Amazing Free Online Backup Storage-Nightmare Protection

By: Glenn Heitkoetter

If you have been on the fence about taking the plunge into using an online backup service for your home or business computers, this article is for you. By the time you finish reading this article it will help you understand why having all of your critical files automatically stored off-site is the most reliable and secure method of protecting your digital property from not only catastrophic hardware failure but also from theft and acts of nature.

First and foremost among the important features of online backup is that it is off-site. This means if lightning directly strikes your home or office and totally fries all of the electronics you own, your files are safe. If you suffer a burglary and have all of your computers and peripheral devices stolen, get hit with a tornado, fire or flood that wipes out everything you own, your files are still safe. They are just sitting there waiting on you to log into your account with your new computer from any internet connection and download them.

Another great feature of online backup systems is that most of them are completely automatic which is wonderful news for the less geeky among us. These systems are so automatic, in fact, once they are installed and configured most people never even realize they are there. This is because the software runs in the background, quietly taking note of any changes and additions the user makes while they work and then backing up those changes when the computer resources will allow it without interfering with the user's experience.

You just simply cannot have a discussion about using an online backup service without bringing up the sheer reliability of it. Why is backing your files up online so reliable, you ask? There are several reasons, one of which we have already discussed; online backup is off-site and not subject to any of the things that may happen to your main system that causes you to need the backup to begin with.

The other really big reason an online backup company is so reliable is the way they store your information. The company will almost always use a Raid type hard drive set up where your data is stored on multiple hard drives at the same time. This means multiple hard drives would have to fail catastrophically at the same time for your files to be in danger. Most of the large online backup companies will also have your files stored on a mirror server in a completely different location so, even in the event of a catastrophe, you information would still be safe.

Now that we are through you can surely see that the security, simplicity and reliability of using online backup to protect your important files really is a no-brainer.

It is not difficult to obtain free online backup service. The key is it reliable, professional, and secure? Having the proper encryption is a must using keys.

The site you choose must have software which has been tested on multiple platforms that can restore your data properly. A weakness is low quality unknown services, where restoring the files could be a tough job. You need a quick quality restore ability from the software provided by the backup company.