Backup Online Programs

Preview:

As we are being forced to move "to the cloud", many people are forgetting the 321-backup rule. Three copies of important data, on two different media, and at least 1 off-site. Here are some options for making local backups of your online programs.

Many software companies are forcing their users online. We are rushing to the "cloud". What exactly is "the cloud"? Simply, it is storing your data on someone else's computer. This someone can lose your data and sometimes, though rarely, does. More common problems occur when there is a bug or problem with connectivity which can last several days. Furthermore, user error can lose data and without backups, it is just lost. Finally, data breaches and mistaken account lockouts sometimes occur.

I have a friend who stored his passwords in an online password manager. He also used his web to access his email online rather than using a local program with local storage. He used his password manager to fill in his password for his email. For some reason we haven't figured out, his password manager didn't trust his computer. Perhaps he had a system update, or perhaps Comcast changed his IP address or something else. But, his password manager required email authentication for him to access his passwords. But without his password manager, he couldn't get into his email to respond to the authentication. It was a big mess.

This is one reason to write an article on how to back up your online password manager to your own computer. If he'd had a local version of his passwords, he could have accessed his email and verified himself. I recommend Bitwarden as an online password manager. This procedure consists of exporting your Bitwarden vault and importing it into KeePass. If something goes wrong with Bitwarden, you'll still have complete access to all your passwords. The basic rule of backups is 3,2,1. When it comes to your important data, you need 3 copies, on 2 different devices and one of them off-site. This is the minimum, not the maximum recommendation. So, for example, your cloud account should be backed up to your computer and then your computer's copy should be backed up to an external drive, at least.

In their terms of use document for QuickBooks Online, section 6.1 we find this. Responsibility for Content and Use of the Services, Intuit says you need to archive your data frequently. In other words, YOU are responsible for making local copies of your data. Specifically, they say,

You are responsible for any lost or unrecoverable Content. You must provide all required and appropriate warnings, information and disclosures. Intuit is not responsible for any of your Content that you submit through the Services.

Then they provide a link to how to export your data to keep a local copy.

I do not mean to pick on Intuit here. This is true for any email you maintain online, like Gmail, or Yahoo accounts, or even any IMAP account. It applies to Microsoft Office and OneDrive. It applies to Google Workspace. It applies to your online password manager, whatever that is.

How to do it?

How you back up your online files has to be addressed individually for each online vendor. For example, Spideroak One Backup will not handle files in your Microsoft of Google accounts. They will only back up local files, so you have to get your files off those accounts and onto your computer. However, iDrive backup will sell you an annual add-on to their backup for $20/year to back up either Google Workspace or Microsoft Office OneDrive files. They will log into your account and copy the files directly from Google or Microsoft.

Intuit bought ChronoBooks backup system, so I assume they provide some system you can use. If not, you might need to either export the data on a regular schedule or purchase another solution.

Thunderbird can store files locally. Any emails you copy to folders under the Local Folders folder, will be stored on your computer and then if you back them up, you'll have multiple copies. If you MOVE them to local folders instead of copying them, then they will be removed from your online inbox.

I've got an article in this issue on backing up Bitwarden. There is no simple and automated process.

For my website, I pay for a backup service which backs up my entire website and keeps copies for 6 months. But this is handled by the same people who provide my website. It is also online. So, I manually copy my entire website and databases to my computer and then back up that copy to another drive every month.

Summary

You need to look at and think about all your online files. Are they important? If so, how do you make sure they are backed up? At this stage in the race to the cloud, every service must be considered separately. There are no universal solutions.

Date: October 2024

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

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Home Forms About Current Newsletter subscribe Search All Articles Browse by Category Security Internet Mobile Business Hardware Fun		Backup Online Programs Preview: As we are being forced to move "to the cloud", many people are forgetting the 321-backup rule. Three copies of important data, on two different media, and at least 1 off-site. Here are some options for making local backups of your online programs. Many software companies are forcing their users online. We are rushing to the "cloud". What exactly is "the cloud"? Simply, it is storing your data on someone else's computer. This someone can lose your data and sometimes, though rarely, does. More common problems occur when there is a bug or problem with connectivity which can last several days. Furthermore, user error can lose data and without backups, it is just lost. Finally, data breaches and mistaken account lockouts sometimes occur. I have a friend who stored his passwords in an online password manager. He also used his web to access his email online rather than using a local program with local storage. He used his password manager to fill in his password for his email. For some reason we haven't figured out, his password manager didn't trust his computer. Perhaps he had a system update, or perhaps Comcast changed his IP address or something else. But, his password manager required email authentication for him to access his passwords. But without his password manager, he couldn't get into his email to respond to the authentication. It was a big mess. This is one reason to write an article on how to back up your online password manager to your own computer. If he'd had a local version of his passwords, he could have accessed his email and verified himself. I recommend Bitwarden as an online password manager. This procedure consists of exporting your Bitwarden vault and importing it into KeePass. If something goes wrong with Bitwarden, you'll still have complete access to all your passwords. The basic rule of backups is 3,2,1. When it comes to your important data, you need 3 copies, on 2 different devices and one of them off-site. This is the minimum, not the maximum recommendation. So, for example, your cloud account should be backed up to your computer and then your computer's copy should be backed up to an external drive, at least. In their terms of use document for QuickBooks Online, section 6.1 we find this. Responsibility for Content and Use of the Services, Intuit says you need to archive your data frequently. In other words, YOU are responsible for making local copies of your data. Specifically, they say, You are responsible for any lost or unrecoverable Content. You must provide all required and appropriate warnings, information and disclosures. Intuit is not responsible for any of your Content that you submit through the Services. Then they provide a link to how to export your data to keep a local copy. I do not mean to pick on Intuit here. This is true for any email you maintain online, like Gmail, or Yahoo accounts, or even any IMAP account. It applies to Microsoft Office and OneDrive. It applies to Google Workspace. It applies to your online password manager, whatever that is. How to do it? How you back up your online files has to be addressed individually for each online vendor. For example, Spideroak One Backup will not handle files in your Microsoft of Google accounts. They will only back up local files, so you have to get your files off those accounts and onto your computer. However, iDrive backup will sell you an annual add-on to their backup for $20/year to back up either Google Workspace or Microsoft Office OneDrive files. They will log into your account and copy the files directly from Google or Microsoft. Intuit bought ChronoBooks backup system, so I assume they provide some system you can use. If not, you might need to either export the data on a regular schedule or purchase another solution. Thunderbird can store files locally. Any emails you copy to folders under the Local Folders folder, will be stored on your computer and then if you back them up, you'll have multiple copies. If you MOVE them to local folders instead of copying them, then they will be removed from your online inbox. I've got an article in this issue on backing up Bitwarden. There is no simple and automated process. For my website, I pay for a backup service which backs up my entire website and keeps copies for 6 months. But this is handled by the same people who provide my website. It is also online. So, I manually copy my entire website and databases to my computer and then back up that copy to another drive every month. Summary You need to look at and think about all your online files. Are they important? If so, how do you make sure they are backed up? At this stage in the race to the cloud, every service must be considered separately. There are no universal solutions. Date: October 2024 This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
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