Chapter 9. Tip 9: Back Up Your Files

Threat Type: Software based, victim enabled

Examples of Threats:

• A computer virus destroying or corrupting several of your files

• Failure of your computer hard drive

• Inadvertently deleting a file or folder

Our Tips:

• Back up the data on your computer periodically.

• Store files in your computer under a common file folder (with subfolders, of course) to make it easy to identify your information from the operating system and program files.

Backing up your files is not so much a security measure as it is a good policy against losing important files in the event that you are the victim of a virus or other security breech. It allows you to restore files and bring your computer back to a "previrus" state should you get infected and be unable to remove the virus via a security program. It also keeps you from jumping off a cliff should you be the victim of a hard drive crash that renders all your files inaccessible or destroyed.

Until recently, backing up your system was a complicated and sometimes expensive proposition. Today, storage is inexpensive, and automated back up methods make it easy to do. Still, most people (at least the ones not yet burned by a hard drive crash) simply do not bother with it.

Losing critical (or irreplaceable) files is a painful way to learn about the importance and ease of backing up your files. Storage is cheap, and backing up is easy. This is no different from getting screened for a disease that runs in your family. Early prevention is much cheaper and less painful than trying to fix the situation after you are afflicted.

When considering a plan for file or system backup, three questions need to be answered: what to back up, where to back up to, and how often to back up. These questions are answered in the rest of this chapter.