Summary: Backups are one of the ways that people can protect themselves from everything from hardware failure to virus infections. So why don't people backup?
I recently posted a recommendation for a specific backup program, but it got me to thinking about backing up in general.
It's a common topic here on Ask Leo!, and for a good reason. Not a day goes by that I don't see somebody suffering for lack of a backup. Not a day goes by that I don't see somebody who could have avoided a serious problem simply by having had a backup.
So why don't people back up?
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It's tempting to think that people are being lazy but I believe that that's quite unfair. As I mentioned in last week's commentary people expect computers to just work. Unfortunately, as we see over and over, it's frequently not true; it's just not a realistic expectation.
Let's face it, those of us who've used computers for any length of time know better. Not because we're any smarter, but because in all likelihood, we've experienced a catastrophic data loss at some point or another. We know better because we've been burned.
Unfortunately it's not until we've seen it or had that gut wrenching experience that we begin to realize that the inconvenience of setting up a backup solution pales in comparison to the inconvenience of the data loss that it could have prevented. All of a sudden that backup doesn't look like such a bad idea.
So how do we prevent the average user, the first time user, from ever having to go through that experience? How do we convince more people to some how backup their data?
I'm not sure we can.
I honestly think that this is one of those cases where there is no substitute for living through that painful experience.
All we can do is be ready with solutions so that it doesn't have to happen again.
In an ideal world, none of us would have to consider backing up. In a truly ideal world, data would never be lost, hardware would never fail, and we'd never accidentally permanently delete something we'd later need.
Needless to say, we don't live in that ideal world.
But I think there might be an opportunity to make things better.
The fundamental problem here is that users have to recognize the issue and then separately, proactively, take preventative action.
What if they didn't have to?
What if, as part of setting up every machine, installing the operating system simply included a true, full featured, backup solution and not the typically crippled hard-to-use applications that are so often there? What if, like choosing a password, you couldn't even complete initial setup without having done something to address the risk of data loss? Something better than enabling a recycle bin, and something more complete and robust than Window's System Restore? What if every machine came with a backup hard drive or a free on-line backup service?
I have to acknowledge that the Mac's "Time Machine" is pretty close. It still takes initiative, and apparently a second hard disk, to set it up, but it's a step in the right direction, for sure.
How about the rest of us?
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I know I get repetitive and somewhat annoying about backups from time to time here on Ask Leo!, but believe me it's with cause. Not only have I myself experienced data loss, I've also experienced my backup solutions saving my bacon on multiple occasions. If you saw how often I see people needlessly lose important data, I think you'd understand as well that this is a much larger issue than most people think.What solution do you use? What should the average user do?
Related:
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Ask Leo! - Acronis TrueImage Home - Backup Software - Recommendation
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Ask Leo! - What backup program should I use?
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Ask Leo! - Can I do my backups over the internet?
Article C3388 - May 17, 2008
I agree with those that say that backup is not only time consuming, but isn't full proof and can fail as well. Nothing is 100% full proof.
However there are exceedingly different things and ways you can do things, to improve that ever so slim chance of you not being able to recover with your backup, to the chance that you will be able to.
I for example, increase the chances of recovering from a backup in the event that there is not only a system failure, but a backup failure by making several backups.
By this I mean that I make several types of backups to HDD, Flash Card, USB Thumb Drive, CD, DVD, etc...
I also keep a backup not only on each of those types, but a 2nd set of those in a different area of the house within a fire proof, etc... safe, in the event that there is a catastrophic fire or other disaster.
That way where one fails, or is destroyed, with any remote slinder chance of luck, the data will not be lost..
It is also key to not have too many sets of copies... thats why i only have 2... one easily accessible...and another in a safe... both of course accessible by lock only, to prevent theft..
It may seem a little extreme to some, but if it keeps me from loosing my data in any way shape or form, with the very very slim and rare chance of total utter catastrophy... Then it is well worth it..
I update the backups about once a month, unless there is something super important that can not under any circumstances be lost...
Hopefully to some that are willing to go to those lengths it is worth it to them as well.
Posted by: Tim at May 26, 2008 12:42 PMWell....some of us older folks, new to computing don't have a "clue" of "how to do a back-up" on a CD, DVD, flash drive,thumb drive, etc....Dell offers an online backup for a reasonable price. Does anybody have any info &/or suggestions re: using the Dell Back-up program? or any other simple ways to back-up?? ( PS: I've been a "victim" of a hard drive failure & had to spend about $240.00 to my computer repair man to fix "the problem", etc...Thanking You folks, beforehand for your "input" - GREATLY APPRECIATED!! A GRATEFUL SR. CITIZEN....Aloha, Sebastian
Posted by: Sebastian at June 7, 2008 11:12 PMI love Mary's comment!! I'm with her! I didn't know I would need to learn a whole other language to operate this blasted thing (which has quickly become a necessary evil)! There are so many terms I have yet to figure out and I have neither the time nor desire to learn either.
However, believe it or not, I just installed a new hard drive and it was surprisingly easy! I still had the Operating System CD that came with the computer, plus I had CD backups of my pictures and documents and the CDs from the programs I'd installed (family tree maker, quicken, etc.). I just updated everything from online sources and now I'm back in business -- I'm happy!
Posted by: Patti at June 25, 2008 9:32 AMMy best recommendation is just to copy My Documents to a CD (two different CDs, perhaps by two different programs, just in case a scratch happens. Forget about restoring programs and Windows, etc. They will only restore on the SAME computer if nothing else has gone wrong. Just backup docs and photos and forget about the rest. It's useless.
Posted by: Terri Popiel at July 14, 2008 6:02 AMHi
Does anyone know how to disable Backup in Windows 2000 Pro? The reason I ask this is because I found that my desktop was repeatedly backing all my Word documents each time I opened a file. Even when I deleted the backup, a new one would instantly appear in its place. Eventually I managed to work round the problem by getting Backup to exclude all Word documents from the backup process... well, I hope this is the case. At any rate the problem appears to have disappeared for the time being at least. However, I would like to rid myself of the Backup program altogether - or at least disable it to the point whereby I feel I'm in charge of it rather than having it pulling all the strings in the background. Unfortunately MS's Help files fail to explain how this objective may be achieved and not being a PC technocrat I'm reluctant to play the sorcerer's apprentice here. On a related issue I have no objections to System Restore but I'd have plenty if Backup was surreptitiously (not to say pointlessly) filling my H/D with copies of files from other applications. Or do I have to laboriously exclude them too? Much better, it seems to me, is to shut the whole program down and let me back up my files manually, which is what I've been doing for some twelve years now. So if anyone can tell me how to put Backup back into its box, I'd be very grateful.
Regards, Graham Knott
PS. I apologise for the location of this comment/query of mine. It's just that I am unable to find anywhere more suitable to place it on this section of your website.
Posted by: Graham at August 26, 2008 3:57 AM