Backup a computer

So I talked about backing up a smart phone yesterday. But how about pc’s and macs? These also need to backed up regularly.That is is you care about your data and your computer's configuration. So how do we go about this? There are several options. However, all options except one require a common tool. An external storage drive. I recommend that you buy at least a 2 terabyte hard drive that connects by USB.

Once you have your usb drive ready, then we can go forward;

Option 1; Let the operating system manage your backup

Both Windows and Apple offer backup solutions embedded into the operating system. Windows Users will find Windows Backup in Control Panel. It is easy to set up. I will write in depth and step by step how to set up Windows Backup in another article. Apple offers Time Machine in OS X which also backs up your data and settings. This will also be the subject of a future article. Using Windows Backup and Time Machine is the easiest way of backing up your data and settings.

Option 2; Manual Backup

This option is good to backup your data BUT IT WILL NOT BACKUP YOUR OPERATING SYSTEM AND SETTINGS. This is useful to selectively copy files such as pictures, videos and documents. In essence it is to copy your files and folders to an external source. The disadvantage is that this is a manual and not automated process which can become time consuming. And it requires discipline to do it systematically.

Option 3; Third Party Application

This option may be good for you if you need to backup your entire hard drive and do a mirror copy of it. My favorite option is Acronis True Image. This application is available for Windows and Apple computers. The software allows you to take a mirror of your hard drive and then use the mirror as a recovery source in case of disaster or breakdown.

Option 4; Online solutions

This is good for backing up files and such but you cannot backup an entire operating system since you need a functional os to actually get online. An advantage of using a cloud solution is that integrating files from multiple devices becomes easy as you can backup several devices onto one cloud account.

Bottom line is, regardless of which method or combination of backup solutions you choose, backing up your data is essential.