Monday, December 22, 2008

Buletproof backup for Windows XP or Vista

Lately, I've been receiving quite a few calls from panicked computer users, when they've lost some important document, photo or a music folder.

A common theme is that folks are vaguely aware of the need for a backup procedure, but very few have actually taken time to do something about it (or hired me to take care of it for them).

Often, people are willing to pay three times the cost of backup solution setup, just to get their data back. The most surprising is the fact, that those are the same people that often tell me "I don't have anything important on this PC" when I suggest a full system backup.

OK, here is the basic three-pronged solution I recommend frequently, although it is usually tailored for each customer, considering amount of data changed daily, schedules, speed of the internet connection, etc. Depending on the amount of data, all three of the below listed backups can be set up in about one - two hours. Request a detailed quote here.

1. Image-Based Backup. Image-based backup is the cornerstone of all personal computers. This type of backup provides unique capability to restore not only data, but also operating system and all of those expensive applications. This works best with an external hard drive or a network share. Frequency of full image backup can vary but, once per week, to once per month works for most cases. Applications such as TrueImage or Ghost can be used. Restoring a PC can be done in one-two hours, versus 5-8 hours it would take to reinstall Windows, Office, Security applications, and restoring data.

2. Daily Data Backup. Daily data backup says it all. Take all your data, such as My Documents, Desktop, etc. and copy (automatically using scripts or software such as Replicator or SyncToy) it nightly to another folder, preferably on another hard drive, or a network share. This takes care of the gap created by infrequent image-based backup. This way, one can restore their two-week old image, and then restore last night's data backup.

3. Off-Site Data Backup. This is the portion of the backup plan that takes care of safeguarding the most critical data in case of fire, or electrical surge, both of which could destroy the PC and the backup drives. Frequently, this is the part that folks don't do, but with automatic tools such as MozyHome that backup unlimited amount of data for less than $5/month, it is too risky not to have an off-site backup system.

With a computer protected with the above-described techniques, it is easy to sleep well, knowing that your data is safe, no matter what happens....

Comments, suggestions, better ways to backup? Let me know...

No comments: