Backing Up Your Computer data
by Richard Rossbauer
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This Article was first published at the ezineArticles.com website. The subject is one that will benefit
all computer users by understanding why it is so important to
backup their work, and a few easy ways to do it.
....Richard Rossbauer
Nearly everyone knows of or
has heard about someone whose computer crashed.
It's a frightening and frustrating experience. The loss
is usually very
personal - family pictures, financial files, email records,
dozens of programs,
and more.
That person probably thought that it couldn't or wouldn't happen
to them
until it did.
Computer crashes for businesses can be even more devastating.
Many times
smaller businesses rely on just a few computers, each possibly
dedicated to
specific tasks.
Crashes could involve losses of customer lists,
sales records, inventory data, product data bases, even personal
records of employees |
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Recovery from losses such as these can be accomplished if backup
policies
are established and followed. Technology today makes backup
relatively
easy. Sometimes so easy that there's little or no excuse for not
being
proactive.
A computer's hard drive can crash for any number of reasons.
The
issue is to
be prepared if and when it happens.
It is not hard to put a backup system in place. When you buy
most laptops
these days, they come with free backup for one or two years.
Every file is
stored elsewhere for easy retrieval should you lose it.
There
are two ways of
backing up computer files: online or software programs.
Backup Software Programs
Barracuda, symantec, and Norton are popular programs for
installation on a
home or desktop business computer. You can back up your entire
hard drive
or specific folders with this type of software. And you can
schedule regular
backups just like any other maintenance operation to protect
your computer.
The software installations are usually intuitive and easy to
follow.
You can also use these software programs to backup your files to
an external
hard drive.
There is another alternative - backup off site to an online
service.
Online Backup Programs
With an online backup, your data is uploaded to a secure server
online. There
are both free and paid services. Depending on the amount of data
you are
backing up, the free plan may work fine for you.
For a business, the paid service offers unlimited data backup
for a low
monthly fee and is probably a better option for the home
computer user who
has accumulated a lot of files.
At the time this article was prepared, examples of online backup
programs
with approximate costs included:
Mozy - free up to 2GB; $4.95 per month for unlimited data
Carbonite - yearly subscription of $49.95 for unlimited data
SOS Online Backup - $39.95 per year but not for home use
Fabric Ultimate Backup Home - free up to 2GB then $5/month
unlimited data
Each program offers something a little different. The advantage
of an online
backup over more traditional programs is the theft-proof aspect.
In
cyberspace, your files can't be stolen.
Another major benefit is that with Carbonite, for example, your
files are being
backed up nearly as fast as you create or update them, as long
as you are
online. Not only that, each folder or file icon on your desktop
has a little
round button attached to it that shows orange before backup and
green
when it has been saved to your online account.
Use online or software options for backing up vital information
on your
computer! It gives you peace of mind in the event of a system
crash.
...Richard Rossbauer
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Richard started his "Firewalls
and Virus Protection" website and "Security
Alert News Reporter" to help everyday Internet users
navigate safely through the Cyber Space that has become a 'Cyber
Jungle', loaded with ambushes and booby traps. He promotes his "Computer
Security Awareness Campaign" thru his website at
https://www.firewalls-and-virus-protection.com |
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