Backing up whole computer
I know, I know....I should have been doing this all along but never have partly due to fear and this question... So when I back up the total computer to CDs (I don't have an extra modem & am not ge...
Forum Discussion
I started out doing backups using floppy disks. It wasn't unusual to require 20-30 or more disks, depending on how much data was being backed up.
I next graduated to a tape drive. A tape drive was easier to use than floppy disks but still took a long time to backup or restore.
I skipped over using CDs or DVDs for backup, too expensive and too slow.
When disk drives started getting more than a few gigabytes in size, all previous backup methods became a bothersome chore. I then graduated to using an external hdd and now would never use anything else.
Yes, it costs a bit for the external drive and you may have to buy some software (although there are some decent free backup programs available) but you need to decide how important your data is to you and think about what it would be like if you lost all of it.
I recently bought a 4TB external drive just to use for backups. I have multiple computers and 4TB will allow me to keep them all backed up using a single drive.
Most modern backup programs allow you to schedule regular backups so you don't need to remember to do it. Of course that means the backup drive needs to be connected all the time but that really isn't a problem.
I next graduated to a tape drive. A tape drive was easier to use than floppy disks but still took a long time to backup or restore.
I skipped over using CDs or DVDs for backup, too expensive and too slow.
When disk drives started getting more than a few gigabytes in size, all previous backup methods became a bothersome chore. I then graduated to using an external hdd and now would never use anything else.
Yes, it costs a bit for the external drive and you may have to buy some software (although there are some decent free backup programs available) but you need to decide how important your data is to you and think about what it would be like if you lost all of it.
I recently bought a 4TB external drive just to use for backups. I have multiple computers and 4TB will allow me to keep them all backed up using a single drive.
Most modern backup programs allow you to schedule regular backups so you don't need to remember to do it. Of course that means the backup drive needs to be connected all the time but that really isn't a problem.
