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Thursday, May 04, 2006
This was originally published in my KillerOrange Blog.
I have never been a great proponent of tape backups, because they are opaque (it can literally take hours to pull up a list of what files are on a particular tape), because you never know if you have a good backup unless you restore it (the validate backup is sometimes wrong, in my experience), and because you must rely on human beings to rotate the tapes offsite.
I feel that the ideal solution is an automated backup to an online repository - one which issues a success/error e-mail to the various concerned parties upon completion. I am working on such an automated offsite backup solution for a client, and have identified a number of online document storage & backup providers.
If you have a hosted web server, you probably have an FTP account which could be used for this purpose. But most web hosts have limited bandwidth and hard disk space - which would be inadequate for workstation or network backup purposes. These plans are generally geared towards average low-volume web activity, not wholesale backup of hard disks.
Here is a list of online storage providers that may be of use as the back-end to an automated solution:
Elephant Drive - Presently provides unlimited storage with military-grade encryption and large scale disaster recovery techniques. This beta service is currently free, but they plan to charge a fee at a later point in time.
GoDaddy, a company I think highly of, has a service called Online File Folder. "Store, access, and share presentations, spreadsheets, reports — even large files like music, photos and video clips — from any Internet-connected computer. Plus, you can access online files directly from your desktop, transfer files with drag ‘n drop simplicity and even synchronize files on your computer with your Online File Folder so you’re always working on the latest version!" 2 Gigabytes is just $20/year.
iFolder is a Mono/.Net framework project sponsored by Novell. "iFolder is a simple and secure storage solution that can increase your productivity by enabling you to back up, access and manage your personal files-from anywhere, at any time. Once you have installed iFolder, you simply save your files locally-as you have always done-and iFolder automatically updates the files on a network server and delivers them to the other machines you use." If you are a developer, this is a system you can tweak to your specifications and give back to the community through your efforts. However, it does not appear that anyone is offering free hosting, so if you want to take advantage of the intermediary server, you will probably have to setup your own.
Kanosis's COIL is a multi-level marketing MLM community service which, among other things, will provide (starting May 1st?) secure upload facilities. It is unclear to me at this time what the scope or cost will be. "Using COIL, you store your important data on a server which is professionally backed up and scanned, you have a layer of insulation from common security issues such as viruses, computer crashes and hackers. All the information in COIL is stored in multiple world-class data centres with 24/7 security. PGP personalised encryption is available so that you can encrypt all your data before uploading it to COIL. All of your contacts and uploaded files are private and only you can view them, that is unless YOU decide to give permission to other people."
ShadowStorage is a commercial system with several tiers ranging from personal to corporate. "ShadowStorage provides a full suite of features for individuals, project teams, small businesses and enterprises to store, access, manage and share their documents, files and faxes.... We provide reliable networked, accessible secure storage as a service but its our simple—yet powerful—user-friendly browser interface combined with powerful features that make what you store valuable to you or your business.... You can transfer files to our secure server to store and organize them in digital boxes and folders. Access your files wherever you are. Easily and securely distribute information of any size to anyone. Send and receive faxes anywhere without a fax machine."
StreamLoad provides up to 25 GB of secure storage for FREE, but there is a 100 MB limit on downloads with the free plan. You can, however, upgrade to tiered personal and commercial accounts that provide more bandwidth. "How it works: Security protects your privacy and control of your files.... You can upload files or receive files from email or other Streamloaders.... You are now free to send, receive, access, store and stream files of any size from anywhere and at anytime." It is unclear to me what happens if you choose a free or bottom tier account for backup - then discover that you need to take advantage of restoring more data than your plan's bandwidth limit. Maybe you simply upgrade to the upper tier in the unlikely event that you need to restore an entire hard disk?
I do not think it unreasonable that most of the above services ask for payment, and there are business advantages to going with a commercial solution. For-fee services are generally better supported, and are more likely to have adequate bandwidth as well as quick support. Neither is there anything necessarily wrong with "free", except that if you only get what you paid for (nothing), you are in no position to complain. There are rumors that Google plans to offer a "G-Drive" system, that may be free. But everyone's bread gets buttered in some way or another. It remains to be seen if there is any long-term viability to the diskspace & bandwidth-for-free business model.
An alternative methodology might be to sync files between devices in different physical locations - such as your business and your home. Microsoft's FolderShare is a (at present) no-cost service that allows you to do just that. You designate the folders which you wish to synchronize, and anytime that both devices are online, they automatically sync. FolderShare supports Windows XP and OSX, but it does not appear that Windows Mobile has any support at this time.
Backing up your data offsite is critical - I have seen fire, water damage, and smash-and-grab situations in my client base over the years, and their backups "saved their lives". Business insurance is great, but if you don't know who owes you what, you may lose thousands of dollars to uncollected receivables. You also stand to lose sales contacts, contracts, and custom applications, among other digital valuables.
I have never been a great proponent of tape backups, because they are opaque (it can literally take hours to pull up a list of what files are on a particular tape), because you never know if you have a good backup unless you restore it (the validate backup is sometimes wrong, in my experience), and because you must rely on human beings to rotate the tapes offsite.
I feel that the ideal solution is an automated backup to an online repository - one which issues a success/error e-mail to the various concerned parties upon completion. I am working on such an automated offsite backup solution for a client, and have identified a number of online document storage & backup providers.
If you have a hosted web server, you probably have an FTP account which could be used for this purpose. But most web hosts have limited bandwidth and hard disk space - which would be inadequate for workstation or network backup purposes. These plans are generally geared towards average low-volume web activity, not wholesale backup of hard disks.
Here is a list of online storage providers that may be of use as the back-end to an automated solution:
Elephant Drive - Presently provides unlimited storage with military-grade encryption and large scale disaster recovery techniques. This beta service is currently free, but they plan to charge a fee at a later point in time.
GoDaddy, a company I think highly of, has a service called Online File Folder. "Store, access, and share presentations, spreadsheets, reports — even large files like music, photos and video clips — from any Internet-connected computer. Plus, you can access online files directly from your desktop, transfer files with drag ‘n drop simplicity and even synchronize files on your computer with your Online File Folder so you’re always working on the latest version!" 2 Gigabytes is just $20/year.
iFolder is a Mono/.Net framework project sponsored by Novell. "iFolder is a simple and secure storage solution that can increase your productivity by enabling you to back up, access and manage your personal files-from anywhere, at any time. Once you have installed iFolder, you simply save your files locally-as you have always done-and iFolder automatically updates the files on a network server and delivers them to the other machines you use." If you are a developer, this is a system you can tweak to your specifications and give back to the community through your efforts. However, it does not appear that anyone is offering free hosting, so if you want to take advantage of the intermediary server, you will probably have to setup your own.
Kanosis's COIL is a multi-level marketing MLM community service which, among other things, will provide (starting May 1st?) secure upload facilities. It is unclear to me at this time what the scope or cost will be. "Using COIL, you store your important data on a server which is professionally backed up and scanned, you have a layer of insulation from common security issues such as viruses, computer crashes and hackers. All the information in COIL is stored in multiple world-class data centres with 24/7 security. PGP personalised encryption is available so that you can encrypt all your data before uploading it to COIL. All of your contacts and uploaded files are private and only you can view them, that is unless YOU decide to give permission to other people."
ShadowStorage is a commercial system with several tiers ranging from personal to corporate. "ShadowStorage provides a full suite of features for individuals, project teams, small businesses and enterprises to store, access, manage and share their documents, files and faxes.... We provide reliable networked, accessible secure storage as a service but its our simple—yet powerful—user-friendly browser interface combined with powerful features that make what you store valuable to you or your business.... You can transfer files to our secure server to store and organize them in digital boxes and folders. Access your files wherever you are. Easily and securely distribute information of any size to anyone. Send and receive faxes anywhere without a fax machine."
StreamLoad provides up to 25 GB of secure storage for FREE, but there is a 100 MB limit on downloads with the free plan. You can, however, upgrade to tiered personal and commercial accounts that provide more bandwidth. "How it works: Security protects your privacy and control of your files.... You can upload files or receive files from email or other Streamloaders.... You are now free to send, receive, access, store and stream files of any size from anywhere and at anytime." It is unclear to me what happens if you choose a free or bottom tier account for backup - then discover that you need to take advantage of restoring more data than your plan's bandwidth limit. Maybe you simply upgrade to the upper tier in the unlikely event that you need to restore an entire hard disk?
I do not think it unreasonable that most of the above services ask for payment, and there are business advantages to going with a commercial solution. For-fee services are generally better supported, and are more likely to have adequate bandwidth as well as quick support. Neither is there anything necessarily wrong with "free", except that if you only get what you paid for (nothing), you are in no position to complain. There are rumors that Google plans to offer a "G-Drive" system, that may be free. But everyone's bread gets buttered in some way or another. It remains to be seen if there is any long-term viability to the diskspace & bandwidth-for-free business model.
An alternative methodology might be to sync files between devices in different physical locations - such as your business and your home. Microsoft's FolderShare is a (at present) no-cost service that allows you to do just that. You designate the folders which you wish to synchronize, and anytime that both devices are online, they automatically sync. FolderShare supports Windows XP and OSX, but it does not appear that Windows Mobile has any support at this time.
Backing up your data offsite is critical - I have seen fire, water damage, and smash-and-grab situations in my client base over the years, and their backups "saved their lives". Business insurance is great, but if you don't know who owes you what, you may lose thousands of dollars to uncollected receivables. You also stand to lose sales contacts, contracts, and custom applications, among other digital valuables.
