For most of use, computers have evolved to become integral tools in our daily life - from checking the news to balancing your checkbook, from writing emails to writing your memoirs, you use your computer every day. Normally, the little hard drive inside your laptop or desktop purrs happily along, storing and protecting all your valuable file, photos, and data. But somtimes, disaster strikes - your computer dies, it won't boot, the hard drive is dead, a virus deletes a bunch of your critical files.. What do you do? How much will it cost you to recover or recreate those files? What if you can't get them back? What would you do? Most people now use anti-virus and spyware software, but most of us go unprotected when it comes to backing up our computers.
How do backup software programs work?
The concept behind backup software is pretty simple - store copies of some or all of your files in a safe location, separate from your computer. This way, in case of hard drive failure, viruses, theft, or fire, you can get your data back. There are a number of online file storage and backup sites that let you keep 1GB or so on their servers, for which they charge you $5-$19 per month. For someone with a 200GB hard drive, it can be pretty tough deciding what the key 1GB of files is they want to protect, and then you have to wait for relatively slow internet upload speeds, even with broadband, to send your files to the remote server. Desktop backup software programs let you backup more data, faster, either to a second external hard drive (best bet) or to recordable DVDs, which can hold over 4GB each (at a cost of only 50 cents each or so). Symantec makes a number of data and system protection programs, mostly aimed at servers. Backup Exec is their most popular backup program - the server version "provides comprehensive, cost-effective, and certified backup and recovery—including continuous data protection. Centralized administration provides scalable management of distributed backup and remote servers. High-performance agents and options provide fast, flexible, and granular protection of servers." There is also a desktop version available for $69.
Best Desktop Backup Software
There are a few things you should look for when buying backup software:
Incremental Backups - you want the program to only backup files that have changed since the last backup -- that could mean copying over only 200 files instead of 200,000
Automated Backup Feature - you should be able to pick a backup time and forget about it, letting the software backup your key files regularly and automatically
Options for backup location - you should be able to backup to specific drives, DVD recorders, or remote servers via FTP
Toll-free support or live chat - lots of people have questions when they first try to backup their computers - free simple support is a big bonus when you are getting started
Restore - you need a good restore function to retrieve your lost files
Hard disk cloning - the backup software should let you make an exact copy of your hard drive, including all OS files, so you can easily upgrade your system to a larger hard drive.
Some of the most popular backup software are Acronis True Image ($49, Acronis.com), Mozy Remote Backup, NTI Shadow ($29), File Backup Watcher ($40), and Carbonite. Mozy Remote Backup (Mozy.com) lets you store 2GB of data on their servers for free, in exchange for receiving a weekly email ad. The 5GB option is $19 per year, or $40 per year for the 20GB option. They encrypt your files so only you can access and open them with your password. While not a desktop program, in our tests their automated system worked well . NTI Shadow runs in real time and saves copies of files each time you make a change to one - no need to remember when the last time you backed up! However, a lot of people find it difficult to configure and run, so try before you buy. Carbonite Online PC Backup (Carbonite.com) is $50 for 12 months of storage and backup service. Carbonite works through the Windows file explorer, so it is easy to use and navigate, and automatically backs-up only the files you change, making it speedy. File Backup Watcher (DSWSoft.com) can backup to a network, via email, via FTP, and to CD and DVD drives. Backup Plus (Avantrix.com) can be downloaded for free -- it costs $29 to buy the full version after you test it out. It comes with a timed backup manager for scheduling automatic backups and an easy to use Restore Manager for recovering lost files.
Also visit XXCLone, by Pixelab. They make the popular XXCopy file management utility. XXCLone clones a Windows disk (similar to Norton Ghost) and works as a quick daily backup utility. They offer a free limited-function version, a 30-day full function trial version, and a paid version for $40. Check it out.
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