Why You Should Use This Service to Backup Data Online

Let’s not beat around the bush here and let me get on with my recommendation as to who you should use to backup data online: Carbonite Backup. You can read my detailed Carbonite review to see why I recommend it but suffice to say, it’s cheap insurance (less than $5/month), it’s incredibly easy to use, and will backup your data automatically. Once you have it installed, you’ll never have to think about backing up your files again.

For those of you who don’t backup your files to begin with, shame on you! Just kidding. Actually, there are some statistics that say 90% of home users don’t backup their data so you’re not alone. It is interesting that while most of us have anti-virus software, very few of us backup our computers. This is too bad because just as our computers are susceptible to viruses when we are not careful, 30% to 40% of computers eventually crash.

So what does it mean to backup data online and why should you be doing it?

Simply put, to backup data online means to make duplicates of your computer files and store them in a secure and remote server via the Internet. This is to make sure that in case of data loss, you will always have a copy of your work files, music library, photos, and other digital stuff that you’ve accumulated over the years.

Disasters can happen so fast — virus attacks, computer failure, and natural calamities like fire, earthquake, or floods. And any one of these calamities can erase your files in the blink of an eye. Trust me, this is no exaggeration. Ask any one around you who has experienced losing important data, and he will tell you just how difficult it is to recover from data loss without any sort of backup. I personally know of some small business owners who could close shop the next day should anything happen to their files without sufficient backup; or parents who would wax sentimental should they lose their kids’ growing-up pictures and tons of family videos. You get the picture.

Now that I’ve emphasized to you the importance of having backup files, many of you might say that you do have backups – in CDs, DVDs, tapes, or external hard drives, and these should be enough, right? Wrong. Yes, there are other ways on how to backup your computer files. But most of these are “on-site” solutions, and would only serve you well if the data loss is caused by computer malfunction.

When you backup data online, your backup is stored “off-site” and is therefore safe from natural disasters and theft. Besides, CDs are prone to scratches and damages, and an external hard drive, although generally reliable, can crash too, because it is still a hard drive.

What data should you backup online?

Basically, you should do online backup for all data that you consider valuable. You be the judge of what you think are your valuable files. For instance, most computer users store their self-made files on the “My Documents” folder. This would include word documents, spreadsheets, pictures, videos, music files and more. If you’re one of those who “organizes” your files this way, identifying what data to backup online shouldn’t take long.

To make sure that you are backing up the all the data that you need, make a list of all the applications that you use everyday. Then go through “All Programs” in your Start Menu, and just check if these programs are defaulted to save in the My Documents folder. If not, change the default settings to have the data files saved there (My Documents), or include the default location of these files to the list of drives or folders that you would have your online storage service backup regularly.

Sounds too complicated? I have an easier and better option for you: use Carbonite Backup and stop stressing about which files to backup or not. With Carbonite, you have secure, unlimited storage space plus the convenience of a tool that will automatically backup data online. It’s a no-fuss, no-frills yet really effective solution to your online backup needs!