When I got back to my home office, I hooked up my Drobo and accessed the last saved file. Other than losing the small amount of data I had put into the database that morning, I was able to totally resurrect my file. I love my Drobo!

Why do you love your Drobo?

So, now that we have that cleared up, what are you going to do about it? Where do you start? Or how do you make sense of a fragmented plan?

1. Just back it up. No, really. JUST BACK IT UP. Don’t wait for the perfect plan. Just find a way to save your data for the short term. Phew! Now that you’ve done that, it’s time to simplify your life.
2. Determine your budget.
3. Decide (with the help of professionals if need be) what combination of backup solutions you need.

If you have a lot of data (you run a semiconductor business, or a medical practice) then consider high level encryption and offsite combined with a secure onsite Drobo unit(s). If you have a single home computer with data that you just can’t replace consider a combination of a Drobo unit with Carbonite or MobileMe. There are dozens of combinations.

Whatever you choose to do, Vinehall Computing can help you. We have had computers crash, just like you have. We’ve lived through data disaster recovery. We have tried many different methods of data backup so you can ask questions and find the right solution for you.

STILL haven’t developed your backup plan? Stop reading and start backing up your data.

This is not the first call we’ve had like this! Nor should you feel you are alone in making this mistake. Maybe you know a lot about your computer, but you just haven’t spent much time thinking about backup. Now is the time, not later. Backup is like an insurance policy. You don’t PLAN to have accidents happen, but it sure is nice if you have it in place when you need it. And you WILL need it.

We have forgotten to back things up. We have **meant** to back up data. So, we learned the hard way, too. Lost data. Recreation of lots of work. Custom databases  – gone. Grades for 500 students – gone. So what do we do now? We use Carbonite, DroboPro and external drives. Putting all of your data in one place is not wise.

Step One: Back up your data. Somehow. RIGHT NOW.

Step Two: Set up an offsite backup copy – we recommend Dakota Backup or Carbonite depending on your data backup needs.

Step Three: Put a regular, daily or at least weekly backup program in place. Time Machine on the Mac is a great example. The Drobo and DroboPro do it automatically.

Check out our store for more information! http://1vhc.net

Dakota Backup, Carbonite, Mozy, Iron Mountain, and the list goes on… What is right for YOUR data backup?

We use a combination of a DroboPro for onsite with Dakota Backup on board for our business machines, and Carbonite for our offsite machines. The combination of local and cloud give us the peace of mind that we feel we need. Notice we don’t put all of our data eggs in one basket!

The DroboPro has never failed us. We’ve tried. Believe me! The BeyondRAID system truly is in a class by itself. And if you don’t need dual redundancy (two copies of the same thing) in separate locations, then a Drobo or DroboPro alone will probably fulfill your needs.

Right now, there are more reasons to keep most of your data local than there are to move it to the cloud; but for bulk file storage, the local data center is a better choice. The cost per megabyte keeps going down; there are not as many bandwidth constraints; and at least it feels like we have a better handle on security when the data is local. These dynamics may change eventually, but for now, local storage is king. – Andy Moon, Tech Republic contributor

Keeping only a local copy, however, does not protect you from fire, flood or theft. Even if you attempt to place your redundant copy somewhere else.  Here are just a few of those disastrous tales: http://blog.redemtech.com/2009/12/digging-through-the-data-security-news-of-2009.html

A Combination of Data Storage Just Makes Sense

And it keeps on backing up the iMac. Disaster recovery has been simple. The “dummy” lights tell us that everything is working.

So why didn’t we use this before? The cost wasn’t what we could afford before. The original Drobo had some issues, but this second generation of machines seems to really be great.

The Data Robotics website states the following:

BeyondRAID^™ leverages the benefits of traditional RAID systems, while leaving many of the limitations behind. This next-generation of redundant storage technology brings together safety, reliability, expandability, efficiency and ease-of-use.BeyondRAID fits in the same place of the software stack as traditional RAID between the file system and the driver. Hence, BeyondRAID can be adopted without any change in infrastructure, allowing you to maintain your current file system and operating system, while eliminating the friction costs typically associated with moving to a new technology platform.

Problems with Traditional RAID
IT managers are faced with the complicated question of which one of the eleven traditional RAID levels they should deploy for their business storage.

Traditional RAID suffers from two major disadvantages:
1) Lock-in of RAID levels for the lifecycle of the data
2) a forced tradeoff between simplicity vs. safety and stability vs. expandability

As business conditions change over time, IT managers are obliged to choose between purchasing a new RAID array and the cost and effort of redeploying a more appropriate RAID level.BeyondRAID is RAID without Regrets
Data Robotics BeyondRAID solves these two critical issues, delivering flexibility without downtime. Built on an advanced storage virtualization platform, BeyondRAID chooses the correct RAID algorithm based on data protection needs at any given moment. Since the technology works at the block level, it can write blocks of data that alternate between data protection methodologies. If an IT manager needs to add storage capacity to a Drobo product, he or she can simply insert additional disk drives or replace the smallest disks—no need to change RAID levels, purchase a new storage array or go through the complex administration of pooling RAID groups. The BeyondRAID featured on DroboPro even allows IT managers to switch from single to dual disk redundancy with a single click, thereby ensuring enterprise-level dual parity data protection if required.

Simple. Easy to manage. Redundant. Phew! Even WE can make it work!

http://1VHC.net

Electronic discovery (also called e-discovery or ediscovery) refers to any process in which electronic data is sought, located, secured, and searched with the intent of using it as evidence in a civil or criminal legal case. E-discovery can be carried out offline on a particular computer or it can be done in a network. Court-ordered or government sanctioned hacking for the purpose of obtaining critical evidence is also a type of e-discovery.

The nature of digital data makes it extremely well-suited to investigation. For one thing, digital data can be electronically searched with ease, whereas paper documents must be scrutinized manually. Furthermore, digital data is difficult or impossible to completely destroy, particularly if it gets into a network. This is because the data appears on multiple hard drives and because digital files, even if deleted, can be undeleted. In fact, the only reliable way to destroy a computer file is to physically destroy every hard drive where the file has been stored.

In the process of electronic discovery, data of all types can serve as evidence. This can include text, images, calendar files, databases, spreadsheets, audio files, animation, Web sites and computer programs. Even malware such as viruses, Trojans and spyware can be secured and investigated. Email can be an especially valuable source of evidence in civil or criminal litigation, because people are often less careful in these exchanges than in hard copy correspondence such as written memos and postal letters.

Computer forensics, also called cyberforensics, is a specialized form of e-discovery in which an investigation is carried out on the contents of the hard drive of a specific computer. After physically isolating the computer, investigators make a digital copy of the hard drive. Then the original computer is locked in a secure facility to maintain its pristine condition. All investigation is done on the digital copy.

E-discovery is an evolving field that goes far beyond mere technology. It gives rise to multiple legal, constitutional, political, security and personal privacy issues, many of which have yet to be resolved.

As a lawyer, you need a place to securely store any e-discovery data. Keeping a copy of files on a DVD or even a tape backup is risky. The evidence must remain encrypted and secure in order to protect your materials. Having two encrypted copies of your e-discovery data, one onsite and one offsite, ensures that you have access to the data WHEN YOU NEED IT. Having a web connection allows you access to your offsite data AT ANY TIME.

Put your backup plan in place. Store your ENCRYPTED data safely so that only you or those you authorize can access the encryption key and store multiple backup copies. Theft, fire, flood or other disasters can destroy your data onsite. Be prepared.

There is an old saying in the data protection business that the whole point of backing up is preparing to restore. Having a backup copy of your data is important, but it takes more than a pile of tapes (or an on-line account) to restore. You might need a replacement server, new storage, and maybe even a new data centre, depending on what went wrong.

Traditionally, you would either keep spare servers in a disaster recovery data centre, or suffer a period of downtime while you order and configure new equipment. With a cloud recovery solution, you don’t want just your data in the cloud, you want the ability to actually start up applications and use them, no matter what went wrong in your own environment.

Oh, you want to not only recover, but keep working, too?!? Imagine that!

Masters makes an excellent point. The data that you have backed up will not be particularly useful if you don’t have the applications or the hardware to run them. For the average computer home user, this is not a huge issue. Mostly this becomes an inconvenience. But, for the small business owner this becomes money right out of pocket. You lose money when your business isn’t running. Your business can’t run if all of your data and customer contact information is waiting for new hardware or software to arrive!

Some online backup services allow application backup, but not many. Carbonite only backs up data. Companies expect that you have the original software disks or you’ve saved the .dmg files somewhere so that you can reinstall them as needed. Once again, I advocate for keeping a separate .dmg file that is backed up onto an external hard drive (preferably a BeyondRAID unit such as the DroboPro) or some other form of media. Heck, even having the applications on DVD is better than NOTHING! No, this isn’t ideal. But, it sure beats trying to recover your data only to find that you have NOTHING to restore your applications from!

Practice a restore with a few files from your backup. Can you retrieve them easily? Do you know what to do with that .zip file once it hits your desktop? Do you need a Masters degree in IT to figure it out? If the process is overwhelming, or you have not a clue how to restore your data, then you need to find someone that will teach you how to do it, or  you need a simpler solution. Or maybe both.

Today is a great time to put the following on your TO-DO list:

1. Make a truly workable backup plan.
2. Spend the money to get RELIABLE data protection such as Dakota Backup and a DroboPro.
3. Implement your backup plan ASAP.
4. Practice a data recovery simulation with a few files.
5. Sleep at night…

I felt a bit of panic begin to start. Just a bit. OK, a lot.

And then he reminded me that I have my Carbonite backup and my disaster recovery plan is in place. I opened my Carbonite preferences, clicked on restore, found the database from the previous save and clicked on it. I wisely restored it to my desktop rather than over the old file, because I had created a rather elaborate form in the corrupted database that I didn’t want to lose.

In under 3 minutes I had the entire file restored and was able to copy and paste the elements from the corrupted database form into the recovered version. Disaster averted!!

Carbonite has proven its worth and saved me many labor intensive hours. Survive a Computer Disaster with Carbonite Online Backup! Free trial to get you started-no credit card required.

Online Backup Review ranks Carbonite as number 1 for the consumer in October 2009. http://www.backupreview.info/2009/10/01/top-75-online-backup-companies-for-october-2009/

I have to agree. You just can’t get insurance like that for $54.95 a year anywhere else.

I like the ease of use of Carbonite, and it seems to handle files quite nicely. The restore is easy and that’s definitely a plus. But sometimes it really pulls on my bandwidth when I’m doing a million other things. Go figure! Running Skype takes a lot of my CPU, and when Carbonite starts, my fan sounds like it’s going to lift the MacBook right into the air!

It’s simple to pause the Carbonite backup for 24 hours. So I can just let it begin searching for changed files when it wants to. If I have something incredibly important that I want it to back up, I just go to the preferences and resume the backup. Pretty easy for a busy person to handle.

That’s why 1VHC recommends it. We had to USE it first, though. We just were not convinced. For the home user that doesn’t want to worry about the backup process, Carbonite is a winner. $59.95 for a year. Cheap for the peace of mind. Please visit our site for more info or to sign up for a free trial. Offsite Backup Solutions at 1vhc.net