Backup, Backup, Backup
The essential of protecting your data of loosing it, is to backup. So the main suggestion for you is Backup, backup, backup.
The more important the data is that is stored on the computer, the greater is the need for backing up this data. Losing data can be an overwhelming . Data loss is also very common. The majority, i.e. 66% of internet users have suffered from serious data loss. The Backups are extremely important to keep one’s data safe.
Backup or the process of backing up refer to making copies of data so that these additional copies may be used to restore the original after a data loss event.
Backup Data Properly
Even though computers have become a lot more reliable over the years, they fail and hard disks crash. The ideal way to ensure that you never lose your precious data is to back it up and keep backing it up.
Here are some options for backing up your data:
- External hard drive
- CD-RW (CD rewriteable) drive
- Online backup
- Network server
- USB flash memory
- Tape
- Floppy disks
Backup to an external hard drive. This is probably the quickest, most cost effective option. However, do remember that they are hard drives and hard drives can fail.
Backup to CD or DVD. This is considered the safest for long term data integrity. CD's and DVD's are also inexpensive, But you must keep them in clean dark place on a normal temperature, to keep your data safe (usually no more than 5 years)
Online backup. This is a good idea for businesses, because of physical disasters. If that happens, you will always have a copy in a place not affected by the disaster. The good thing about online backup is, it's accessible from anywhere with an internet connection.
Network attached storage. This would make more sense if you have several computers. They allow you to not only backup several computers' data into one location but also ability to share or retrieve files from that central area.
Backup to USB Flash drives
Today's USB Flash drives have become very convenient storage media to backup to. USB Flash drives are compact and reliable and allow storing up to 32GB of useful information. And this is enough for 99% of file backups that you may want to do in regular practice. Backup to Flash USB drives is especially powerful when it is combined with data compression and incremental backup.
Magnetic tape
Magnetic tape has long been the most commonly used medium for bulk data storage, backup, archiving, and interchange. A principal advantage of tape is that it has been used for this purpose for decades (much longer than any alternative) and its characteristics are well understood.
Floppy disk
The low data capacity of a floppy disk makes it an unpopular and obsolete choice today.
Options to think what to back up:
- Everything
- Data files (.doc, .xls, .db, .ppt, .txt, etc.)
Deciding what to back up at any given time is a harder process than it seems. By backing up too much redundant data, the data repository will fill up too quickly. Before data is sent to its storage location, it is selected, extracted, and manipulated. Many different techniques have been developed to optimize the backup procedure. These include optimizations for dealing with open files and live data sources as well as compression, encryption, and de-duplication, among others. It is good to store backed up archives in open/standard formats. This helps with recovery in the future when the software used to make the backup is obsolete. It also allows different software to be used. Backing up an insufficient amount of data can eventually lead to the loss of critical information.
Copying files:
Making copies of files is the simplest and most common way to perform a backup. A means to perform this basic function is included in all backup software and all operating systems.
Backup errors:
-Storing the copy near the original is unwise, since many disasters such as fire, flood, and electrical surges are likely to cause damage to the backup at the same time. In case of theft, you might also lose both your original and backup.
-Automated backup and scheduling should be considered, as manual backups can be affected by human error.
- Backups will fail for a wide variety of reasons. A verification or monitoring strategy is an important part of a successful backup plan.
No backup solution is one hundred percent and what you choose of course will depend on how you work. If your data is really important to you, try not relying on one backup source. Create two separate sources if you can afford to, just in case.
So knowing all this just to remind you to backup regularly.
