2 is 1, and 1 is none.
In the case of data redundancy, that phrase should be 3 is 1, and anything less than that you’re gonna have a bad time.
It is not a matter of if, it is when a hard drive will fail. Are you prepared for the inevitable?
Over the years I have developed an airtight data backup system. While you might not need a system as robust as mine you can at least use these two apps to help automate your backups.
#1 Crashplan
Crashplan is an automatic cloud-based backup service. It is always running in the background constantly backing up all the data that you have selected. You can do a full system backup, or just have it keep track of certain folders.
Here’s what makes Crashplan the best option for backing up your business’ data:
- It is just $10/month for unlimited storage
- It keeps all files that you delete
- You can backup external drives
- It has high-end security and encryption, so your data is safe even in the cloud
Just how unlimited is it? This is currently how many files I have in CrashPlan’s cloud.
#2 GoodSync
Backups need to be run automatically and often.
Backup systems are only as good as their weakest link. Generally, the weak link is actually us. If we have to remember to back up files by copying them from one drive to another that’s what will bring down the system.
That is where GoodSync comes into play. It is a program that works on both Windows and Mac to automatically mirror hard drives. You set up jobs for the program, which means that when it detects a file change it will automatically copy the new/updated files to any of the connected drives that you specify.
While I think cloud-based backups are great they should not be your only backup. You should 100% have a physical backup system too.
I recommend at a minimum having 2 copies of your data on-site and 1 copy off-site. That way if you have any singular hard drive failure you still have 2 copies while you replace the failed hard drive.
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