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[F619]Free Data Backup Online

by Nicholas Martens, Nic

Most people who use computers would have experienced a data loss of some form or the other and would be able to value the importance of a online data backup. Just a power breakdown or upsurge, when we are working on a computer can cause some data loss. And, depending on the nature of the task we were doing, can be a matter of some aggravation or something more significant like loss of a day's hard work, and most likely, also its revenue.

Whether one is an individual or a business, one of the most valuable assets is the data that we've collected over time - accounting files, contacts and correspondence, contracts, photos, or anything else of value to us or our business. The material value of a computer is probably just a fraction of the value of the data contained within it. This becomes even more magnified when the computer contains data related to one's work or business.

As we all know, things that are beyond our control can happen resulting in our losing our computer or the data stored in it. Hard drive crashes, data corruption, natural disasters, sabotage and human error are all serious threats that can easily destroy years of hard work and the very foundation of any business. Consider the following statistics which are just alarming:

- One in four computers will suffer a serious data loss in a given year (Gartner Group);

- Data loss costs U.S. businesses $12 billion (IDC) a year;

- 70% of small firms that experience a major data loss go out of business within a year (DTI/PriceWaterhouse Coopers.

The above figures reveal how important it is for individuals and businesses to have an online data backup plan to protect their critical data against the myriad of risks like hard drive crashes, corruption, natural disasters, sabotage and human error. The fact is every computer and user is susceptible to these risks and a remote backup is just essential. In case of any calamity, recovering your data is as easy as a few clicks of your mouse.

Though there are traditional methods of data backups, such as backing up data to tapes, zip and external drives, CDs and DVDs, these methods are very tedious, time consuming and unreliable. Studies have shown that over 50% of all tape restores fail! And, to protect against disasters like fire, flood and theft, backup files must be stored at an off-site location but this step is overlooked most times.

The need for a good data backup plan cannot be overemphasized and should be a solution that is an automated, online transfer of files. All the files should be transferred only in an encrypted format so that they are protected from hackers. The backups should be incremental, that is, only the new files and the files that have changed since the last backup should be transferred. Any good remote backup service, in addition to the above mentioned features, would also provide free 24/7 support.

As each situation is unique, there can be no explicit answer if you need backups or not. Generally there are two main aspects that you need to keep in mind when considering the necessity of backups:

* Do you have important data that must be kept safe?
* Where are your important files stored?

Let's explain these three points in details by giving real world examples.

Do you have important data that must be kept safe?

There are cases when backing up is not a must. For example, Internet caf's have multiple computers that are accessed and used by dozens of people daily. In such public places, there is a common practice to regularly erase all files and programs downloaded or installed by visitors and roll the system back to some predefined state common for all PCs. In this case you don't really need to make backups of any kind: even if some computer's hard drive fails, you can put it back into operation by simply cloning any other PC's HDD.

Where are your files stored, physically?

Many companies take advantage of the Remote Desktop technology which allows them to have a single powerful server to manage all employees work and numerous workstations that connect to it. Of course, in this case you don't need to establish backup routines for each networked PC, but only for the server. The same applies to the situation when everybody works using network drives and stores no data on each specific computer.

So, you do need backup if you

1. Have a lot of data that you can't afford to lose ? in terms of time, money, or nerves.
2. Your files are physically kept on an unsecured storage media subject to possible theft, mechanical failure, or destruction by disasters.

If these two statements correctly characterize your case, then you definitely should consider establishing some backup routine.

Article Source : Pg. 173

About Author

Both Nicholas Martens & Alexander Rassokhin are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.

Nicholas Martens has sinced written about articles on various topics from Computers and The Internet, Yoga Practice. . Nicholas Martens's top article generates over 2400 views. to your Favourites.

Alexander Rassokhin has sinced written about articles on various topics from Data Recovery, Software and Data Recovery. The "Backup Tactics" series discusses different aspects of data backup and disaster recovery by giving real world examples from both home and enterprise environments. Alexander Rassokhin is an IT-expert and technical writer of Novosoft which is a develope. Alexander Rassokhin's top article generates over 9900 views. to your Favourites.