A Call for Ideas: How Do You Backup Your Files?

[Patranus]

A time machine.

BTW: RAID gives you redundancy against hardware failure, its not a backup.

 

[Brainonska511]

I use "syncback" to mirror my file server to an external HDD.

I used to use this when my primary machine was an XP laptop and I wanted to synchronize my personal files with an external drive. Now, I just use the backup utility in Windows 7 and a second internal drive (so I have 2x 500GB drives in my desktop, one of the drives is just for backups).

 

[freegeeks]

Apple Time Capsule, this backup is then replicated to my 10TB Drobo storage

 

[shortylickens]

A time machine.

BTW: RAID gives you redundancy against hardware failure, its not a backup.

Isnt that what backup is, a redundancy against failure?

 

[Locut0s]

RAID 1 for all my larger stuff like images and video. Plus cloud storage for things like my bookmarks, email and some of my fav images as well.

 

[ShawnD1]

I store all my important documents and pics to Google. I don't backup my desktop at all even though I really should.

I back up my cell phone nightly though

Be careful with this. If you read the google ToS, you'll see that Google has full permission to read everything you upload. If you happen to have pictures of you and your friends robbing a liquor store or doing something else illegal then do not store those on someone else's server.
Theoretically they could read your bank information and tax returns and stuff if you have those up, but who really cares about that stuff.



My stuff is backed up using WinMerge. It can check file contents and hashes but I just have it check things by date. I'm avoiding RAID because I find that added complexity makes shit fail all the time.

 

[freegeeks]

Isnt that what backup is, a redundancy against failure?

nope, RAID is a redundancy mechanism, not a backup system. Best practices always provide a backup of any system, including redundant RAID systems. For very important data, you will also have an offsite backup of everything, somewhere in a vault preferably. RAID and backup will be no good if your DC goes up in flames. For home use, you are already ahead of 99% of the population, by just having a backup on a cheap external hd.

 

[freegeeks]

Be careful with this. If you read the google ToS, you'll see that Google has full permission to read everything you upload. If you happen to have pictures of you and your friends robbing a liquor store or doing something else illegal then do not store those on someone else's server.
Theoretically they could read your bank information and tax returns and stuff if you have those up, but who really cares about that stuff.



My stuff is backed up using WinMerge. It can check file contents and hashes but I just have it check things by date. I'm avoiding RAID because I find that added complexity makes shit fail all the time.

just encrypt your stuff, for me it's a common sense if you use a cloud system that you have strong encryption on your data

 

[TwiceOver]

Crashplan. I colo a server ata local isp. All of my pcs backup to each other and then to the server.

 

[Locut0s]

Isnt that what backup is, a redundancy against failure?

Technically no but I think it's kind of talking semantics to argue the point. It's not technically a backup because the data is still in one physical location and in some ways on one single devise. You get protection against hardware failure but there's no protection from say a fire or something.

 

[shortylickens]

Technically no but I think it's kind of talking semantics to argue the point. It's not technically a backup because the data is still in one physical location and in some ways on one single devise. You get protection against hardware failure but there's no protection from say a fire or something.

If my thumb drive is in my house thats not backup either then, is it?
Are you suggesting people put stuff on drives then stick them in bank deposit boxes?

 

[MotionMan]

I backup my data folder, my photos, my videos and my music.

1. To a local attached drive.

2. To a portable drive that I take to work and swap with an identical one.

3. To another local attached drive via TimeMachine.

So I have an original, a local copy on an external, a local TimeMachine on an external, a remote portable (and a one copy behind local portable).

I do it manually (except for TM) periodically, but the only thing I am concerned about losing are new photos and videos, and I do not delete those from the cameras until do my backups (so that is another limited copy!).

(Also I have a 2 TB drive sitting in a drawer that I have not figured out how I want to use, yet. In addition, I have Chronosync installed, but have not used it for quite a while.)

MotionMan

 

[Locut0s]

If my thumb drive is in my house thats not backup either then, is it?
Are you suggesting people put stuff on drives then stick them in bank deposit boxes?

Yes actually they do for really important stuff. I'd say the thumb drive count's as a backup because it's a seperate device where as the RAID array is still one device, if you drop the computer off a bridge the data is gone RAID or no RAID but you still have the thumb drive.

 

[freegeeks]

If my thumb drive is in my house thats not backup either then, is it?
Are you suggesting people put stuff on drives then stick them in bank deposit boxes?

that's how serious business do it, backup on external media (tapes) an this goes literally in a vault in a secured offsite location. I know several small business that do the same thing on a smaller scale, they just rent a bank deposit box and put their backup media in it.

makes sense to me

 

[SphinxnihpS]

RAID5+
Backup Exec+
Windows Server backup+
Carbonite

 

[SphinxnihpS]

that's how serious business do it, backup on external media (tapes) an this goes literally in a vault in a secured offsite location. I know several small business that do the same thing on a smaller scale, they just rent a bank deposit box and put their backup media in it.

makes sense to me

Obsolete waste of time. One SCSI tape drive costs more than I will spend on online backup services in 20 years.

 

[Locut0s]

Obsolete waste of time. One SCSI tape drive costs more than I will spend on online backup services in 20 years.

Sure a waste of time for you and me. But not for companies with critical data to keep safe.

 

[freegeeks]

Obsolete waste of time. One SCSI tape drive costs more than I will spend on online backup services in 20 years.

well Amazon cloud services has severe problems the last few days, do you really trust the whole cloud that much. I'm not saying that every home user should have an offsite backup but I can guarantee you that every serious business is doing it, have done it the last 25 years and will still be doing it in 25 years. You can do it on the cheap as a home user, make a backup on an external HD (encrypted ofcourse) and give it to a person you trust. If your house burns down you still have a physical backup

 

[SphinxnihpS]

Sure a waste of time for you and me. But not for companies with critical data to keep safe.

They can back it up online too. I would argue tapes are even riskier if they are the only solution used.

 

[ShawnD1]

well Amazon cloud services has severe problems the last few days, do you really trust the whole cloud that much. I'm not saying that every home user should have an offsite backup but I can guarantee you that every serious business is doing it, have done it the last 25 years and will still be doing it in 25 years. You can do it on the cheap as a home user, make a backup on an external HD (encrypted ofcourse) and give it to a person you trust. If your house burns down you still have a physical backup

Hmm let's compare the two.
1 - hope that sister/brother/parents don't lose or break the hard drive you keep at their house
2 - hope cloud of thousands of redundant computers doesn't screw up

I'm guessing the cloud is more reliable. I've lost CDs before, I dropped a hard drive which caused it to fail, and shippers throw shit around if you're sending this drive to someone else through mail or courier. I've seen people lose track of entire decades of files in their basement; it's all there but they can't locate any specific thing.

 

[freegeeks]

They can back it up online too. I would argue tapes are even riskier if they are the only solution used.

no, they are not

 

[SphinxnihpS]

no, they are not

How so?

 

[freegeeks]

Hmm let's compare the two.
1 - hope that sister/brother/parents don't lose or break the hard drive you keep at their house
2 - hope cloud of thousands of redundant computers doesn't screw up

I'm guessing the cloud is more reliable. I've lost CDs before, I dropped a hard drive which caused it to fail, and shippers throw shit around if you're sending this drive to someone else through mail or courier. I've seen people lose track of entire decades of files in their basement; it's all there but they can't locate any specific thing.

I guess most of you have never worked in a business with legal requirements to backup critical data. I can assure you that a backup to the "cloud" is not part of their backup strategy, offsite backup on tapes in a vault most definitely is. This is for business use, NOT home users. But hey, if you believe in it you can rewrite all the best practices that have been used by major financial institutions for the last 25 year or so and start selling a cloud solution, let me know how it goes if you try to sell it to the CTO of JP Morgan

 

[freegeeks]

How so?

offsite backups in a secure location is a proven backup strategy used by all major corporations, the cloud isnt. Amazon AWS has problem right now because their storage went fubar, good luck if your one and only backup is on one of their servers and you need that critical backup RIGHT NOW. The whole cloud thing is largely best effort for now,no SLA. Amazon is telling its customers right now, we are doing our best but we can not guarantee anything. Good luck if your data in in their affected datacenters.

ps: the Amazon problem is already since Thursday, most has been resolved but there are still some issues for some customers

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2383980,00.asp

 

[skyking]

Everything is on a raid1 linux microserver that draws 25 watts, so no worries about leaving it on. It backs up to an offsite server nightly at a friend's house.