When it comes to finding the best online backup solution it can be quite difficult for solo business owners who might not be technically savvy to decipher how these services work. Just typing in “online backup services” in Google will bring up about 14 million different results.There are mainly three different types of backup services – Consumer class backup providers, Local online backup providers and Commercial class back up providers. With consumer class backup services you will most likely be charged $20 or less a month for them to back up your important files. Most of these providers have a limit to what they will hold and how long they will hold it for you.Using a local online backup provider is another great online backup solution for all of the important files on your computer. In recent years hosting companies and VARs have started to provide their own services to help people make sure that they have backups of all their computer files. Local providers will setup as well as support your system and provide backup and management services.A commercial provider is one of the best ways of having an online backup solution. These services are provided by huge corporations that will likely stay in business for a long time, possibly even longer than you will need their services. Unlike consumer services, the commercial providers will allow you to store files from several different computers onto one account and store files for long periods of time. Rates start at $35 a month and go up.Here are several questions you should ask yourself before making your final decision on a backup provider:Will the backup solution support all my systems such as Windows, Macs etc?
Let’s imagine that you have four computers in your office, two of them are Windows run and the other two are Macs, you will need to have one back up provider that supports all of your systems.What are your service hours – if I want to restore my data at 2pm can I?
You will want a service that is flexible. There are times where you may need or want to restore your system at a certain time. You will need to find a provider that will allow you to restore your systems
whenever you want or need to.How many versions of my data will you keep & how long will you keep my data?
This is crucial. You need to know how much the provider is willing to hold for you, how many copies of your files and how long they are willing to keep the files. You should find one that suits your needs.Where are you storing all my data – Will it be duplicated?
This is something that you as a solo business owner need to know. You will need to know where they will be keeping your files, how to get to them, and how many copies of your files they will make.How fast is the restore capability?
You may require something that is speedy enough to keep up with your ever-growing business. If you have to restore your system in the middle of the workday you do not want your computers to be down for too long, that can disrupt the things that need to be done.What type of security you use?
Everyone wants to make sure that their files are going to be safe from viruses and hackers. This is an important question because if they do not have good security it is likely that after all the trouble you went though to keep your files safe you loose everything because of hackers or viruses.It is very important to have a backup solution, so you do not end up losing everything you work so hard to create. Make sure you research carefully before you decide on a online backup service provider. You need a service that will work great for you and keep your files protected, after all that is what they are there for – right?