Oh, we’ve all been there and the scenario is all too familiar: we keep on putting off doing a backup of our data (thinking there’s always tomorrow), and, to make a long story short, eventually end up losing precious files and data – to a virus, hardware failure, theft, or simply human error.

They say there’s no use crying over spilt milk but still, you would have to live with that big “If only…” as you scramble for ways to recover the lost data. This brings us to a key argument for backing up over the internet:

Data Recovery Can Cost You

You may think that you don’t have a lot of files to backup anyway and losing them wouldn’t cost all that much to recover. But remember that unless you are trained to do so, you can’t do data recovery yourself and as such, would need to get the services of a professional. The price for restoring lost files depends on a lot of factors like the size of the file, the complexity of the recovery process, and the condition of the storage device itself.

But why even go through the motions of computing the expense for recovering lost files when you can simply avoid the hassle of dealing with such problem? And at a price that’s peanuts compared to the cost of recovery.

Online vs. External Backup

Now you may also ask, “Why backup online and not through the more traditional means such as burning files to a CD or DVD, or using an external hard drive or removable tapes?”

Let me get this straight first: I’m not advocating online storage as the sole method for keeping your files safe. What I’m encouraging users to do rather, is to make sure you have online backup as one of your storage options. I would be the first to admit that restoring files through hard drives is really convenient especially when you can’t be connected to the internet all the time.

When it comes to the ultimate security and peace of mind however, nothing beats having an online backup service. Hard drives fail, laptops could get stolen, and DVDs and tapes may be misplaced. But with an updated copy of your entire PC stored somewhere in the servers of a reliable online backup service, you can rest easy no matter what.

Why There’s No Time to Waste

In this technologically-advanced day and age, personal and business data can only grow, and conventional means of storing them may eventually be error-prone or simply unable to keep up. In addition to your usual storage devices, having online backup is the way to go.

If you don’t have your own data loss sob story to tell now, count your blessings and make sure you never will have to go through such an experience. With the use of services such as top-rated and widely-used Carbonite Backup and Mozy Home, you’ll see why there’s no need to ask, “Why backup online?”. You just have to do it.

What is Remote Files Access?

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.

How to Restore Files

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.

Using Your Encryption Keys

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.

As mentioned, not too few Carbonite users or would-be users are concerned about how exactly the backup data is stored without compromising security. The most important questions they are asking are, “How secure are my files with Carbonite?”, and perhaps more specifically, “Who has access to my Carbonite files?” This post will try to give straight answers to these questions.

Safety with Carbonite

This may have been mentioned in previous posts but let’s just briefly rehash Carbonite’s security layers. Upon backup, the data goes through a 448-bit Blowfish encryption. Now the encryption process itself may be beyond what non-geeks can grasp but any programming guru can tell you that this is a very secure method, used even in financial systems. Then, upon data transfer to Carbonite’s servers, another extremely reliable and protected method is used – the Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption.

These processes alone should tell you that Carbonite Backup takes painstaking measures to keep your files protected from interference or hacking during backup and transfer. So if you are certain about the safety of the methods used, this now begs the question:

“Who has access to my Carbonite files?”

When tackling Carbonite security issues, perhaps the most pressing concern would be knowing if other people can gain access to the files. The simple answer is that, unless you share your login information with other people, then no one else would have the means to open your Carbonite account and get to your files.

The Importance of Encryption Keys

If you are 101% sure that no one would be given the chance to access your backup account from your end, the last thing you would want to know is if someone from Carbonite can. Here is where you need to understand how the company secures your files by encryption. In simpler terms, encrypted data is scrambled so that no can hack it as it leaves your computer. To “unscramble” the files when you retrieve them, you need to have the encryption keys.

Carbonite can store your encryption keys for you and while this is most advisable, it does put access to backed up files at the hands of someone else other than yourself. But then again, of the billions of data stored within the company’s servers, the chances of an employee actually choosing your files to hack and take advantage of are practically non-existent. Further, given the reputation that Carbonite has, for sure they also have guidelines and precautionary measures in place that would prevent the unauthorized access to client files.

Of course, you also have the option of managing your own encryption keys. But Carbonite puts in plain terms the consequences would be if you were to lose them:

Note: If you lose the encryption key, you will be unable to access your backed up data. If you elect to manage your encryption key, you cannot access your files through Remote File Access.

If you ask me, I’d put these Carbonite security issues to rest and just trust them. They are not the leading online backup service provider for nothing, after all.

The study entitled “Business Risk of a Lost Laptop” was conducted in 2009 by Ponemon Institute covered 3,100 IT and security professionals across the US, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Mexico, and Brazil. The results yielded were an interesting insight into how people in different countries reacted in stress and anger.

For instance, one in three laptop-using employees in Mexico and Brazil wrought damage by succumbing to laptop rage — that’s a whopping 33%. On the other hand, only 13% of the respondents in the US rated rage as a leading cause of laptop damage while British users exercise even more restraint with only 6% putting the blame on laptop rage.

Other than poorly-managed anger, food spills and improper handling during travel also rank high as leading causes of laptop damage. Americans may have put a lid on the rage factor, but they’re not exactly the most careful eaters or travelers as 34% said that spilled food or beverages cause damage to laptops, and 25% attribute it to road mishandling. The French are apparently also sloppy around food as a higher 36% voted food spills as the top reason for “tech injuries.”

Regardless of whether you may be disposed to laptop rage, have a tendency to mix coffee with your work (literally), or have travel habits that are not exactly ideal for a laptop, one thing has become evident with this study: it’s crucial to backup your data now. You never know when any of these top causes of damage may hit you.

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Emails backed up by default

Even in the Carbonite website, this matter is addressed quite clearly. As a matter of fact, the first question asked (and answered) in the Frequently Asked Questions section is “What does Carbonite back up?” and the answer given pretty much says it all:

“By default, Carbonite backs up everything in your Documents and Settings folder (called Users in Windows Vista), including documents, photos, email and data files from applications, such as Quicken, Money, etc…Once a subscription is purchased, music is also added to the list.“

However, there may also be cases wherein Carbonite is not automatically defaulted to include email during the backup process. The first instance is if during installation, you chose the option ‘I’ll manually select what to back up later‘ instead of the more convenient ‘Automatically back up My Documents and Desktop.‘ The second case is when your file size is greater than 4GB, as the default backup does not include files greater than 4GB. In this case, you would need to manually select your email data file for backup. This holds true for both Windows and Mac users.

To check if your emails are already being backed up regularly, browse to the directory and folder that contains your file mails. If there are colored dots on the file icons, this means that these files are either backed up already or set up for scheduled backup by Carbonite.

How to manually select email files for backup

For Windows Outlook and Outlook Express

You will only need to do this if the folders or files do not have colored dots indicated on them. To initiate backup, right-click every file that you want included and select ‘Back this up‘ from the Carbonite context menu.

For Microsoft Outlook, you can most likely find the files stored in C:\Documents and Settings\{your_user_name}\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook\.

For Microsoft Outlook Express, there’s a bit of difference in the file path as Outlook Express typically stores the address book in one location and the email files in another.

• For your address book, check in C:\Documents and Settings\{your_user_name}\Application Data\Microsoft\Address Book\.

• For email files, check in C:\Documents and Settings\{your_user_name}\Local Settings\Application Data\Identities\{long_alphanumeric_code}\Microsoft\Outlook Express\.

For Mac

Browse to your email folders or files.

Entourage is typically located in: Macintosh HD/Users/{your_user_name}/Documents/Microsoft User Data/Office 2008 Identities/Main Identity/Database. To manually select your email for Carbonite backup, control-click on the Database file and select More> Carbonite>Back this Up.

Mac Mail is found in: Macintosh HD/Users/{your_user_name}/Library/Mail. For manual Carbonite backup selection, simply control-click on the Mail folder and select More>Carbonite>Back this Up.

Lastly, note that {your_user_name} will obviously vary and will likely show the user name that you entered when your computer was initially set up.

Maximize your use of Carbonite by ensuring that all your important files are being backed up. Whether by default or manual selection, you won’t need to ask “Does Carbonite backup my emails?” again because you now know that it can and it will.

As with most services which require a monthly fee, you have to ask yourself how much you are willing to pay. As with most products and services, you tend to get what you pay for when it comes to finding the best online backup services. Cheaper ones, or even free ones, offer many limitations when it comes to storage space, access and security. If you are not interested in spending much to have your files backed up, you may be fine with these limitations. But make sure you explore them fully before you take the time to go through the typically lengthy first-time upload.

If you are backing up files which you plan to access frequently, you may need to consider different companies as well. While one of the great benefits of backing up your files online is that you can access them anywhere, some companies limit this access more than others. If you are a student who just wants to back up your work, but you still need to get to it often, you will want to make sure that the company you choose allows easy access to your files. If you are simply interested in locking away your information indefinitely, there are companies that allow you to do that as well.

A big issue for many people considering online backup is security. First, almost all the companies encrypt your files during transfer so you do not have to worry about someone sifting through your information. But once those files get to their servers you want to know they are safe there as well. Some companies will scatter your data across several servers so that it makes no sense to anyone who manages to get a peek. And some companies go so far as to allow you to be the only person who has access to your files, not even their employees will be able to touch them. Just make sure you don’t forget your key or you will never see your files again.

There are many differences in the variety of companies you can choose from. You will have to research them fully to understand which ones will work the best for you. But now you at least know what it is that you are looking for. Regardless of which company you choose, your information will be far safer with them than in your home. They are not vulnerable to fires or flood or even electrical disruptions like they would be in your house. You can be assured that you are taking a good first step when you start looking for the best online backup services.

The fact is that most people don’t back up their files because they think it is too complicated. They don’t know how to image their important files or copy data so that it is readable later on. Even with online services, they worry that setting everything up and keeping track of it is going to cause more trouble that it is worth. What they don’t realize is that online backup and portable hard drives have become so affordable and simple to use that there is no longer a reason to put your data at risk.

The old method of backing up data involved using floppies or CDs. You had to gather everything together and organize it so that you could burn or copy everything you needed onto multiple pieces. Given the size limitations and the fact that you needed a specific kind of drive to read these files, this was not ideal. Especially if you used a drive format such as ZIP drives that aren’t on every computer. Buying all these discs could be very expensive as well, especially when you bought bigger discs to hold everything you needed to backup your computer. Fortunately, external hard drives and online backup services have made those problems of the past.

Every single modern computer has a USB drive. And an external hard drive will plug and play with them all. Not only is it far easier and more convenient, but you don’t have to organize your files any differently than they are on your computer. Even if you don’t have a backup program, you can just copy and paste everything just like it is right onto the other hard drive. As an added bonus, you can get drives big enough to hold everything on your computer with more than enough room to spare. With multi-terabyte drives, there is almost no limit to the amount of information you can store.

But if you aren’t interested in spending hundreds on a huge drive, there are now online services you can use. And they are more user-friendly than ever as companies start to find that the average person wants to keep their computer data safe, not just big companies. You can sign up for their service, download their program and let them worry about your information. Some of the companies which offer this service even have the information stored in drives with multiple redundancies in case one should fail. The chances of you losing your data while it is stored at one of their servers is next to none. So if you seriously want to backup your computer, you have no more excuses as the process has become cheap and easy enough for anyone to do it.

It’s understandable for us to be concerned since once we subscribe to this service, Carbonite already keeps a backup copy of all the data we have on our computers, from the “obsolete” files of so long ago to the most sensitive and current ones we have. And with the internet fair game for just about any type of identity theft and scam, it’s safest to be always on guard.

While anything is possible however, with Carbonite Online, the chances of your files ever being leaked to unscrupulous individuals are next to nothing. Carbonite’s servers are technologically equipped and professionally run so as to ensure the highest security for the billions of files stored in them. Still, it’s one thing saying that Carbonite is safe and another thing to actually explain what makes it so. Here are the many layers of security that your data passes through:

First, your data goes through a 448-bit Blowfish encryption even before it is transferred to Carbonite’s servers. It’s mind-boggling to even think about the mathematics involved in this but suffice it to say that this is an encryption method that is very secure and has never been broken.

Then, as soon as your data is transmitted to Carbonite, it passes through another encryption using the Secure Socket Layer (SSL). Again, this is another extremely reliable protocol that is commonly used to provide security and data integrity especially for data transfers over the internet.

With these two encryptions, it’s virtually impossible to steal your files while in transit to Carbonite’s servers. Now, you may ask — how about when it gets there or while in storage?

This is a valid point but you have to remember that your data is still encrypted while being stored. Of course, Carbonite does manage the encryption keys for you. These encryptions keys are necessary to decode your data when you need them. All customers’ encryption keys are further stored in a database, which is encrypted itself with only few reliable employees in Carbonite having access to the keys.

It’s difficult to even just imagine the encryption and security measures that your files go through while being transferred and stored in Carbonite’s servers but the bottomline is clear: no ordinary Carbonite employee can gain access to your data. Besides, the mere thought of “rummaging” through 25 billion (yes, billion!) encrypted files is enough to daunt anybody.

So if you’re worried about the safety of your data backed up online through Carbonite don’t be! If you ask me, you should be more worried about not doing online backup for your files.

I admit that backing up on an external drive is also a good method of protecting your files from data loss. In fact, I’d go as far as saying that it is one of the most reliable backup methods — but that was before online storage and backup came into play. Now, online storage tops my list of data backup options, even while I still do external drive backup on the side.

For those who have experienced data loss due to hard drive failure, human error, theft, and even natural calamities that strike our home, the answer to the above question is a no-brainer. Why? Because online backup would have been immune to any of the scenarios mentioned above. And as far as online backup solutions are concerned, Carbonite Backup protects your data more securely than the rest of the other online storage services, yet makes it convenient for you to retrieve your data as needed.

Here’s where Carbonite wins hands-down as compared to an external hard drive backup.

Carbonite’s encrypted servers are secure.

I’m not saying that you don’t keep your external hard drives secure enough. I’m sure you have your own system for storing your drives but the truth is, we can only protect our external hard drives up to certain a point. Theft, whether online or physical, is much more likely to happen in our homes than in Carbonite’s servers which are securely encrypted and professionally maintained as highlighted in our Carbonite review.

The same argument holds true in case of a fire. If you do regular external hard drive backups, chances are, the hard drives would be located in your home as well. While I don’t wish it on anyone, the fact remains that if your house got burned down, your backups would have been lost along with your personal computer.

External drives die too!

Just like your computer hard drive, external drives can also quit on you in a snap. That’s the problem with hard drives in general. They can always die unexpectedly; the older they get the greater the chances of their sudden “retirement”. And you can never be prepared enough for it, unless you also keep a backup of your backup. That sounds like a lot of tedious work already, not to mention a lot of hassle, for something that you can do with the least effort using Carbonite.

Carbonite Online is your key to a worry-free digital life.

Our computer files are not simply work stuff that we need to protect. More often than not, home computers are stored with personal files such as family photos and music collections that we’ve accumulated over the years. Therefore keeping our computer data safe and properly backed up ensures that we are preserving those memories too.

Carbonite doesn’t cost much.

In fact, the service costs very little considering the benefits that you can get. Because really, what is peace of mind for less than $5 per month? And if you apply the 10% off Carbonite coupon the service is even more attractive!

By all means, continue with your external backups for added security and easy access to your files, but if you ask me is Carbonite better than an external hard drive, my answer is a resounding YES!

When these situations come up, the effort you made on knowing how to backup files and just doing this regularly will be worth it.

The 6 most convenient ways backing up your computer files are:

1. Email

Backing up files via email involves attaching every single file you are working on to an email message. This method is a very simple one, and as email comes for free, it costs very little, if any at all. On the downside, attaching files to email individually can be a very tedious task, and may even cause you to miss backing up a file or two. Email storage is also limited so you won’t be able to back everything up. Plus, you need to be prepared for the possibility that when your email service is down, you won’t have access to those backup files too.

2. Using backup utilities that come with Operating Systems like Vista

Backup systems offered with an OS like Vista are reliable and comes at no cost at all. But if you are creating backup files with the intention of protecting your data in case of a hard drive failure or a computer crash, it really doesn’t make much sense to store the backup file in the same computer.

3. Using third party solutions or software backup utilities

One good thing about this option is that these backup utilities are usually very affordable. Unfortunately, many things work against it. First, some software can eat up a lot of your resources and bog down your computer. Others can be really buggy and may not run properly or backup automatically. If the software itself can’t be trusted to work properly and can even crash, it’s not really a very reliable solution, is it?

4. CDs and DVDs

Keeping backups of your computer files in CDs and DVDs is a very common practice. What makes this method popular is the ease of the process. On the other hand, backing up files through CDs can be very time consuming, and costly in the long run because even a small amount of data may require an entire CD. Optical disks are also prone to scratches that can damage the file contents, or they can be easily snatched or misplaced. Should any of these happen, how would you retrieve your backups?

5. External hard drives

Using external hard drives is one of the better solutions on how to backup files on your computer. The pros: external hard drives are affordable, and are now available in the 1 terabyte level so huge files are a breeze. You don’t need to worry about the hard drive getting scratched, and with only one device to think about, keeping it secure is easy too.

Backing files up using external drives does have its disadvantages, though. Just like your computer hard drive, it can crash too! And because hard drives are kept “on site” (again just like your computer), it can be destroyed too in case of a calamity like a fire. Lastly, these drives don’t do automatic backup so you should always remember to do so manually.

6. Online Backup

There are many advantages to using online backup services. They are affordable and easy to use. They backup files automatically everyday; no need to remember doing the backup yourself. The best thing about online storage and backup is that the files are kept “off site” – far from the dreaded crashes, viruses, and disasters. My choice of online backup service is Carbonite. At less than $5/month, it’s cheap insurance to protect my files from all the possible causes of data loss.

However, online backup has its flaws too. For one, restoring files is not as convenient as it should be. File retrieval can take up to days for large volume of files or restoring the entire contents of your computer. You should also remember that you are depending on a third party for your important files and data. If the company goes out of business or just stops its service for some reason, where would that leave your files?

So which is the best computer backup solution?

Now that you have a good idea of how to backup files on you computer, you be the judge on which the best safeguarding alternatives are. Personally, I find the last two options, external hard drive and online backup, of which I use Carbonite Backup, the unbeatable combination when it comes to ensuring the complete preservation and security of your files. This way, you can always have a physical backup with you for a quick file retrieval process, and you have an online backup too in case of computer disasters at your end.