Fair Backup

Learn why it is important to backup and perhaps save a file or two from absolute extinction.

Backup to recover files

One of the main reasons people backup is that it is really easy to restore your files if you have created a backup copy of files beforehand. This will allow you to recover the files that got damaged, deleted or if the whole data storage device and/or the computer got stolen. In such cases just copying files back to their original destination recovers most of your work, depending on the last time you ran a backup.

Backup to access files easily

The other use for backup is to ease file access. For instance, you can backup your work documents to a flash USB drive and be able to continue your work whether you go, be it only home, it is still rather convenient.

Backup to store your files

Yet another application for backup is to manage large volumes of files that just need to be stored in a more accessible way, on a more reliable medium, or whatever. In this case, the files are simply copied to another medium to be stored for a long time. This may be image, photo, audio and video collections, or it can be important files you can store to keep your work history. The latter can also serve as a last resort for recovery when it is discovered that the file only had the correct data some dozens backups ago.

Backup to secure your files

And one more way to employ backup should be to secure your files. You can backup your files with compression, strong encryption (3DES or a combiation of encryption algorithms) to a medium, which you can store and secure easily to provide maximum possible security to your files with sensitive informaton. This could mean a backup to an external hard drive to be stored offsite, for instance.

Of course, there are many other ways backup can help you - it can assist in nearly any situation where copying data is involved.