Carbonite Remote Access: How Does It Work?
One useful feature of the Carbonite Backup service is the Carbonite Remote Access. Not too many people though, are even aware of it and exactly how this function can be used to one’s full advantage. This post aims to give a basic overview of this feature and the simple steps to using it.
If you were going on a business trip or on vacation, wouldn’t it be ideal if you were still able to access important documents even if they are stored on your home computer? That is the ultimate convenience that Carbonite’s Remote File Access offers. One hour after your files are uploaded to the servers, you can already access them from a remote location, whether through your own laptop or from an internet café. According to the company website, you can do this for files from your “initial backup, changed files, or files you mark to be backed up immediately.”
It is important to note however, that Carbonite is programmed to backup newer file versions once every 24 hours and only after the initial backup is complete. So if you want to access edited documents while you’re away and the initial backup up is not yet done, be sure to mark it as a file that Carbonite has to backup immediately.
Restoring files through the Carbonite Remote Access feature is quite simple. But bear in mind that this is only applicable for single restore files. If you want to do a retrieval of all your files, you would have to go through a different process.
In using Remote File Access, here are the steps to take:
1. Go to http://carbonite.com/remote and sign in with your email and password.
2. Once logged in, you can find a list of your backed up folders. You will know if there any subfolders found within the listed folders because there will be a small triangle found on the left side.
3. Click on a folder and the documents contained within it will be displayed on the right side.
4. Once you find the file to restore, click on it and you will be asked to confirm through a File Download window.
5. Click Save and choose your preferred location.
If you are one of those who have opted to manage your own encryption keys (as opposed to letting Carbonite store it for you), there is one more step that you have go through before you can do remote access: upload your private encryption key to Carbonite’s servers. This is the file you were instructed to save during initial installation, which is by default named Carbonite-Encryption-Key.pem.
To upload you keys, go to http://carbonite.com/manage. Find the My Protected Computers tab and then choose the computer to which that encryption key belongs. Click on the link Upload My Encryption Key. Once you receive the verification in the My Protected Computers page that your key was successfully uploaded, you should now be able to use Carbonite Remote Access.
