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Backing Up Data: what mediums to back data up to and what data should
be backed
up
What do I back up my important data
and pictures to? Do I back up my whole computer? It’s
your data, how long would it take you to re-create those
important spreadsheets or tax data? Why take the chance?
Years
ago, in the beginning of computers (about 20+ years ago)
backing up was simple as file sizes were extremely small
and the backup medium (first 5¼ inch then 3½ inch
floppy disks) were fairly large. It was easy to back up
a year's worth of word processing and spreadsheet work
onto one or a few floppy disks. And essentially now if
you had just simple word processing and spreadsheet files,
they would still fit onto a floppy disk, but it’s
rarely that simple anymore.
Now there are the above-mentioned files, plus your email
address book, favorite places, and photographs that are saved
onto your hard drive. For a simple and fast backup of files,
not photos, the use of flash drives are quick and easy. A flash
drive is basically a small, thumb sized drive that plugs into
your usb port. Originally they were just 16 Megs and now exceed
1 gig. Flash drives are an excellent way to transport your
files from one computer to another (i.e., home to work
and back). A 1 gig flash drive can be had for around $60
now and the prices are dropping quickly.
Portable hard drives are another way to transport data
to and from work. These small, pocket size drives can hold
from 1.5 gigs to over 80 gigs of data. But for home use, a
good bet is a desktop backup drive (external hard drive) that
is over 80 gigs. This will give you room to grow and store
lots of pictures and more. I use a 160 gig external hard drive
and am only using a small portion of it, but there is lots
of room for me to grow into.
I also burn cd’s (CD-R’s) of my data and
pictures. It’s easy to categorize your stuff and label
(I always have a sharpie ™ pen handy) the cd’s
and place them in a safe place. You can’t be too paranoid
when it comes to your data.
CD’s are universal right now and will be for a
while. Although, they will eventually be replaced by DVD’s.
But that’s nothing to worry about now. And an external
hard drive can plug into any new computer and your data will
be accessible.
Do you need to back up your complete
hard drive?
That is unnecessary, as if you upgraded your
computer, you would only be restoring or copying your needed data
and not all the other junk. Especially the little programs that
get accumulated and fill the hard drive. There are programs, like
Drive Image by Symantec, that do make a complete image of your
existing hard drive should you have technical problems you can
then do a “restore” and
get the computer back to the way it was. But, usually just copying
the needed files is enough and then reloading the programs you
use. Yes, this takes longer, but usually the computer works much
more efficiently.
There are other types of backup medium, but are mostly
for offices backing up huge amounts of data.
If you have any questions or need a recommendation or
a backup system installed, please contact us via email or
telephone.
Computer Care - We
make house calls!
Computer Sales, Service and Support
Tel & Fax: (413) 567-3505
Email: computercare@comcast.net
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