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Making a Backup & Storage Of Files Are They Inherently Different or Is There a Cross-over Between the Two ?

I’m getting slightly confused between making a backup and storage of files. My understanding is that a backup is undertaken in the event of something disasterous happening to my computer. (whether it be my Windows PC or my MacBook Pro).
If this were to occur everything can be restored to the timepoint just before the disaster.(providing of course backup were being taken place on a continuous basis)
Storage on the other hand refers to files being placed somewhere different to the internal hard drive (either online or to other external media), which can then be accessed as and when required.
I guess i’m getting confused because online facilities such as iCloud,Gmail Drive, MS Skydrive and Dropbox can be used for backing up and storage purposes.
If it is possible to clarify my thinking (and confusion), it would be most appreciated.
kind regards…….
—–
Simon

Comments: 4 Responses to “Making a Backup & Storage Of Files Are They Inherently Different or Is There a Cross-over Between the Two ?”

    12 years ago

    So where you are getting confused is that cloud services are not really backups. Not in the same sense. There is some overlap, which is good. Having your data backed up in more places is a good thing.
    We say that cloud services offer a kind of backup because the data is stored outside of your computer. For instance, if your contacts are in the cloud, you lose your computer, get a new one, and then set it up to access that same cloud account so you can get to your contacts again. But in that case you never lost your contacts, you just lost access to them while you waited to get your new computer set up.
    At the moment, cloud services only store some things: contacts, events, email, notes, and some smaller documents. But larger documents (video projects, photo collections, desktop publishing, and so on) are usually stored locally.
    A graphics pro or video editor with terabytes of work files wouldn't be using the cloud to store those documents. Or even someone wit smaller files wouldn't be using it if they have a slow or unreliable connection.
    I suppose there are situations where an individual may not need anything but cloud storage. Maybe a business salesman or writer could store everything in the cloud. So in that case the true backup becomes less important.

      Simon
      12 years ago

      Is it better to say use time machine for backup and cloud for storage ?

        12 years ago

        1. You can't use iCloud for true backup. It doesn't back everything up.
        2. It is great to use iCloud for storing documents from apps that use iCloud. But if the app doesn't use iCloud, it isn't an option.
        So: backup with Time Machine. Use iCloud when appropriate for documents.

          Simon
          12 years ago

          Thanks :)

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