I did a little TWW searching... but anything really relevant seemed really outdated... feel free to correct me with a link if this is wrong.

I'm looking for an automatic data backup plan for two laptops (both are work related although one will usually stay at the office and one will usually stay at home or travel, when needed).

I'd be game for using a external hard drive with some networking, if that's the best & most cost-efficient way to do this. What I'm basically looking for is some type of automatic data backup for both computers, prefer one that doesn't have a subscription/monthly fee like the online options do if there is a better way to do it on my own.

There's not a lot of data b/w the two... maybe 100GB that would need to be routinely backed up - would prefer on a daily basis, if not more often.

What do you guys recommend or use on your own just for peace of mind. Definitely open to any and all ideas here. Likewise, if there are any online references (good "start here" type things), please let me know.

7/20/2008 5:38:48 PM

so do you have the drives to back the data up to or are you trying to back everything to somewhere else?

mozy has a great one if you're looking to back up online--unlimited for a few bucks a month

otherwise windows has a built in backup scheduler that you can use.. not sure what else you'd need

7/20/2008 5:40:26 PM

I have a WD Passport 250G that I use as the main hard drive... but I'd prefer another backup option as that one travels all the time and has a higher risk of getting damaged.

7/20/2008 6:52:31 PM

google mozy then and see what you think about that

7/20/2008 6:59:44 PM

^ agreed. Mozy (http://www.mozy.com) is one of the best backup methods I've ever used. It's worry-free and works anywhere. It's worth the $5/mo to guarantee my data is 100% safe.

7/20/2008 7:16:51 PM

You might also want to look into JungleDisk. It uses Amazon's S3 file storage services, which is also pretty damn cheap.

7/20/2008 9:08:54 PM

western digital's anywhere backup is pretty nice...its made by some other company but i cant remember the name

7/20/2008 9:11:38 PM

without reading this thread, i wholeheartedly recommend mozy

http://www.mozy.com

7/20/2008 9:24:27 PM

I can't wait til I get some money... I'll be launching my own online backup that will blow everyone out of the water, iron mountain included. No one does anything close to what I've thought up

7/20/2008 11:22:04 PM

I'd use Acronis if I were doing what i think you're doing.


Mozy might be nice for online backups, but it'd be contingent on your network speeds, whereas Acronis is a really good and reasonably priced solution for localized backup needs.

Plus, if you decide to upgrade or move to newer hardware later, you can do hardware agnostic things with Acronis that Mozy might not support.

[Edited on July 20, 2008 at 11:49 PM. Reason : plus you're looking for a 1 time price, not a monthly fee]

7/20/2008 11:49:29 PM

^^i think this is your 23957204th great idea.

7/21/2008 2:04:02 AM

^^^how much money?

7/21/2008 7:02:35 AM

I guess just enough to do proof of concept and advertising. Investors could pay for the rest.

7/21/2008 8:28:57 AM

http://lifehacker.com/398229/five-best-windows-backup-tools

7/23/2008 9:20:53 PM