The blue screen. The black screen. The coffee-soaked computer. The horror stories of computer fatalities are infinite. According to carbonite.com, 43 percent of computer users suffer file losses each year. To hedge against any potential computing catastrophe occurring at your small business, consider the following easy, affordable, and secure solutions to protect your precious data.
is a web-based backup system that uses your computer’s Internet connection to automatically back up files and requires no hardware or wires. Monthly fees vary by the amount of data stored, ranging from $10 for 20GB to $250 for 499GB. However, the number of computers per account is unlimited, computers can be used while data is backing up, and the storage is safely encrypted at secure data centers. Unfortunately, Macs are not compatible.
requires no hardware, and is compatible with Macs. The pricing scheme is as follows: each desktop requires a license fee of $3.95/month and an additional $0.50/month for every .50GB of storage space. Since there is no flat rate, this option is ideal for a business with fewer computers.
offers a line of external data storage units ranging from a 2TB unit at $299.99 for use with up to 10 computers, to an 8TB unit at $1,699.99 for use with up to 50 computers. They come with features like password-protected remote access and automatic scheduled updates.
• For the ultimate protection, Barracuda combines local backup via server with secure online backup to two separate offsite data centers. Barracuda’s system is compatible with Windows, Mac, and Linux. You’ll pay a premium; a 1.25TB server, for example, costs $4,999, plus the monthly service charge for online storage.
