Online data storage

online data storage

Paranoid about backups!

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data backupIf you are a customer or Highcomm or  a regular visitor to this website then you are probably aware that I am fairly paranoid about backing up data. Well, I thought I was paranoid until I read the article which is referenced below.

Personally I have a desktop backup which I run whenever I feel it is warranted, which isn’t often as I don’t store much of importance on my desktop PC. The same goes for my MacBook, whenever I feel the need as not much is stored on it.

My important data is stored in Dropbox and synchronised as required across all of mine and my families devices, desktop PCs, laptops, Macs, iPads and smartphones (so multiple copies of the data is stored all over the place).dropbox

My desktop backup also backs up the Dropbox folders that are synchronised to my desktop PC so there is another copy. Also on a regular basis, things such as photos are “archived” to DVDs or some other storage media so that I have another copy stored somewhere safe.

So I am pretty much covered.

For businesses I generally recommend either a desktop backup with multiple disks which are alternated daily and taken off site. I also suggest cloud backup, such as Carbonite, but this really only works for small amounts of data, if you have Gigabytes then it is not really an option. Dropbox is useful again for storing data that is required across multiple devices, sites, etc. but remember Dropbox is not a backup!

So the article. This article is written by Rob Griffiths for Mac World and the title says it all. It is a fairly long article and although his backup regime really is over the top it does explain the many options for backing up and keeping your data safe.

The paranoid person’s guide to a complete Mac backup

Backups & Storage – what does it all mean?

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And more importantly, why is it so important to you?

Read any article about computers, or have any discussion with anyone involved with computers and you will come across a variety of terms relating to storage & backup. These will include, backup, storage, data synchronisation, NAS (or Network Attached Storage), USB/Firewire Storage and cloud storage.

All of these relate to where you keep copies of your data, or more simply your files such as text documents and spreadsheets, databases, email, contacts, pictures, music, etc. Basically, anything that is on your computer that is important to you.

For now, don’t get tied up in what constitutes your data, in this article we are going to concentrate on what you do with it.

First some definitions (according to Keith):

Data – all of the files, databases, email, photos, music etc that are stored on your computer and are important to you for any number of reasons.

Data Storage – hard disks, CDs/DVDs, thumb drives, NAS, etc that contain your data. These can be in your computer, attached to your computer or on your network (e.g. Network Attached Storage or NAS for short).

Data Sychronisation – the process of ensuring that ‘live’ copies of data stored on various PCs, on external devices or in the cloud are identical. Often used when you have a desktop & a laptop. (Note ‘live’ = data you are currently working on, today, tomorrow or whatever).

Data Backups – secure & safe snapshots of your data stored in a safe place, preferably off-site. These are used to recover your data in case of emergencies

The Cloud – for all intense and purposes, the Internet.

Cloud Storage – storage for your data in “the cloud”.

Cloud Backup – a backup system for your data in “the cloud”.

Archiving – The removal of “old” (i.e. not ‘live’) data from storage (see above) to a safe place such as a fire proof safe. Examples of this may be data related to a completed project. You may require access to the data at a later date for various reasons such as compliance regulations. Archiving can be used to recover storage space or just to tidy up your storage (it can be tricky sorting through a thousand projects looking for a specific one).

OK, now we’ve got that out of the way, lets get started. [Read more…]

Smartphone security and data backup

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With the continuing fall-out from the “News of the World” phone tapping scandal now is probably a good time to talk about security for your smartphone. If you have an iPhone, Nokia or HTC or any one of the other smartphones you should be treating access to this and it’s stored data the same as you would any computers you may own; in fact; taking into account the portability and size of your smartphone, you should be taking this security even more seriously!

Security on your smartphone goes far beyond having a PIN to access the phone, you need the equivalent of PC anti-virus & firewall software at least. And don’t forget about backing up the data on the phone!htc

There are numerous ways that “bad” people can access your phone. Obviously having physical access to it is one way and you may think that a PIN or password will fix this but remember passwords can be cracked. Also, don’t forget the media or memory card inserted into the little slot in the side or back that contains images, videos and other information. Of course your phone can also be remotely “hacked” as in the News of the World story where journalists were able to access a phone remotely and read the messages, etc stored on it.

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