Online Backup - no space limitation

[frank_m]

I used to be in the computer business, one of the things I learned... most people don't have a proper backup solution setup.

I wanted to pass along a service that I use, it is called Carbonite.

There's no size limitation, but it is based on the computer, not the user.

It runs in the background, you don't have to deal with it once it is set up...

I have a link here for a 15 day free trial (and you don't need to put up a credit card to try it out)

It takes about 2 days for the initial backup, after that, the client monitors your PC or LapTop and backs up any changes.

They charge $50 per year, and don't limit you on size.

this Link give you the 15 day trial, and if you sign up through this link (after you try it out) they give you 13 months for the price of 12.

http://www.carbonite.com/raf/signup.aspx?RAFUserUID=96790&a=0

[Stu]

That sounds interesting.  How do you like the service?  I have had issues in the past year -- a hard drive crash (lost some data that took a while to recreate -- don't back up as often as needed), and had my MS Outlook *.pst file become corrupted and have a size of zero kb -- lost 5 months of email.  It makes me a little nervous to have a backup of personal information out in cyberspace.  I have considered getting an external hard drive continuous backup solution, but I haven't done the legwork to investigate.  If anyone has a backup solution like that, I would welcome any advice.

[frank_m]

I understand your concerns, companies like this use encryption and basically your files are not accessible to them, only to you because an encryption key is exchanged on your computer and their server, without the encryption key you cannot access the information.

[random]

companies like this use encryption and basically your files are not accessible to them

Carbonite currently keeps copies of all users' encryption keys in our database

Funny.

I keep my data on a separate partition (a Truecrypt volume, in fact) so I can re-image the OS partition without even thinking about my stuff. Syncing to my file server or external HD takes a double click on the corresponding batch file (and even this can be automated with a scheduler).

[frank_m]

companies like this use encryption and basically your files are not accessible to them

Carbonite currently keeps copies of all users' encryption keys in our database

Funny.

I keep my data on a separate partition (a Truecrypt volume, in fact) so I can re-image the OS partition without even thinking about my stuff. Syncing to my file server or external HD takes a double click on the corresponding batch file (and even this can be automated with a scheduler).

What happens if you have a physical failure of your hard drive?

What if there is a fire?

What if the PC / LapTop is stolen?

Yes, there are many ways of backing up your data, an offsite backup has it's benefits.

I'm sure you can poke holes in anything, and nobody is as smart as you are.

[random]

What happens if you have a physical failure of your hard drive?

What if there is a fire?

What if the PC / LapTop is stolen?

Buy a new [hard disk|computer] and restore my backups?

Yes, there are many ways of backing up your data, an offsite backup has it's benefits.

Agreed (please point out if I disputed that anywhere...).

I'm sure you can poke holes in anything, and nobody is as smart as you are.

You claimed that company couldn't possibly access their users' files after Stew raised understandable privacy concerns.

I merely pointed out that their own FAQ page proves you wrong, because we've got plenty of non-technical folks on this forum who might value the privacy of their data a bit more than you do.


What do you get for people signing up via your referral link?

[wpruitt]

I would never trust my personal information to someone else, I use external HDD's to back up everything, and solid state HDD's are well on their way! Even if you lose data you can get most of it back using such products as Undelete, even if it's formatted a dozen times.

I agree - perhaps I am a bit afraid of "Big Brother" snooping

[frank_m]

What happens if you have a physical failure of your hard drive?

What if there is a fire?

What if the PC / LapTop is stolen?

Buy a new [hard disk|computer] and restore my backups?

Yes, there are many ways of backing up your data, an offsite backup has it's benefits.

Agreed (please point out if I disputed that anywhere...).

I'm sure you can poke holes in anything, and nobody is as smart as you are.

You claimed that company couldn't possibly access their users' files after Stew raised understandable privacy concerns.

I merely pointed out that their own FAQ page proves you wrong, because we've got plenty of non-technical folks on this forum who might value the privacy of their data a bit more than you do.


What do you get for people signing up via your referral link?

I don't see how their FAQ's prove me wrong, their FAQ's clearly point out that your data is not accessible by their employees... they do keep a copy of your encryption key for a forgotten password, since I am a customer I am familiar with their security, and the numerous challenges they have in place so you can retrieve your data (or if you had to restore to a new computer)

I don't work for this company, and I couldn't care less if anybody signs up for their service or not.  It offers online backup and security in my opinion.  (the security of a data center is better than my home)

To say that I am pointing non-technical people in the direction of a company that does not value privacy is completely wrong. 

Some people like myself travel around the country for a living, all my data is on a laptop, I do not have the time to safely backup my data to an external hard drive.

I also experienced a flood in my home two years ago, and lost everything, all my data was lost, had I been using an online backup, I would have been able to restore my data to a new machine, rather than starting over.

Regarding what I get, I get the same thing as the person that signs up on through the link, one extra month.