How to Backup Your Home Computer

Sooner or later, it will happen to every computer user. The hard drive does a crash and burn or the old motherboard goes menopausal with a hot flash meltdown. This inevitable event can be a major catastrophe. But if you've been backing up your data files on a regular basis, it will be just a minor inconvenience and annoyance.

Think about all the data you have stored on your hard drive: digital family photos, the home inventory, your tax returns, bank statements, your Christmas card mailing list, your address book, internet favorites, resumé, all the music you've downloaded. Now think about how you'll feel when - not if, but when -- your hard drive crashes and all of those files are destroyed. Makes me queasy just thinking about it. Are you convinced yet? I hope so.

Which Files Do I Need to Backup?

Have you been putting off this critical computer maintenance because you're not sure which files you need to backup?

At a minimum, you'll want to backup your "My Documents" folder.

If you're a smart cookie, you'll backup your Windows registry and your Windows profile. The Windows registry stores all the operating system settings and configuration options that control how the operating system loads and runs and interacts with various other software programs installed on your hard drive. Your Windows profile can be found in the C:\Documents and Settings\User Name folder. Backing up your Windows profile will preserve your "My Documents" folder, your internet favorites, your desktop and your email address book.

If you're really serious about protecting your data and system settings, you'll backup all user profiles and the system state.

What Do I Backup To?

You have a few choices here. You can use an online storage service like ibackup.com or evault.com. This will probably cost you a few dollars a month and there is an inherent risk in transmitting your data over the internet, but it's certainly better than not backing up at all.

USB flash drives can be a good option if you don't have a lot of data to backup. Most flash drives have a storage capacity of 1 to 4 gigabytes. I've seen a couple with up to 16GB but they were quite expensive. Due to their small size, flash drives are easily lost.

Rewriteable CDs (CD-RW) are also an option, but again storage capacity will be an issue. CD-RWs can only hold up to 700MB of data. You'll have to use multiple CDs to backup your data and system settings. If you decide to go this route, remember that they are REWRITEABLE and be careful not to accidentally overwrite your backup files.

My preference would be a couple external hard drives with a storage capacity equal to or greater than the storage capacity of my computer hard drive. The iOmega portable external hard drives are an excellent choice. For a couple hundred dollars you can purchase two 80-gigabyte (GB) portable external drives that come with their own backup software. These easy to connect USB-powered devices are very reliable, durable, and easy to transport.

Why do I want two of them? Well, the key to a successful and reliable backup strategy is redundancy. In other words, you want more than one. What if your hard drive crashes while it's backing up and the backup file is corrupted as a result? You want to have another backup, just in case.

Portability is also important. If your computer is destroyed in a house fire or flood, chances are your backup device will also be destroyed if it's sitting on the desk next to the computer. Store your backup device in a secure, off-site location with some degree of climate control. Your purse or glovebox are NOT good options. They are not climate controlled and your purse or car can be stolen. If you work in an office building with security and air conditioning, you might consider storing your home computer backup in a locked desk drawer or file cabinet.

How Do I Backup My Files?

If you're using an online data storage service, they will provide you with instructions on how to transfer your files to their server.

If you are using rewriteable CDs, you can simply identify the files you want to backup and burn them to the CDs.

If you're using a flash drive or external hard drive you can simply copy the files you want to backup or use the Windows XP Pro Backup Utility.

In my experience, the easier and more convenient your backup strategy is, the more likely you'll be to actually use it. I definitely recommend the Backup Utility which allows you to schedule automated backups without any user intervention. Most external hard drives also come with a backup program that may be even more user friendly than the Windows XP Backup Pro Utility.

The Windows XP Pro Backup Utility can be accessed by clicking on Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Backup. The Backup Utility will lead you through a series of prompts that ask you to identify which files you want to backup, which device you want to back up to, and when you want to schedule the backup to run. You should backup at least once a week. If your data is really important to you, you can backup daily. The Microsoft website provides detailed instructions for using the Backup Utility.

Don't forget to test your backup every now and then to make sure you can successfully restore your files to your computer.

So, what are you waiting for? Backup now!! It only takes a few minutes to establish an automated backup routine. Someday, when the inevitable crash occurs, you'll be really glad you did.