Good online backup solution?

[Biscuit]

To soften the burden of hard disk prices, this is also a pretty good deal

I have considered using an external drive for photo backup. My worry is that I won't remember to keep the backup up-to-date. Even if I do there will probably be quite a lag between new photos going on the PC and them getting backed up. For photos I am also considering using DVDs, but I don't know if I would be disciplined enough to check the backups regularly.

For me, backup needs to be totally automatic and, for the photos at least, pretty quick after they get put on the PC becuase I don't want to lose any.


Remember that drive failure is not the only way to lose data. One of the most common reasons to reach for the backup is that you accidentally deleted it.
In my case all my data is on a "server" in the living room at the end of the coffee table, I'd guess its most at risk of a stray coffee and I don't think RAID will help with that.

Sounds like a combination of the automatic overnight NAS synch (to protect you from theft or a power surge or something like that) and a system similar to Apples time machine so you have the ability to go back a few hours to retrive something you accidentally deleted.

[mikerr]

All my photos go to flickr (via flickrsync) and google webalbums via picasa

That's great as backup - but also for accessibility

My Parents and Sister have Wifi Photo Frames which access a Set on flicker,
simple click in flickr to add to the relevent set, and its instantly on their photo frames.

[TaintedShirt]

Set up the free crashplan within your family and back up for free to their hard drives and theirs to yours. Free and encrypted.

[iamlorro]

Set up the free crashplan within your family and back up for free to their hard drives and theirs to yours. Free and encrypted.

All the important stuff on my home pc does this - I put an extra hdd in my parents pc, and set it to back up their stuff and my stuff to that.... it was an easy thing to setup, and I get weekly emails telling me how much has been backed up /not, and how long since it last ran. Occasionally I need to get them to turn the PC on a bit longer so that it will send all the data back, but I have just over a 2gb of docs stored in this way.

Great thing is there is no monthly cost

Also, dropbox (Referrals are available which get you a little more space) is good, as it also means you can access the same files on different pc's without worrying about different versions.

[pipTheGeek]

But how would that happen?

What, the coffee? The server sits at the end of a coffee table and I have 3 cats and 3 kids. It is only a matter of time before a drink of some sort ends up in one of the servers.

Sounds like a combination of the automatic overnight NAS synch (to protect you from theft or a power surge or something like that) and a system similar to Apples time machine so you have the ability to go back a few hours to retrive something you accidentally deleted.

Where would the NAS be to protected against theft?

A friend just got broadband installed, I'm trying to persuade them that they want to run a server, then I can backup to their server and they can backup to mine.

I'd actually like to get the VM backup app working, given that unlimited storage is included in my broadband. Sadly it doesn't seem to work through my current firewall. (MS TMG). Once I have finished playing with it I'll replace it with one of the linux based ones and give the VM app another try. Although it is one of the worst pieces of software I have ever used.

To protect from accidental deletion or just a single drive failure I currently backup my file server onto another drive that is in the other server. But as they sit right next to each other, on the same power strip it does provide quite limited protection.

[Pancake]

What, the coffee? The server sits at the end of a coffee table and I have 3 cats and 3 kids. It is only a matter of time before a drink of some sort ends up in one of the servers.

I was meaning deleting stuff, and even if the coffee went in the PC i bet the drives would be fine

[pipTheGeek]

I was meaning deleting stuff, and even if the coffee went in the PC i bet the drives would be fine

I have deleted the wrong thing before. Hit delete, return then realised the confirmation I had just okayed wasnt the explorer dialog I was expecting, Access had the focus and I had just deleted the Access form I had spent the last 2 hours creating. (This was back when I was an Access developer) I'm also aware I have a habit of using shift delete so I don't have the recycle bin to fall back on.

It mght survive a coffee-ing, and TBH, most of the stuff on the server can take its chances. It is only the photos that I really don't want to lose.

[DrATty]

I use SkyDrive as well as other services.
I think it's important to use more than one solution for important data. Hard drives, DVDs, flash drives and the Cloud are all part of my strategy. I keep a 'hard' copy away from home too.
With 2Tb of data, you need to be selective in what you store where. It would take an age to upload to Carbonite and a good while to restore if needed. Video is a space hog and I don't send it online. YouTube is a service I considered. That leaves me with a manageable set of data. Photographs go to Flikr, SkyDrive and Google. Dropbox and iDrive are used for documents.
That's my plan anyway. Categorize your data and prioritize that information that you cannot replace.

[xiaogray]

Dropbox - $19.99 a month for up to 100 Gb

I'm using Dropbox now and it's good. I think Skydrive is another recommended service.
Actually, iCloud is a good choice as well.