Over and over again you will hear me say how valuable it is to collect and develop a lifetime of contacts in your prospecting databases. My prospecting databases are extremely valuable to me and my company. If I were to lose them due to a hard drive crash, a fire or other disaster, it would represent the loss of countless hours of work over decades of time. Therefore, saying that backing up my data is important, is an understatement.
For years I have backed up my databases via external file copies (i.e. saved to discs, ZIP drives, flash drives, CDs, etc.). I am so cautious about it, I have two external USB hard drives connected to my main computer where I routinely backup critical files manually at the end of each day. Also, I have a shadow program that backs up my computer at night to one of my external drives. Lastly, I use an online backup service to backup my computer to a remote location.
Carbonite Online Backup Service
Online backup is one of the most important backups I do. It was an IT person years ago who first made me see that a “backup plan” that left all of the data in the same building wasn’t a very good backup plan at all. Before online backups came on the scene, I rotated two external hard drives in and out of the office each week. In such case, I could still lose a week of data in the event of a disaster. What’s more, it was a huge pain in the neck!
There are many excellent services that can provide you with online backup of your computer files. I currently use and am most familiar with Carbonite. [Sponsored Link - Carbonite offers unlimited online backup for your small business for only $54.95/year. Try it free!] Carbonite installs a small application on your computer that operates in the background and, after an initial backup is completed, this application looks for and backs up any subsequent file changes you make. When a new file is created or an older file is modified, Carbonite detects it and backs up the file remotely. Carbonite “sleeps” when you are actively using your computer so it doesn’t slow down your Internet connection.
Data Security
As with any backup system, you must concern yourself about the issue of security – particularly in the case of online backup. Carbonite encrypts data twice before it sends the files from your computer, and your files remain encrypted at Carbonite’s data centers allowing only you to see them. If somehow you lose your data, all you need to do is login to their website to retrieve it. If your computer actually gets destroyed due to a catastrophic event like a crashed hard drive or a fire, simply login using another computer with an Internet connection, and you can begin retrieving your files in minutes. I must say, it is an extremely helpful service. All for less than $60 a year, too!
Originally posted 2009-10-23 12:56:59.
