When it comes to storage media reliability, it isn’t a question of if your hard drive will fail but when. Although deceptively durable, hard drives are delicate machines upon which you shouldn’t place too much faith. If you use Windows 7, backups are not only easy to do, they are a necessity to ensure you don’t lose all of your files and documents.
To backup your files in Windows 7, begin by clicking on Start and typing Backup in the Search Programs and Files search box. Press Enter and choose Back Up Your Computer near the top of the list.
You should now be looking at the Backup and Restore window. Click on Set up Backup and Windows 7 will take a quick inventory of the storage media on your computer. It is possible that Windows will spin up all of the disks in your optical media drives (DVD, CD, etc.) and may even check to see if you have any media inserted in your floppy drive (if you have one). When finished, Windows asks you where to store your backup.
The drives pictured here and the ones displayed on your computer will differ depending on how many drives and which kinds of drives you have installed in your PC. Notice that Windows automatically recommends the drive you should use to store the backed up files. However, this recommendation may not be your best choice. There are distinct advantages and disadvantages to storing your backups on the different media types.
Advantages and Disadvantages to Different Storage Media
Internal Hard Drive
Advantages
Internal hard drives are the most convenient storage media for backups. They are always on and ready to receive the backup data. An internal drive is also more secure because someone couldn’t just walk by, pick it up, and walk away with it.
Disadvantages
Using an internal drive for a backup defeats some of the purpose of doing the backup in the first place. An electrical surge that takes out the main drive can take out the backup drive just as easily. Also, in the event of a computer failure, you would need to have a second computer into which to install the backup drive to gain access to your files.
External Hard Drives
Advantages
External hard drives are nothing more than internal drives in a special hard drive enclosure so they can operate independently from computer to computer. Since they are real hard drives, they are available in all the same speeds, formats, and sizes as internal drives.
Disadvantages
However, external drives must be connected to the computer and turned on in order to backup data to them. If you store your external backup drive somewhere safe like a fireproof box, you will need to retrieve it each time you want to backup your data. This often leads to infrequent backups due to inconvenience. This can be a burden if you want to do scheduled backups because you need to setup the external drive each time the backup is about to begin.
Optical Media Drives (Blu-Ray, DVD, CD, etc.)
Advantages
Optical Media are relatively inexpensive and are disposable if you find yourself doing a lot of backups and need to throw out the old media often. They are compact and store well in various locations from desk drawers to fireproof safes.
Disadvantages
Optical media are not very durable. Unlike pre-pressed optical media, the label side rather than the data side of the disk is the most vulnerable. A little scrape to the label and you could render the contents of the disk unreadable. For this reason, optical media are not a good choice for long-term, mission-critical files.
USB Flash Drives
Advantages
Small, compact, and portable, USB flash drives make great backup media for backups on the go. Salespeople and business men and women often find that USB flash drives fit the need for portable and convenient backup media.
Disadvantages
USB flash drives are not yet available in large sizes. The largest to date are about 128GB and these are very expensive on a dollar per gigabyte scale. In addition, the solid state nature of USB flash drives means that they are susceptible to static electricity in a way that other storage media are not.
Network Location Drives
Advantages
Network locations solve the need for a long-term, always ready, large capacity, off-site, storage medium for backups. Second only to internal hard drives, network locations are the most convenient storage media for backups.
Disadvantages
Backups to network location drives are dependent on the integrity of the network. When the network is down and the storage media are unreachable, no backup can take place. You will need to supply a user name and password each time you do a backup to keep your data and files secure. In addition, any off-site administrators of the networked location will likely have access to your backed up files.
Regardless of the media you choose, backups are a good idea to protect yourself from failed hardware. Which backup media you choose depends on what your needs are for secure, convenient, and reachable backups. Using the information above, choose your backup media carefully to ensure that when disaster strikes, you have covered yourself with the right media on which to save your backups.
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