Do i have to back up?

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andyfromotley

New Member
The only thing of value on my computer are the family photos and a few video clips, (and i suppose my tunes which would more of an irritation than a loss i suppose)

So should i back it up or just load the pics onto a usb stick or memory card?
If i have to back it up how difficult is it?

Thanks andy
 

rh100

Well-Known Member
Putting them on a memory stick is backing it up. ie you have another copy.

However - memory sticks arn't too reliable in the long run, neither are cdr's.

Best bet IMO - is get an external hard disk - maybe one with a button on the front which when pressed backs up pre defined folders from the PC.

This way you have copies on two different hard disks - it would be unusual for two to fail at the same time so if one does (the PC drive or the external one) replace it and backup again so you always have two copies.

However - physical damage or theft could affect both - so keep it on the stick aswell.

Hope it helps.
 

gaz

Cycle Camera TV
Location
South Croydon
Hmmm do i have a backup? Oh yes. In fact i have several, a few in my room, in my basement and one copy stored off-site.

We are so DR (disaster recovery) conscious, that we have back up routers and servers to replace broken ones so that any break in our network is set to a minimum.

We are extreme in our house though, got something like 14 PC's, 4 laptops, 2 servers, 2 16port GB ethernet blade switches and 6 routers. Oh and 2 internet connections one 50mb fibre optic and one 20mb cable.
 
D

Deleted member 1258

Guest
Yes, if the data is important you need to back it up. I have my important files backed up on an external hard drive and on a free account on here http://www.myotherdrive.com/
When I first had a computer I lost data to a hard drive failure and after that I made sure I backed things up, the other thing is, if you have a break in they are likely to take the external hard drive as well as the computer.
 

rh100

Well-Known Member
gaz said:
Hmmm do i have a backup? Oh yes. In fact i have several, a few in my room, in my basement and one copy stored off-site.

We are so DR (disaster recovery) conscious, that we have back up routers and servers to replace broken ones so that any break in our network is set to a minimum.

We are extreme in our house though, got something like 14 PC's, 4 laptops, 2 servers, 2 16port GB ethernet blade switches and 6 routers. Oh and 2 internet connections one 50mb fibre optic and one 20mb cable.

Blimey

question is - how do you manage the backups and do you test them and is there any redundancy?

currently playing with a Windows Home server as it does integrate quite well with windows pc's, handling backups and file shares quite nicely. Restoring pc's from it to a cold drive is a doddle.

However, I also have a windows 2003 server with raid which I think I will start using for the backups - as to be honest as much as I like the WHS setup - I dont trust it fully as I've had two sata drives die already (which suddenly work ok in another pc) - so thinking of setting up scheduled backups to to the 2003 server instead.
 

bikepete

Guru
Location
York, UK
+1 for external hard disk. Or if paranoid, two external hard disks, one kept off-site.

Also, if the files aren't too huge or too many (or too private), you could get a gmail email account and email them to yourself. Google give you loads of storage space and back it up for you :-)
 

summerdays

Cycling in the sun
Location
Bristol
Crackle said:
Check out these folks for peace of mind

www.mozy.com

We have used Mozy in the past - but there was some problem after we changed our set up at home in that it didn't recognise the transfer of information from one system to the next... I think he still uses it as one form of back up. I don't understand it at all ... but he gets really irriatated with my system of files in the computer(s) always being in the wrong place and therefore not backed up properly.

We also have the external hard drive system in place and I'm not sure what else.

And there is no way that all my photos could fit onto a memory stick!!!
 

swee'pea99

Legendary Member
Don't listen to all these silly people Mr Andy, they will only confuse you. All you need is one of those little memory sticks - a fiver apiece. Stick it in the USB drive, and it will come up as a folder, just like the other ones on your pooter (eg My Documents). Then all you have to do is keep that window on-screen, and drag & drop all your pics 'n that into that window, and that's it. Just don't lose the stick.
 

twowheelsgood

Senior Member
As memory cards are so cheap, I just treat mine like film negatives and never erase the content, but then I don't really take movies only pictures.

I then keep a copy on the PC and put the memory cards somewhere (hopefully) safe.

The 2GB maxmum cards are around a fiver and hold 4000 photos.
 
summerdays said:
We have used Mozy in the past - but there was some problem after we changed our set up at home in that it didn't recognise the transfer of information from one system to the next... I think he still uses it as one form of back up. I don't understand it at all ... but he gets really irriatated with my system of files in the computer(s) always being in the wrong place and therefore not backed up properly.

We also have the external hard drive system in place and I'm not sure what else.

And there is no way that all my photos could fit onto a memory stick!!!
Funny you should say that, I just had that very conversation with Mrs Crackle after she moved all her files and lost a directory. Thanks to Mozy I was able to retrieve it but yes, if you rebuild your PC or change it, you have to go through a set procedure to re sync it all.
 

summerdays

Cycling in the sun
Location
Bristol
I'm trying my best to store files on the server ... and have a brand new directory with my name on so that I order it which ever way I want. He does try to explain it all to me but why keep a dog and bark yourself:biggrin:.
 

rh100

Well-Known Member
[quote name='swee'pea99']Don't listen to all these silly people Mr Andy, they will only confuse you. All you need is one of those little memory sticks - a fiver apiece. Stick it in the USB drive, and it will come up as a folder, just like the other ones on your pooter (eg My Documents). Then all you have to do is keep that window on-screen, and drag & drop all your pics 'n that into that window, and that's it. Just don't lose the stick.[/QUOTE]

Totally disagree - memory sticks have a finite amount of times they can be written to before they become corrupt. Even before that limit, they can be very flakey. They are great for convenience but no good for the long term.
 

mangaman

Guest
andyfromotley said:
The only thing of value on my computer are the family photos and a few video clips, (and i suppose my tunes which would more of an irritation than a loss i suppose)

So should i back it up or just load the pics onto a usb stick or memory card?
If i have to back it up how difficult is it?

Thanks andy

I do Andy

I used to have the attitude that there wasn't much of importance on my PC. In fact, like you, pictures, i-tunes and not a lot else.

However when my hard disc crashed you realise those family pictures are more important than you remember.

I've got a cheap external hard drive and back up whenever I remember or if I have a file I really want to keep (eg if I have a load of pictures that I wouldn't want to lose). I have also transferred them onto my laptop so they are in 3 places.

The back up is easy and takes no time if you haven't got loads of videos or millions of pictures
 

twowheelsgood

Senior Member
Totally disagree - memory sticks have a finite amount of times they can be written to before they become corrupt. Even before that limit, they can be very flakey. They are great for convenience but no good for the long term.

Pure FUD. If you are using memory sticks for back-up you aren't writing to them constantly, in fact really only once. MTBF is around 10,000 cycles on even the cheapest sticks and you can read as often as you like.
 
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