Everybody who has a computer, whether it's a Mac or a PC, knows that they need to Backup their computer. We know we need to do it but how? Before we get to the how, let's discuss the what. The "what" is dependent on the specific computer user and their requirements in case of a disaster. A disaster can be as simple as forgetting to save a Word document that you worked on for hours to the complexity of trying to recover data from a crashed hard drive. In either case, the sickening feeling at the bottom of your stomach is the same. By defining what it is that we want to backup or protect we can minimize the possibility of getting that stomach ache.
Okay, let's define the options for defining the "what":
1. Data Only Backup: This is by far and away the most important backup. This type of backup usually consists of Documents, Pictures and Email. If disaster strikes; a Data Only Backup will allow a user to recover their most important files. Depending on the situation, these files may be recovered by placing them on the original computer or a replacement.
2. Full Drive Backup (Image): A full hard drive backup image can be used to bring your entire computer back to a certain moment in time, including all programs and settings. This is usually used in the case of a complete hard drive failure. It can also save you from a virus or spyware infection.
3. Archive Backup: An archive can actually be a Data Only or a Full Image backup. The difference with an Archive, is the objective is to take a "snapshot" in time of your data and store it for safe keeping. Archives are often in addition to normal backups. For instance, you may backup every day and once a month you'll make an archive backup. It's a good idea to have your Archive backup stored "offsite." This gives you more options when disaster strikes.
For most users, the Data Only Backup will suffice. The only downside is that in the case of a complete hardware failure, you will need to reinstall your operating system and your programs prior to loading your Data Backup. The good news is that today's technology allows for many excellent options for protecting your Data. What's important is that you decide on an option and implement it. Live by the Geek's motto; "If you have only one copy of the file, you don't have a copy at all".
One of the best solutions to Backup your data files is to use an online service. The advantage of these services is that they not only handle the backing-up process in the background automatically, they also resolve another concern when choosing a backup strategy; they store your backup "offsite." An offsite backup offers the additional security of knowing that your data is safe from fire, flood or other natural disaster. Over the last month, I've tested three of the best known Internet backup services. Below is a synopsis of the three:
1. XDrive: This service offers a virtual hard drive that "lives" on the net. You can use this drive like any other hard drive on your computer. It comes with a backup utility that will backup any files you choose, automatically at a schedule of your choice. The free version, offers up to 5 Gig of storage. You can have up to 50 Gig for $9.95 per month.
2. Both Mozy and Carbonite are designed to be a simple backup solution. Mozy offer's 2 Gig for free and unlimited storage for $4.95 a month. Carbonite offers unlimited backup storage for $49.95 per year.
Of the three Internet options that I tested, I like Carbonite's software best. It had the least noticeable effect on my computer's performance and I also didn't notice a slowdown while surfing the net. Carbonite has done a very good job of designing their software so that it puts itself to sleep as necessary so that the user doesn't experience the performance hit that I felt when using the other services. Another advantage of Carbonite is that it saves multiple versions of your files. I give Carbonite a strong recommendation. Be aware that if your data backup is large, over a few Gigs, your first backup may take days to complete. Once the initial backup is complete, the service only needs to backup new or changed files. This, of course, is a small subset of your initial full backup. Carbonite will not have a Mac version of their software until mid-2008. If you're using a Mac, I recommend Mozy.
If you're like me, you may want the addition of a full image backup. On my Mac, I use Time Machine. Time Machine comes with Leopard, Apple's newest operating system. All you need to do is purchase an external hard drive, attach it, and start the Time Machine service. From that point on, Time Machine will watch your system for any changes and backup as necessary automatically. You can restore a single file or your whole hard drive. What most people are unaware of is that Vista has essentially the same function as Apple's Time Machine. It's called Shadow Copy. Unfortunately, this feature is only available with Vista Business, Vista Ultimate or Vista Enterprise. Most home users have Vista Home Premium. Microsoft's decision to offer so many different versions of Vista has helped Vista to earn its poor reputation. On my Window's laptop, I use Acronis True Image 11 (under $50). It's not as simple or as cool as Apple's Time Machine but it does the job. I've been using True Image for many years. It's always worked when I needed it.
I always recommend that you test your backup solution by deleting a random file and then following the restore option to bring it back.
Do you need to keep and manage multiple versions of your files? For instance, let's say you want to see the last five revisions of a particular Word document you've been working on. I've found a completely free application, MOGware's FileHamster. This little utility watches the files/directories you select. Once selected, it will automatically backup as many versions of those files that you want. This is overkill for most users but it's a nice option if you need this kind of protection.
