I have had a request from a client to write a column surveying the various ways to back up data. Before we begin, I have to tell you (as I have had before - hint!) that backing up your data is very important. PCs break or become infected with viruses or spyware. Sometimes your only hope of recovering your data is to restore it from backups - if you don't have any, your data is gone. Don't think this is an infrequent occurrence - it may be so for an individual, but I see it a few times per month.
Once you accept that you need to do backups, the next question is not how, but what. You need to know where your stuff is, and by "know" I mean the folder and files names of your stuff on your hard drive. You can refer to previous columns on this subject on my webpage, or get some help (professional or otherwise). But you can't have a backup strategy without knowing what it is that you have to backup.
When you are committed to do doing it, and you know what to backup, the final step is to determine what backup medium to use. Let's cover the range, but a good strategy may involve more than one backup type. Why? Because there is no "ultimate" backup - if there was, we would all use it!
First, let's get something out of the way. You cannot use the old diskettes. They don't hold enough data (only 1.5 MB wouldn't even hold one digital photo these days) and they are not really reliable. Most modern PCs don't even have a diskette drive, so forget it!
Probably the best backup method from a reliability standpoint is to backup to CDs or DVDs. A CD is fine, but if you need more data, use a DVD instead (requires a DVD writer drive in your PC). Use the -R medium (single write) not the -RW. You do not want to ever erase your backups, and the RW medium is much less reliable. CDs are cheap and plentiful - use them once and put them on the shelf. The downside of CDs is that the writing process isn't automatic. Don't forget to take some CDs offsite in case of a local fire or hurricane.
Another good backup mechanism is the external USB hard drive. These are big enough to back up everything on your HD, and are relatively cheap these days. You can use the backup software that comes with the drive, or synchronization software such as SecondCopy from www.centered.com. The advantage of an external drive is speed and that it is fairly automatic. The disadvantage is that it you can accidentally erase it just like any hard drive. External HDs are easy to remove and carry with you in case of an emergency.
If you are adept, you can backup to the Internet. But this requires space on the Internet that most people don't have and the performance aspects prohibit backing up large amounts of data. If you have a specific need, there may be a service available on the Internet - an example is QuickBooks, which has an automatic backup service this way, for a fee.
Another form of backup that I use is the buddy system: I use SecondCopy to regularly copy my data between my wife's PC and mine. This doesn't get your data offsite, but at least a copy is available if the PC breaks.
Magnetic tape drives were all the rage a decade ago, but just aren't big enough or reliable enough for today's data. Forget tape. There are some very high end (read: expensive) tape drives available for big company servers, but I don't trust tape that much.
Finally, people are using those little "thumb" drives (external USB) for backup. I don't recommend this, as it is too easy to erase the data and sometimes the drives themselves can be misplaced or lost (really, I have seen this). Use thumb drives to transfer data between PCs or to always have your data on hand when you travel, but not for backup use.
So, don't forget to backup, and make sure you know where your stuff is!
I will be posting a white paper on backup techniques on my website soon.
(Bob Seidel is a local computer consultant in the Southport - Oak Island area. You can visit his Website at www.bobseidel.com or e-mail questions or column ideas to him at bsc@bobseidel.com. For specific inquiries, please call Bob Seidel Consulting, LLC at 278-1007.)