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March 2010

Three Best Backup Tips

1. Backup using an external hard drive
2. Backup using a tape drive
3. Backup using an online backup company

1. The CD-ROM drive or DVD-drive that many people used to use for backup is no longer adequate for most backup tasks. Most DVD-drives holds up to 4GB for read and write disks (you can erase the disk and start over) or 8GB on read only disks (you can only write data once till the disk is full) and that is often not adequate for your backup except for very small, but still important, backup jobs. You have to buy a separate program if you want to schedule a backup. External hard disks are very inexpensive and can hold up to many TB (Terrabytes). They look like another drive in your system and you can drag and drop files to them as you would with your regular C: drive or you can run an automatic backup using a aseparate backup.

Pros: DVD drives come with computer, cost of media is insignificant, cost of scheduling program is insignificant. External hard drives are a one time investment, well worth it.
Cons: You have to remember to do it, even if you have a scheduling program in which case you have to remember to change the disk or the drive every so often. Limited backup space on DVDs, much backup space on external drives..

2. Tape drives are still widely used both by big businesses and small businesses. Several companies have abandoned tape drives because they so often are unreliable or break down. That said, they can still hold a large amount of data and might be the cheapest alternative for large amounts of data if you don’t want an off site solution.

Pros: Relatively inexpensive up front costs, backup and scheduling programs are included
Cons: Often breaks down, cost of tapes expensive, you have to remember to switch tapes

3. Online backup companies come in all kinds of flavors. Depending on what you pay, you can get unlimited backup. For the time being, Carbonite and Mozy offer unlimited GB backup for the same low price as a small backup. These companies have several different features. Ibackup offers an option where you can have people collaborate on documents stored online.

Pros: Free or inexpensive. Works in the background so you only have to be online for it to work. Can take large amounts of data.
Cons: You have to rely on the company that offers the service that its servers are up to the task and that it has backup servers and in general is reliable

Some internet backup companies:

Free: Also free, Mozy, www.mozy.com, 2 GB free. Can schedule a backup, backs up every so often on its own. You quickly get over 2 GB and if you like the service, it is easy to go to the paid version so you can easily get hooked.

Paid: Carbonite, www.carbonite.com. $5/mo for unlimited GBs. Cheaper with annual plan.
Works in the background when the computer is connected to the internet. Only activates when no keystrokes or mouse clicks are detected. Mozy, www.mozy.com, about the same as Carbonite.

IBackup, www.ibackup.com, price various depending on size and type of backup.
Can be scheduled. Can be used for workgroup collaboration. Easy to use.

Good Backup Rules

Whatever method you choose to backup your data, you should:
1. Have one disk or tape per day or per backup period
2. Always have more than one cd/dvd/external disk of the same data
3. Always store one copy of recent data off site
4. Always backup REALLY important data to a cd/dvd/external disk even if you have internet backup

New Computer Anyone?

Windows 7 came out recently and has already been installed on computers you buy at retail stores. You can still get XP home and Pro computers at Dell, HP and other online retailers if you are so inclined. There is really no reason to do that though as Windows 7 is a much improved product over Windows Vista. Upgrading your current system is not easy if you have Windows XP. You have to completely wipe out your old computer and start over. Most companies will probably stay with their current operating system until it is time to buy a new computer mostly because they have already invested so much in that version. Also, the new array of Windows 7 that is coming out can be confusing. It exists in 6 flavors but only a few make sense for home and business users:

Windows 7 Home Premium: This edition contains features aimed at the home market segment, such as Windows Media Center, Windows Aero and touch-screen controls.

Windows 7 Professional: This edition is targeted towards enthusiasts and small business users. It includes all the features of Windows 7 Home Premium, and adds the ability to participate in a Windows Server domain. Additional features include operating as a Remote Desktop server, location aware printing, Encrypting File System, Presentation Mode, Software Restriction Policies (but not the extra management features of AppLocker) and Windows XP Mode.

Windows 7 Enterprise: This edition targets the enterprise segment of the market and is sold through volume licensing to companies which have a Software Assurance contract with Microsoft. Additional features include support for Multilingual User Interface (MUI) packages, BitLocker Drive Encryption, and UNIX application support. Not available through retail or OEM channels, this edition is distributed through Microsoft Software Assurance (SA). As a result it includes several SA-only benefits, including a license allowing the running of multiple virtual machines, and activation via VLK.

Windows 7 Ultimate: Windows 7 Ultimate contains the same features as Windows 7 Enterprise, but unlike the Enterprise edition, it is available to home users on an individual license basis. Windows 7 Home Premium and Windows 7 Professional users are able to upgrade to Windows 7 Ultimate for a fee using Windows Anytime Upgrade if they wish to do so. Unlike Windows Vista Ultimate, the Windows 7 Ultimate edition does not include the Windows Ultimate Extras feature or any exclusive features.

Material from Wikipedia, Cnet and PC Magazine was used in this newsletter.

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