Choosing the right technology for backing up.
Imagine if the worst possible scenario happened – your computer crashed or was stolen, the office burnt down or flooded, and all your precious data was
lost forever. You could lose a lifetime of memories, years of important data, contacts and irreplaceable work. This is why backing up is critical.
These days you the options are disk, tape or cloud, so what’s right for you?
Backing up on disk
For home and small businesses, backing up using a disk is one of the most common choices. Firstly, because it’s cheap and reasonably straightforward to
install. Your data will write to disk much faster and it’s simple to search and duplicates can be sourced and removed. There are a few downsides to
backing up on disk. Disk are prone to being easily damaged whether it’s through mishandling or accidentally wiping them.
Backing up on tape
Touted as one of the superior forms of archiving large amounts of data, using tape as a form of back-up can be time-consuming with a high chance of problems
recovering the data. This can be a huge annoyance when you’re working to deadline. On the upside, using tape is a cheap option when you have great
amounts of data to store and if looked after correctly, will outlast any disk. However, since tape has been around for decades, much like music cassette
tapes – it’s suspected it will eventually be phased out.
Backing up on Cloud
The very latest in back up technology, the cloud is possibly the most widespread technology for backing up. It stores your data offsite, sometimes on several
servers, so if one server crashes, rest assured your data is still safe. It ensures even if you lose your laptop or there’s a fire in your office,
your data remains untouched.
Small businesses can often get limited storage gigs for free and most companies have unlimited bandwidth downloads, so it can be a very cheap option. If
you opt to store your data with a trustworthy company, you are unlikely to get hacked.
So what back-up option is right for you?
No matter whether you choose disk media, tape or cloud storage, each back-up option has its advantage and disadvantages, but before you make your final
decision take into consideration:
How much data you need to back up
Your download speeds and internet costs
What locations you need to access your data from
Your future IT plans
Your current computer set-up and what kind of enhancements will you need to install your back-up process of choice. If you still need assistance in making
the best back-up decision for you and your business talk to the team at Conford.
