Back Up Services

Having only one copy of important files on your computer is not a good idea. If the computer completely crashes, you could use vital information. Most individual users back up their important information onto disks that they keep elsewhere. Others email their important documents to themselves so that they exist on an independent server. While these things work well for individuals, these are not solutions that are practical for businesses with many computers and a great deal of important information stored in hundreds of computer files.

What Are the Advantages of Back Up Services?

Back up services can help keep your company's computer files and systems safe and recoverable. These services work much like the individual who puts important files on disks. Back up services allow you to put all of your system's information on other computers, thus preserving it in case of a crash or some other problem. Not all of your information and work will be lost. This can save you thousands of dollars. But, why have a service take care of it? You can always just have a secondary computer system on sight and not have to pay a company for its service.

While this might be a good idea in theory, it is a disaster if your back up system is located in the same building as your primary system. The main appeal of back up services, other than the fact that you can avoid buying expensive equipment up front for back ups, is that they are usually in a different place. If a fire or some other disaster befell your company headquarters, and your secondary system was in close proximity to your primary system, then you would still lose all of your files. Although your files would be protected in the even of a system failure, they would be lost if the hardware was ruined.

Back up services offer a secure, off-site location for your files. Your system is usually connected by a secure and dedicated Internet connection. You can back up your system on a regular schedule, updating everything on the back up system when new information is placed on the primary system. This means that a minimum amount is lost (what might not have been backed up) in the event of the primary system crashing or a disaster destroying all of your hardware. Your information is still largely intact, and you can recover it and restore it.

Who Offers Back Up Services?

Many managed Web hosting services and many tech companies that offer business solutions also offer back up services. They are usually a part of an overall service package that includes security, protection, monitoring, tech support, Web services, and administration help. All of these things can be accomplished off-site, making it possible for you to maintain records and even some business operations even if the building housing your company is destroyed. Off site back up services just make sense in a world that increasingly relies on computers for business. With off-site back up services, you are protected, and your information remains intact and usable.