Are Data Backups Really That Important?
For many of us, our computer has become a critical part of our life. We use them for working, entertainment and corresponding with people we know. Over the course of time, most people create a number of files that are important to them and would cost time, money or both if they were lost. Data backups are the most effective way to make sure you won’t lose those important files.
Many users have made the mistake of thinking backups are only for big companies or computer geeks, or even just thinking they’ll do it when they have time. Unfortunately every single one of those users has either lost data by not having a backup, or they will one day. All computer equipment has a finite lifespan and will fail eventually.
When that happens, you’ll be faced with one of two things. On one hand, you’ll have a backup of all your critical information and can restore it all back onto your repaired computer or a new replacement. On the other hand, you’ll lose the financial information, music, digital photos and all the other important files on your computer.
There are many ways to lose the information on your computer. Besides the obvious hardware failures, there are floods, fire, power surges or even your child unplugging the computer at the wrong moment. Your computer could also be infected by a virus or spyware that wipes everything out.
Often the only way you’ll get your data back is by having a backup copy. And even if a data recovery service can get it back for you, it can cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars for them to do so.
What Do You Need To Backup?
In most cases you don’t need to backup every single thing on your computer. It can take a lot of storage space, and take a long time to complete the backup. The critical files to backup are all the things you have created, such as word processing documents, digital photos and spreadsheets, and any software you can’t reinstall from the original CD or DVD.
But backups need not.
The easiest system for backing up your data is to just use the software that’s included with most modern operating systems. Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux all include quite capable backup software. You just need to select the files and folders you want to backup and get it started. Many of these programs will even let you schedule the backup to run at a time you won’t be using your computer.
If you want something a little more powerful, there are a number of backup program you can purchase. These programs offer features such as only backing up files that have changed since the last backup, or those that have changed since a particular date.
Some data, such as e-mails are only slightly more difficult to protect. Some e-mail clients can be configured to keep copies of received and sent e-mails on the e-mail server. When that’s not an option, most can export messages to a file, which can then be backed up.
Backups can be saved to almost any type of drive or media – writable CD’s, DVD’s, USB memory sticks or removable hard drives for example. If you’re really stuck you might even be able to backup your files to a floppy disk. Word processing documents and spreadsheets don’t take up very much space at all.
Running a daily backup may seem like one more thing to accomplish in your already busy day, but the first time you lose a file that you need and don’t have saved, you’re going to wish you made the time.