7 Tips For Properly Backing Up Data – A Beginners Guide

If you always want to have access to important information on your laptop or device start backing up the data immediately.

Not all business people are tech-savvy, and when you’re not at work, the onus is on you to secure and back up your data.

You’ll need to copy the data from your computer, laptop or device, e.g. mobile phone or tablet and store it either online, i.e. in the Cloud or on an external device.

The process is much like an insurance policy. You may never need it, but thank goodness it’s there for you if you do need it. If you lose your computer or device, it’s easy enough to get another one but to get your data restored in it you need to have access to an external copy hence the motivation for doing proper backups.

Here are our 7 backup tips and tricks – so you will never be parted from your data.

1. Backing up Data on a Hard Drive

One way to back up important computer data is to back it up on an external hard drive. External and portable hard drives are devices that either do or do not have wires. You can only use one external hard drive per computer.

2. Back It Up on The Cloud

Another way to back up information is to save it in the Cloud. iCloud, for example, is a free digital storage space provided to all Apple devices.

You can also store information to the Cloud through Google Drive, OneDrive, and Dropbox, among other Cloud storage service providers.

3. Back It Up on a USB Flash Drive

A USB flash drive is a solid-state drive that is small enough to carry in your pocket. USB flash drives are straightforward to use.

Because they’re so small, however, USB flash drives are also very easy to lose. Therefore, make sure that you always keep an eye on your flash drive.

4. Back It Up on a NAS Device

NAS in NAS device stands for network-attached storage. A NAS device is a server that saves data. This server can have wires or be wireless.

5. Back It Up While Printing

You can always print out a hard copy of all your documents and physically store them this way. This is a data backup option because you can still access them this way if your computer breaks down or you experience power outages.

If you choose to store your data through this route, just make sure to have an IT contingency checklist of things that you are printing out for storage.

6. Back up Your Application Data Regularly

Because applications change and add new data to themselves each day, you must back up that data on a day-to-day basis as well. Many people store their applications data in hidden folders on their devices.

7. Backup Your Data From a Safe Distance

When backing up your data, make sure you’re storing it on a separate device or online, i.e., not on the same device. You’d be surprised how easy it is to get this wrong, and then you’re without an external copy of your data when you need it.

To be safe, either store your data on an external drive or install a new online data storage service on your computer.

Do Not Cause Negligence to Make You Lose Your Data

At the end of the day, not backing up data can lead to permanent data loss.

Now you’re a pro on all things data backup and storage, it’s time to switch your focus to IT security awareness. When you access the internet, your data is vulnerable. Wherever you are, at work or in a public space, keeping your data safe from hackers and cybercriminals is paramount to making sure it doesn’t end up in the wrong hands.