As the title says, there are now lots of companies offering online backup solutions.

I work in backup and storage, and get a free MozyHome account through my employers, but I wondered what other folks experiences were. The major issue is, obviously, the initial backup -mine took 10 days for all my piccies and music, plus important documents. Subsequent backups just send new files for backup.

I'm probably extra paranoid, as I keep my data on a NAS box set up with mirroring, and also run occasional backups to Blu-Ray, but experience has taught me that you can never have too many backups.

Anyone else took the online route?

Phil

I am using Windows Live Mesh..... more as an experiment than anything else. Only backup documents with it though, no emails/pictures.

I back up my PC to my NAS, and also to an external USB disk (which I carry with me, so if the house burns down I have not lost everything)

Depending on how important your data is I do know of one that appears to be offering a "your data will be there" offering, which doesn't seem to be in place from all the cloudy backup options.

I have just seen that Sky offer 1GB of free space to their customers (be it TV / BB), so I would that would be enough space for documentation. You can pay and get more space. I have not looked at their T&Cs though......

I had a feeling some of the online backup places seemed to think they could scan through your files and that your files then became their files :-(

Edited 13 January, 201115 yr by mbames

I've never very comfortable with the idea of shifting all my stuff to a third party.

If it's free storage then normally the T&C will claim rights over all your stuff.

It's a bit of false security I think. If you rely on them and they go bust you're up sh|te creek without a paddle.

There will generally be no comeback either if they **** up and lose your stuff or pass your kids pictures to a paedo network.

But the main prob would just be the time it would take to back up everything of importance i.e pictures.

At the moment I have an external storage drive which I mirror pictures to. I also do a periodic backup to DVD. If I ever scrape together enough money for a new PC it'll have a Bluray drive to make that easier.

I work in IT security and am jaded and paranoid.

Another option is fireproof/waterproof backup drives such as this.

http://www.sentrysafe.com/Products/274/QA0004_FIRE-SAFE_Waterproof_HARD_DRIVE_-_160GB

I've never very comfortable with the idea of shifting all my stuff to a third party.

If it's free storage then normally the T&C will claim rights over all your stuff.

It's a bit of false security I think. If you rely on them and they go bust you're up sh|te creek without a paddle.

There will generally be no comeback either if they **** up and lose your stuff or pass your kids pictures to a paedo network.

But the main prob would just be the time it would take to back up everything of importance i.e pictures.

At the moment I have an external storage drive which I mirror pictures to. I also do a periodic backup to DVD. If I ever scrape together enough money for a new PC it'll have a Bluray drive to make that easier.

I work in IT security and am jaded and paranoid.

I know of some where that isn't the case tbh.

Edited 13 January, 201115 yr by cheezemonkhai

Never used one myself, to backup all my critical data would take months. I use WHS to backup my desktop and MAC using time machine (via HP software on WHS). In addition I carry a portable 500GB USB HDD that has yet another copy of the data that is refreshed regularly and kept away from home.

I do wonder sometimes if these online storage providers could become the target of hackers, after all the amount of sensitive data that these could potentially hold would be a good source of bank details etc.

...I do wonder sometimes if these online storage providers could become the target of hackers, after all the amount of sensitive data that these could potentially hold would be a good source of bank details etc...

The better ones encrypt the data at the client machine so this should not be a problem.

The problem is that the company could go to the wall. Several have already done so. The most common reason for failure is not being able to afford the bandwidth charges to connect the outside world and having their connectivity cut.