File Backups: The Old, The New and the Easy

Many companies are leaving themselves exposed to potential technical disasters by not securing their data and backing it up.

By not backing up or only doing a rudimentary back up of a small portion of important information, companies take the chance of losing both time and money in the event of fires, robberies or even a virus.

The ways to backup files are numerous such as purchasing software. More expensive applications have options that will cover a business from all angles, such as backing up an entire server. By having this security if a server ever crashes it is easily fixed with little inconvenience to the company.

The cost for software can be daunting for a small business that does not have the funds to purchase expensive software and then pay to have it installed. A solution to this problem would be to share folders on multiple computers so that they can be backed up. However, if the information is sensitive this solution may not work as the files are accessible to anyone. Either way, it is sensible to upload the information on a daily basis.

Most of the software applications allow users to choose from two kinds of backup: full and incremental.

A full backup takes a copy of the whole file system and backs it up to a media source. Another way is backing it up through the Internet. A full back up is taken first and it makes several copies of the source data and stores it. After that, an incremental backup only backs up the files that have been changed or modified since the full backup. With incremental it is easy to back up daily.

For storage media there is a lot of choices, such as magnetic tape, hard disk, optical disk, floppy disk, solid state storage and remote backup service.

Online backup systems are typically built around a client software program that runs on a schedule, typically once a day. This program collects, compresses, encrypts, and transfers the data to the remote backup service provider's servers.

As it is easier to access broadband Internet, a remote backup service is another option available. They are usually built around a software program that runs on schedule which is typically once a day. The information is backed up through the Internet and stored in a remote area on other servers owned by the backup provider. This makes sure the information is protected from robbery and fire, among other things. However, the connection can be a bit slow at times which raises a problem for individual that require a large chuck of data to be stored unless the provider of the backup system offers services such as near-realtime transaction-level replication of file back ups. As well, if the information is sensitive it is important to encrypt the data with a password.

Magnetic tape is suited for bulk data, storage, backup, archiving and interchange. In most cases, tape gives the user more capacity for the price that is paid, as opposed to hard disk. However, the accessibility of the information can be a problem because it takes so long.

A hard disk is suitable for people that want to access the information quickly; it’s readily available and easy to use. But a hard disk leaves users with the risk of disk failure or data loss which may occur simply from using it too much.

In this modern day of computer reliance, viruses and hackers, it is crucial for companies to ensure their data is safe and backups are readily available. If information is lost, it can cost time and money and bring about stress for employees and employers. Although the cost can be high at times, the solution is probably less expensive than the problem.