Backing up your computer is an essential thing that every system user must do if they do not want to lose any of their valuable data. Losing system data is one of the most terrible nightmares you could have, especially if you have important files and data stored on your computer. From personal data to work-related items to other important documents, the loss of this data can easily happen on your computer at any time.
A single malware attack can cause you to lose all your important files in an instant. So always think about how you can back up your computer files and documents before the malware hits you. Even hurricanes and natural disasters, power outages, and some other things can cause you to lose your data.
Here are some tips and guidelines on how to back up your computer data so you don’t have to worry about lost files later.
How to Backup Your Computer Safely
Back up to alternative media – Backing up your files to alternative media, such as a blank DVD-R or CD-R, is one of the easiest ways to back up your computer’s files. This is the easiest way to back up your computer.
Store backups in the cloud or somewhere else – If your home or workplace were to be flooded or someone were to steal your system and its backups, everything would be doomed. Creating backups that you store in a safer place or on online cloud storage is the perfect way to protect your backup.
Regular Backups – A system with RAID or running software that creates backups when data changes can help protect your data by keeping it updated. This is the ideal solution for sensitive information that is updated frequently. For example, if you write a presentation with a backup that is a week old, it can result in hours of lost data.
Backing up files to an alternate medium
Making a backup to an alternative media such as DVD-R, CD-R, tape drive, external hard drive, USB stick, Zip drive, or floppy disks is one of the easiest ways to back up your files and data. Before backing up your files, this method lets you choose which media is best for you. Tape drives, floppy disk drives, and Zip disk drives used to be popular, but nowadays they have all been replaced by DVD-Rs, CD-Rs, USB sticks, and external hard drives. It is well known that backing up all your data to a USB flash drive is the best method.
Backup using an external drive
The first step to a computer backup is to make sure that you have an external hard drive with enough space to store everything on your computer. HD photos, videos, and music files require more storage capacity. But if most of your files are Excel spreadsheets, Word documents, and other small documents, you can easily find a cheap backup drive with less storage space to save money. Most external hard drives come with backup utilities to assist your installation and backup process and to ensure that everything runs smoothly.
Tip: Choose a backup drive that is appropriate for the type of computer you have – PC or Mac. You probably won’t find an external hard drive that works properly under both operating systems.
Backup your computer using a CD or DVD
Backing up to a blank DVD or CD is easy, but requires some kind of software or operating system that is capable of writing to these discs. This type of backup also requires that the disc be inserted into the computer each time you need to make a backup.
Backup your PC using cloud storage
If you don’t have the money to back up your files to an external hard drive, you can also opt for a cloud storage service. A cloud storage service could be used as a replacement for an external hard drive if you don’t need to back up many files or if you want to share these files with others for easy access. With an external hard drive, you need to carry the device in your hands to share data.
Google Drive is a popular online cloud storage service for storing and sharing your files. You can make real-time changes to documents with multiple users. When you download the software suite to your PC, it eventually syncs with your online folders on the drive, so you don’t have to sync your files every day or so.
Dropbox is another popular online cloud-based storage platform that also allows you to share your files with other people. While your personal account starts with a comparatively small amount of storage – 2GB – you can easily expand that by referring friends to join Dropbox and receive 500MB of storage for each referral.
