Online or local backup

[hammer]

Getting tired of backing up to local CDs and DVDs, and I have no discipline so my backups are always old...

Should I do a local backup to a USB drive or go the online route? Any suggestions for online backup providers?

 

[drjeff]

Really, really getting close to pulling the trigger on an online back up service such as carbonite for my home stuff.

We have as part of our software service agreement at work an online backup and as such have had to buy alot less blank writeable CD's vor back up purposes. haven't had to use the online data retrieval feature as of yet though (fingers crossed) so I can't personally speak of it's ease of use (as of yet)

 

[hammer]

At work, we use Iron Mountain for online backup. Actually worked well when I had to migrate files to a new PC, but the initial upload took forever (maybe that's just to be expected) and the client software is a pig.

I don't know what they offer for consumers, if anything.

 

[WJenness]

At work, we use Iron Mountain for online backup. Actually worked well when I had to migrate files to a new PC, but the initial upload took forever (maybe that's just to be expected) and the client software is a pig.

I don't know what they offer for consumers, if anything.

Iron Mountain is also expensive...

Check out Mozy: www.mozy.com it's run by EMC now and some friends who use it are very happy with it.

-w

 

[RootDKJ]

I use my laptop as my primary computer at home, but I map the "My Documents" folder to a system that runs in my basement (\\server\e_drive\Documents) and use Off Line Files and Folders to synchronize the two computers.

On the "server" I have two 1TB hard drives in a RAID-1 configuration and I also do a weekly incremental backup of my documents and media to a 40GB DLT drive. I'm thinking about upgrading to RAID-5 in the near future.

I think I've got it covered....

 

[WJenness]

I use my laptop as my primary computer at home, but I map the "My Documents" folder to a system that runs in my basement (\\server\e_drive\Documents) and use Off Line Files and Folders to synchronize the two computers.

On the "server" I have two 1TB hard drives in a RAID-1 configuration and I also do a weekly incremental backup of my documents and media to a 40GB DLT drive. I'm thinking about upgrading to RAID-5 in the near future.

I think I've got it covered....

Unless someone breaks into your house and steals ALL your computer stuff.

Then what?

-w

 

[RootDKJ]

Unless someone breaks into your house and steals ALL your computer stuff.

Then what?

-w

I switch out the DLT tapes once a month. I highly doubt that anyone breaking into my house would have any clue what a DLT tape is or what it's used for.

I also have the Slomin's Shield protecting my crib. :uzi:

 

[WJenness]

I switch out the DLT tapes once a month. I highly doubt that anyone breaking into my house would have any clue what a DLT tape is or what it's used for.

I also have the Slomin's Shield protecting my crib. :uzi:

Just trying to ensure you've got a good DR plan... :beer:

-w

 

[RootDKJ]

Just trying to ensure you've got a good DR plan... :beer:

-w

I'm comfortable with it now.

 

[marcski]

You can also just get some external harddrives....network them and install some backup software. I'd run 2 just in case they fail.

You can get Terrabyte harddrives...w/your own enclosures for well under $100 these days.

 

[mondeo]

I use my laptop as my primary computer at home, but I map the "My Documents" folder to a system that runs in my basement (\\server\e_drive\Documents) and use Off Line Files and Folders to synchronize the two computers.

On the "server" I have two 1TB hard drives in a RAID-1 configuration and I also do a weekly incremental backup of my documents and media to a 40GB DLT drive. I'm thinking about upgrading to RAID-5 in the near future.

I think I've got it covered....

Sounds what I'd like to do. Actually, 5 years down the line (i.e., once I have the money,) it'd be cool to run a setup with a home server running independant virtualized sessions to touchscreens or thin clients scattered throughout the house. But any NAS I do will be RAID 5. Just doesn't really make sense not to; only question will be if I spend the $150 or whatever for hardware RAID. Probably just as well to do software RAID for personal use. At that point, any computer in the house would use the NAS as the hard drive, even for program files.

 

[dmc]

2tb Apple Time Capsule - does all the backing up for me...

Also use online stuff for work...

 

[RootDKJ]

Sounds what I'd like to do. Actually, 5 years down the line (i.e., once I have the money,) it'd be cool to run a setup with a home server running independant virtualized sessions to touchscreens or thin clients scattered throughout the house. But any NAS I do will be RAID 5. Just doesn't really make sense not to; only question will be if I spend the $150 or whatever for hardware RAID. Probably just as well to do software RAID for personal use. At that point, any computer in the house would use the NAS as the hard drive, even for program files.

Yeah, now that I think on it...I don't know why I didn't do RAID5 from the get go.

 

[trtaylor]

I'm using www.idrive.com Very satisfied with it.

 

[Marc]

Sounds what I'd like to do. Actually, 5 years down the line (i.e., once I have the money,) it'd be cool to run a setup with a home server running independant virtualized sessions to touchscreens or thin clients scattered throughout the house. But any NAS I do will be RAID 5. Just doesn't really make sense not to; only question will be if I spend the $150 or whatever for hardware RAID. Probably just as well to do software RAID for personal use. At that point, any computer in the house would use the NAS as the hard drive, even for program files.

Just do software RAID... it's wicked easy with Linux. I'm running a RAID1 setup currently and periodically back up to a USB external I keep at my parents house. Sooner or later I'm just going to set up a Linux box over there and do online back ups.

But that will be after I stop penny pinching and buy another drive for a RAID5 setup...

 

[mondeo]

Just do software RAID... it's wicked easy with Linux. I'm running a RAID1 setup currently and periodically back up to a USB external I keep at my parents house. Sooner or later I'm just going to set up a Linux box over there and do online back ups.

But that will be after I stop penny pinching and buy another drive for a RAID5 setup...

Yeah, I've done softRAID, but there's an overhead associated with it compared to using a RAID card.

By the time I implement it, there'll probably be 100+ thread CPUs, so using a thread to run RAID probably won't be a big deal.

 

[riverc0il]

I backup to an external hard drive. High GB USB drives are getting cheap enough that most people could backup their documents onto a $50 USB drive easily with room to spare (unless you have 200 GB of goat movies like you know who ). Ideally though, I think having a redundancy of your backups is a good idea. So I backup critical data to DVD periodically as well as always having a full documents backup on a external hard drive.

 

[billski]

I backup to an external hard drive. High GB USB drives are getting cheap enough that most people could backup their documents onto a $50 USB drive easily with room to spare (unless you have 200 GB of goat movies like you know who ). Ideally though, I think having a redundancy of your backups is a good idea. So I backup critical data to DVD periodically as well as always having a full documents backup on a external hard drive.

That's exactly what I do. I have 2 external drives, swap them for weekly backups and use EMC Retrospect to keep track of it all. 2 drives in case one fails. DVD's go offsite once a year, my personal stuff goes into the safe deposit box. I'm really not comfortable having a third party hold my golden goose. Seen too many tech companies go or get out of the business.

Years ago I used tape, then moved to DVDs. Problem was, the data that needed storage expanded so much that the handling of media was a major hassle.