Article 1 : Offsite Backup Advantages

Creating backups of your data and files is a very important way of staying on top of disaster and missing data. Both small and large businesses, including individuals, always look towards a backup of information to keep them going in the face of disaster. Even though backups are a great way to keep your data safe and protected, there are some flaws with the traditional methods. Read Article >>

Article 2 : Online Storage

Online storage can be an inexpensive option for those people who are running small businesses. Online storage (also known as offsite storage), involves paying a monthly or yearly fee to a web-based backup service who allows you to save and retrieve your files over the Internet.

This kind of service can be a great addition to your pre-existing backup system, allowing you to backup critical files and remove them to a secure, offsite location -- safe from theft and fire. As well, a key focus of these companies is backup redundancy. They have multiple sites where your files are stored, ensuring that if one site fails, the others will still have your files.

With online storage, your files are immediately accessible from any web connected computer, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Not only does this make distributing particular files or presentations to your colleagues easier, but it also means that you no longer always need to haul around your heavy laptop computer! Simply connect online from any computer and you can instantly access your files.

Article 3 : Knowing Your Data Is Safe

All companies of today make great use of the technology available to them and rely on their data. Most businesses however, don’t have the budget to invest in network storage or large servers, which is what the bigger companies use to transfer information and create a backup of the information they rely on to carry out their operations.
Smaller businesses have a limited budget. When most encounter a disaster they never seem to recover, normally going out of business. Past disasters such as 9/11 or the dreaded hurricane have showed the importance of backups and disaster planning. Companies that thought things out and protected their data survived these disasters, while those that didn’t went out of business.

There are several ways that you can protect your data and keep it safe. One of the most popular and easiest ways to protect your data is with a server. Servers are great for both large and small businesses, and protection the data for your business. They can tend to get expensive though, with the most popular server, Microsoft, starting out around $3,000.

Unlike other options, servers provide you with a safe and secure system to store all of your corporate data. You can set the permission of your files to prevent any unauthorized access, to keep your files safe. When using servers, most of the loss comes from either accidental deletion or employees that are upset with corporate management and decide to get into the server and erase files.

When using a server, your data will be stored in one central location, and not spread around over different computers in your network. Servers are very user friendly, and keep your files neat and tidy - in one location. This way you don’t have to go looking all over the place for your data, you can look in the server and find everything you need.

Another way to keep your data safe is with CDs, DVDs, and even external hard drives. If you are using any of these methods, you should always do a backup of your information at the end of every day. With disasters being completely unpredictable, backing things up every day will ensure that you are protected if something should occur.

If you are backing things up to CD or DVD media, you should always put the discs in a safe and secure location, preferably a fireproof safe. This way, if the office should catch on fire, you’ll have your backup discs protected. You should always add your new backups to the safe at the end of every working day, so you’ll have them tomorrow if you need them.

You can also store your data and information offsite as well. This is a highly recommended option, as you pay a flat monthly fee and a company stores your information. Most have secure vaults and servers for your data, which ensures protection from unauthorized accidents or hazards. You don’t need to worry about your data when using these services, as they will do the protection for you.

No matter which method you use for protecting your information, you should always make sure that you have a plan. Corporate data is very important and essential to success, which is why you should look into immediately if you don’t have a plan already. If you know your data is safe and protected from hazards and unauthorized access - you’ll have the peace of mind in knowing that your data will be there each and every time you need it.

Article 4 : The Evaluation Process Of Data Recovery

As most people already know, almost all hard drives fail due to normal use and conditions. Although it can happen at anytime, hard drive failure normally takes several years to occur, due to normal wear and tear. No matter what the case may be, you should always be fully aware of the options that are available to you, and what you should do if your hard drive fails.
Data recovery is the most useful and by far the best way to retrieve data that has been lost or deleted from a hard drive. Hard drive recovery can restore files that have been lost, no matter what the cause may be. From viruses to crashes, data recovery can restore the files on your hard drive by rebuilding the platters and the structure of the drive. Most experienced computer technicians can restore your hard drive in just a couple of days.

Before you hard drive can be rebuilt, it must be evaluated. The evaluation process will give the technician a chance to go through your hard drive, determine what caused the failure, and what they need to do to restore your data. This is a very extensive process that involving a series of steps performed by the technician.

First things first, the technician must determine if the problem is logical, physical, or possibly a combination of both. Physical failures result in hardware malfunctions, while the logical problems lie in the software. Once the technician has found the problem and the cause, he can plan out the repair process and what he needs to do to recover the information.

If the technician is able to gain access into the hard drive, he or she will then create a mirrored image of the drive and continue the process. The data structure will come next, where the technician will determine just how much of the data can be saved. This step in the evaluation can be the most time consuming, as the technician or technicians will have to go through each sector step by step and located what data can be retrieved and what data cannot be retrieved.

Once the evaluation process has been completed, the results will be given to you. The technician will normally go over everything with you, and explain the options you have available. This is where they will discuss pricing, as well as how long it will take. They will also let you know how much data can be retrieved, and what they think caused the problem. You can always get a second opinion if you choose, or go ahead and use the technician. In the rare event that no data can be retrieved, the technician will tell you that nothing can be done for your hard drive. Keep in mind that before they do anything to retrieve data, they will always contact you first to find out what you want to do.

Normally, most data can be retrieved in as little as 48 hours. The evaluation process may take a few days, as it is more time consuming and planned out than the actual data recovery process. The evaluation process can take longer depending on the parts that are needed, or if other technicians need to be involved with the process. If the technician has all of the necessary parts on hand and the experience, it normally doesn’t take long. On the other hand, if the hard drive has a lot of hardware and mechanical problems - it can take a few weeks before you find out anything.