If you have a home computer that you use for email, research and the occasional Facebooking, you’ve probably never seriously considered investing in a home computer backup system. Even if you use your computer for light typing, Excel spreadsheets or storing your children’s homework assignments backing up this information with a home computer backup may not be your first priority. But if it isn’t, perhaps it should be.
It only takes a few moments for a fire to sweep through a house, destroying everything in its path. Likewise, a virus can spread through your computer in minutes, destroying your files, deleting your data or corrupting your computer beyond repair. And, while nobody enjoys thinking that these things may happen, the reality is that they do happen- and they happen with alarming frequency.
While it may be impossible to protect all of your belongings from a fire or other natural disaster, it is entirely possible to protect your data from being obliterated by a tragedy or virus infiltration. Home data backup can be done entirely electronically, so that even if your physical computer or home is damaged, your data will remain entirely intact.
The great news about online data backup is that some home computer backup can be done for free. iDrive, for example, offers up to 2GB of free storage, which means that if you don’t have too many files, you may be able to store all of your important information for free. But, even if you are like most people and also want to backup your photos and music downloads, you can still enjoy home computer backup for an extremely reasonable price. With few exceptions, storage packages for home data backup can be selected to match your usage, so that you needn’t pay for excessive GBs of storage that you’ll never use. Interestingly, even unlimited home computer backup services can be affordable. Carbonite, for example, offers unlimited storage for around $5/month, which is an extremely reasonable price considering the peace of mind that this home data backup provides.
If you think of home computer backup as insurance, you’ll see that it is a truly important addition to every home computer. Just as you wouldn’t choose to live without homeowner’s (or renter’s) insurance to protect your physical property, you should never live without online data backup to protect your intellectual property. Because even if a computer can be easily replaced, the data stored on it is likely irreplaceable.
