It's Not If You'll Lose Data, But When

All kinds of things can happen to your computer. From a coffee spill or a virus to a hard shake of your laptop or any number of unforeseen and often unknown circumstances, computers can crash, be disabled, or shut down permanently. There are many options you have that can give you peace of mind. If you back up your data, you won't lose it, and no matter what a computer costs to fix or replace, your irreplaceable data files will still be safe. It's not if you'll lose data, but when.

So when should you back up data?

Immediately, and regularly. Duplicates of files, programs, and disks can be used if the original is lost, damaged, or destroyed. Backing up files means making a copy of files, which in the event of a computer break down, enables you to restore your files from those backups back to their original location after the loss of data.

The dreaded computer virus does not break your computer mechanically, but cripples your hard drive. The worst virus causes the erasure of program files and data files, which can only be addressed through cleaning and reformatting your hard drive; this means that whatever programs or files you had on your hard drive will be washed away, but the hard drive will be okay. If the files and programs on your hard drive are backed up, they can be restored to your computer's hard drive once it is reformatted and the virus is cleaned.

So what are the options for backing up data?

Let's take a look at some of the most popular options. With external hard storage devices, you can back up files and folders onto 3.5 inch floppy disks (1.44 megabytes storage space), zip discs (100-250 megabytes storage), CDs (650-700 megabytes), JAZ discs (2 gigabytes), DVDs (4.7 gigabytes), flash drives (1-8 gigabytes or more), and external hard drives (up to 700 gigabytes). Floppies and ZIPs are not good for much more than small, .doc or similar data files and are being rendered virtually obsolete by the wide range of larger storage options available and larger files that exist today. These backups can be accomplished by burning CD and DVD-roms, or via the USB port through which backup devices such as flash (small, gum sized memory stick) and external hard drives can be connected.

You should back up every important file on your computer:
Microsoft Word and Excel files, music files, movie files, backup data like Quicken, etc. Anything that can be lost should be backed up. Since only data is backed up, you will need to keep your original program discs. For example, to reinstall Microsoft Office, you will need the original CD that came with the program. You cannot back up programs. One exception is programs that you download. If you have downloaded a program from the internet, you can back up those files, just like your data. As you will see, there are even ways to back up your entire hard disk, in one or multiple files.

There is further backup assistance available on-line. Backuphelp.com is just one of a myriad of websites that provides this type of support, so that you do not have to be physically responsible for keeping track of the perishable backup devices or the backup process. You can have your computer backed up at a remote location in case of some type of impact to your immediate environment, such as a water leak or fire, or electrical irregularity that causes remote interference.

In online or remote backup, the backup support comes from a remote online location where you send the backup, instead of through media that is physically attached to the computer. These backups are done on demand, at any time you want or need a backup performed, most appropriately immediately upon the generation of valuable data or particularly hard work. The key is that you must remember to order the backup, schedule automated backups, and have internet access.

Another option is portable hard drives that use USB and Firewire. Seagate is a popular, efficient, and trustworthy manufacturer of sturdy and reliable portable hard drives. $50-$350 can get you anywhere from 100-700 Gigabytes of external backup if you keep an eye on sales at tech discount houses such as Fry's or online comparison shopping sites like ShopZilla.com. These are relatively inexpensive, high-quality sources of storage, but you remain responsible for keeping track of them and keeping them out of harm's way. Buyer beware: if something happens to your external hard drive, there goes your backup data.

Newer, more cutting edge consumer products include advanced backup such as NAS and SAS systems. NAS, or Network Attached Storage is disk storage added to a network, not directly to the computer. NAS works independent of any operating system, since sharable storage is connected directly to a network. In other words, you can add storage to all of your computers on your local network and to back up all of your systems with a built-in scheduler. Additionally, certain NAS drives have a web browser feature, so that you can access your drive from anywhere you have an internet connection. Most mid-range and large business owners use NAS systems; however, with lower prices, consumers with many computers and files on their networks have also turned to NAS as a viable alternative.

Then there are ghost programs, like Acronis TrueImage (www.acronis.com), to backup entire computer hard drives. Ghost imaging is a method of converting the contents of a hard drive -- including its configuration settings and applications -- into an image, which can consist of one or multiple files. You can then back up this image to a portable hard drive or CD. Due to the size of these images (it does back up your entire hard drive), external hard drives are recommended. You can also schedule periodic backups of the image or remove files from the image without having to restore your entire hard drive. Pricing is reasonable, and having a ghost image of your system is the most effective way to keep all of your data and programs backed up.

Besides unforeseen environmental disruption, we as human beings also make errors, resulting in accidental deletions or unwanted saved changes. If our files are backed up, we do not have to experience loss as a result. Each PC user has to determine which backup option is right for him/her, based on the size of his/her files, the content of his/her files (i.e. text, graphics, film), and the files complexity. Suffice to say, it is a choice all PC users need to make.



About the author:
SoCalWizards.com,
located in Orange County, CA and servicing Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego counties for on-site business and residential computer repair, computer support, and computer upgrades.