ 4:34 am | delete
    arnica - Good post. Thanks for the experience to share with us. I am going to save the URL, and will certainly visit again.
    http://www.herbs-wholesale.com/arnica.htm
  • Edenview Photography May 15, 2011 @ 8:27 am | delete
    I backup to NAS External Hard Drive (RAID 5), duplicate the files onto a second one and send one off site.
  • lucylaplant May 3, 2011 @ 10:23 am | delete
    I have always used external hard drives to do some basic backups of important files, homevideos, music etc. I always worry that I am missing something. Is there any way to have some company do person data protection like Recall, the service many companies use?
  • J Apr 8, 2011 @ 9:58 pm | delete
    Don't use and external harddrive to back up your files! I did and my computer has outlasted the harddrive! Now I have to spend a bunch of money to get the files on the hard drive back while my computer still works great!!! Oxymoron??? Yes, and it isn't going to be cheap!
  • Fluffymuppet Oct 17, 2010 @ 10:50 am | delete
    We use Mozy :) You can save some money on their prices if you find a valid coupon code. These ones work - EMMA for 15% off MozyHome and EMMA15 for 15% off MozyPro :D
  • handybackup Aug 4, 2010 @ 12:39 am | delete
    Heh.. Losing all your data is terrible. While doing some operations with my hard drive I've ruined all my music collection once
    Since then I'm with the backup. I use external HD for music and photos, and Dropbox (I suppose, it's like Mozy) for txts and other frequently changing files, fortunately, I don't have a lot of them
    But for those people who have tons of changing data, mb, some database, even the compilation of methods still won't work. Online is too slow, 5-10 external HDs are not convinient as well.

    Best regards,
    Adrian (Handy Backup team),
    http://handybackup.net
  • aitsavemyfiles Jul 21, 2010 @ 11:23 am | delete
    Good stuff man,

    I use a mixture, RAID array in the home server, rotating backup drives and recently I started using my companies new online backup. Admittedly I don't use the online for every little thing(server has 4.1TB on it) but all the kid pics, crucial tax info, business files go there, everything else is already in at lest 3 places.

    Chris
    Armor-IT Data Recovery
    http://www.aitsavemyfiles.com/onlinebackup.php
  • Joe Dec 3, 2008 @ 2:39 pm | delete
    For three years I have used 2 SimpleTech external drives. I use SyncToy and I contribute from my PC to SimpleTech. Then I Sync the two SimpleTechs. I rotate weekly. One stay where I am - at home or on the road. The other stays in a safe deposit box (out of the flood plain).
    On the road, I also carry my Passport drive. I sync the computer with it. If I am at one location long enough, I leave the SimpleTech away from the hotel and keep the Passport with me at the hotel.
    Flying - Computer and Passport in cabin. SimpleTech in baggage.
    Driving - Passport in front of car. Simple tech in far back.
    Computer - in middle of car.
  • jjanisse Nov 2, 2008 @ 8:38 am | delete
    Right on! It is so important to backup your valuable content. Every day thousands of computer files are needlessly put at risk. Finding a solution that is right for you is so important.

    Take care.

    -Jordan.
    backup.jmjgroup.com
  • James Jul 31, 2008 @ 1:02 pm | delete
    Here is a site that reviews online backups: www.compareonlinebackup.org. It has some great data on the different vendors.

    Thanks for the great post.
    J
  • vikont Jul 27, 2008 @ 12:27 am | delete
    you may be interested to read this article: http://www.backuphistory.com
  • mulberry Jul 26, 2008 @ 8:36 pm | delete
    Good info, concise...I like it!
  • poddys Jul 25, 2008 @ 9:16 pm | delete
    I use different methods too. Ideally I would synchronise 2 pc's so that I don't have to worry if one goes down, but I don't have that luxury right now. I use 2 external hard drives for complete backups of my drives, I also use CD's and DVD's for infrequent offsite backups of non-changing data (music, photos etc), and flash drives for small volume backups of volatile files and also to transfer these between home and work as a backup. 5***** for a good helpful lens.
  • ElizabethJeanAllen Jul 20, 2008 @ 8:22 pm | delete
    I use different types of backup for different information. My fiction is transfered to CD, my school stuff is on a thumb drive, and my online stuff is... Well it just sits there. With 80 lenses, a blog, and two websites, I need to give that some thought.
    5*
    Lizzy
  • Jimmie Jul 20, 2008 @ 10:26 am | delete
    Helpful information that's for sure!
  • Mortira Jul 18, 2008 @ 10:19 pm | delete
    Great lens! Plenty of food for thought.
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jstonedotorg

A Guy who has lost some files in the past, and now backup's everything.

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