How do YOU back up your important files?

It was a good question, really. Maybe I'm a bit over-the-top, but I practice the "Law of Averages Scatter" computer backup technique. What's that, you say?

Easy. The Law of Averages states that if you have several computers on a home network, the chances of all those machines failing at the same time is pretty slim, and the more computers, the better! (Yeah, I know, a lightning bolt can do it, but that lightning has to go through all the APS, Powerware, and CyberPower UPS units first) So I "scatter" duplicate files throughout the network.

Each computer in the home network has an identical hard drive partition, with sub-folders for each person in the household. The partitions are also mirrored on a pair of Snap Server 1100 units. I have the backup software do a file compare of all the files on all the partitions one night a week, and then mirror them across the network. The IBM and Dell workstations also have individual RAID 1 arrays, something I did as part of my IT training a while ago.

Suffice it to say, I'm not too worried about losing data. I don't back up files to CD-ROM, because I've seen them degrade over time, and what's good for today's format will be tomorrow's obsolete format. It's already happening with the transition from CD-ROM to DVD-ROM. So for now, the rat's nest below does the job nicely.


Pee Ess: I really love the little Quantum Snap Servers. They're about as trouble-free as it gets.