Grab yourself a set-and-forget-it backup solution
Because your digital life is on the line
By Jim Harris
April 1, 2010
April 1, 2010
Laptop sales surpassed desktop shipments in the U.S. in 2005, according to Current Analysis, and worldwide in 2008, according to iSuppli. This makes computing more ubiquitous than ever before, but with enhanced portability comes increased risk of losing your data. Notebooks are more easily and frequently lost, stolen, dropped, exposed to water and experience hard disk failure.
More than 600,000 computer notebooks are lost by or stolen from business travellers each year in U.S. airports alone, according to a 2008 Dell/Poneman Institute study. And notebook hard drives fail far more often than desktop drives because the tiny disks are sensitive to shock, overheating and electric surges.
But for most people, the data on a notebook is priceless. I have 20 years worth of work on my hard disk, which brings me to the importance of data backups. Backing up is a bit like flossing your teeth: everyone knows you should do it but few religiously do. All it takes is one complete loss of all your data to get religion about backing up.
Until now, it has been a complicated hassle, requiring discipline, training and testing. But new services have really simplified the process.
Onsite backup
I like re bit, US$39.95 software that turns any external hard drive into an automated backup service. re bit backs up all your data and your operating system in a set-it-and-forget-it solution. You can back up multiple devices on a single drive (I back up both my desktop and notebook on the same device), and the software is intelligent: an identical file on a notebook and desktop PC is saved only once. Backing up is fast: to initially transfer 60GB takes 3.5 hours but after that, changes to your files are backed up in real time in the background. You can also buy drives from re bit with the software already loaded: a 500GB drive is US$149.95.
Combining online and offsite
Onsite backup works very well but if someone breaks into your home and steals your computer they’re also certain to take the shiny backup drive beside the computer. So offsite backup is essential as well.
Mozy and Backblaze are online services that provide 2GB of storage for free. And for US$55 a year Mozy, Carbonite and Backblaze provide unlimited storage. The initial backup takes time: 60GB sent to Mozy will take about two weeks. Downloading to restore is much, much faster.
Dropbox is another useful service. It starts with 2GB of free storage and you can set up shared files with any number of people who also have an account. When you update a file on your computer in a shared Dropbox folder, the copy is updated on the company’s server. The next time someone who is sharing that folder logs onto the Web site, the update is pushed to their computer.
You can also create a public folder and e-mail a link to anyone, making it a great way to share a PowerPoint presentation with your audience.
With Dropbox, as with the other three services mentioned, any file you have backed up is always available online, so if your notebook is stolen you can simply sign in to your account on any computer and download your files.
Dropbox, however, goes beyond backup by adding a syncing service. Many people who have a desktop computer and a laptop or a home and a work computer sync their machines using a thumb drive, or they e-mail files to themselves. With Dropbox, simply install the software on each computer and the service will copy updated files between computers. That means it no longer matters where you do your work; it’s always available on any of your computers.
With all these ridiculously simple, inexpensive, set-it-and-forget-it backup solutions, there’s no reason for anyone to ever experience data loss. And that is priceless.
More than 600,000 computer notebooks are lost by or stolen from business travellers each year in U.S. airports alone, according to a 2008 Dell/Poneman Institute study. And notebook hard drives fail far more often than desktop drives because the tiny disks are sensitive to shock, overheating and electric surges.
But for most people, the data on a notebook is priceless. I have 20 years worth of work on my hard disk, which brings me to the importance of data backups. Backing up is a bit like flossing your teeth: everyone knows you should do it but few religiously do. All it takes is one complete loss of all your data to get religion about backing up.
Until now, it has been a complicated hassle, requiring discipline, training and testing. But new services have really simplified the process.
Onsite backup
I like re bit, US$39.95 software that turns any external hard drive into an automated backup service. re bit backs up all your data and your operating system in a set-it-and-forget-it solution. You can back up multiple devices on a single drive (I back up both my desktop and notebook on the same device), and the software is intelligent: an identical file on a notebook and desktop PC is saved only once. Backing up is fast: to initially transfer 60GB takes 3.5 hours but after that, changes to your files are backed up in real time in the background. You can also buy drives from re bit with the software already loaded: a 500GB drive is US$149.95.
Combining online and offsite
Onsite backup works very well but if someone breaks into your home and steals your computer they’re also certain to take the shiny backup drive beside the computer. So offsite backup is essential as well.
Mozy and Backblaze are online services that provide 2GB of storage for free. And for US$55 a year Mozy, Carbonite and Backblaze provide unlimited storage. The initial backup takes time: 60GB sent to Mozy will take about two weeks. Downloading to restore is much, much faster.
Dropbox is another useful service. It starts with 2GB of free storage and you can set up shared files with any number of people who also have an account. When you update a file on your computer in a shared Dropbox folder, the copy is updated on the company’s server. The next time someone who is sharing that folder logs onto the Web site, the update is pushed to their computer.
You can also create a public folder and e-mail a link to anyone, making it a great way to share a PowerPoint presentation with your audience.
With Dropbox, as with the other three services mentioned, any file you have backed up is always available online, so if your notebook is stolen you can simply sign in to your account on any computer and download your files.
Dropbox, however, goes beyond backup by adding a syncing service. Many people who have a desktop computer and a laptop or a home and a work computer sync their machines using a thumb drive, or they e-mail files to themselves. With Dropbox, simply install the software on each computer and the service will copy updated files between computers. That means it no longer matters where you do your work; it’s always available on any of your computers.
With all these ridiculously simple, inexpensive, set-it-and-forget-it backup solutions, there’s no reason for anyone to ever experience data loss. And that is priceless.
Jim Harris is the author of Blindsided, a number one international bestseller published in 80 countries. Jim is sought after as a speaker at conferences and seminars around the world. E-mail him at jimh@jimharris.com.
