Cloud based storage for a business?

[Snorlax]

Hello, LTT members!

 

I work as an IT-techie-guy at this business, and they have a request. They're not the most tech-savvy people, so bear with me on this one.

 

They are looking for a way to backup all their computers (we're talking under 10 people) completely.

 

They want it to be done automatically.

They don't want to press any buttons.

Once set up, it should work flawlessly.

They don't want to move anything into any folder. It should backup the entire PC.

 

We're talking under 1TB of data. Under 10 people with under 100GB each on their PCs.

 

I've told them, that a local backup would be nice to have, since it's cheaper and faster than cloud storage, but they want to make sure it's 110% secure (from fire hazards and so on).

 

I took a look at Google Drive, which would be.. more than enough space for them, but they force you to move stuff into folders. These guys don't want any interaction with the backup software at all.

 

 

What would the best solution be? Thanks!

[techguru]

Hello, LTT members!

 

I work as an IT-techie-guy at this business, and they have a request. They're not the most tech-savvy people, so bear with me on this one.

 

They are looking for a way to backup all their computers (we're talking under 10 people) completely.

 

They want it to be done automatically.

They don't want to press any buttons.

Once set up, it should work flawlessly.

They don't want to move anything into any folder. It should backup the entire PC.

 

We're talking under 1TB of data. Under 10 people with under 100GB each on their PCs.

 

I've told them, that a local backup would be nice to have, since it's cheaper and faster than cloud storage, but they want to make sure it's 110% secure (from fire hazards and so on).

 

I took a look at Google Drive, which would be.. more than enough space for them, but they force you to move stuff into folders. These guys don't want any interaction with the backup software at all.

 

 

What would the best solution be? Thanks!

you can use a program to do it automatically

 

however...you can't go backing up a full pc everytime for cloud based backup

it would have to be just certain folders....

the data upload for a full pc everytime would be huge

[ShadowCaptain]

What would the best solution be? Thanks!

 

I would set up a windows server, with raid 1 or raid 5 inside to protect against drive failures -  have the PCs automatically back up to the local server

 

Have the local server sync automatically with a cloud service overnight,  services such as livedrive or whatever else there is on the market

[xTrixieHD]

Hello, LTT members!

 

I work as an IT-techie-guy at this business, and they have a request. They're not the most tech-savvy people, so bear with me on this one.

 

They are looking for a way to backup all their computers (we're talking under 10 people) completely.

 

They want it to be done automatically.

They don't want to press any buttons.

Once set up, it should work flawlessly.

They don't want to move anything into any folder. It should backup the entire PC.

 

We're talking under 1TB of data. Under 10 people with under 100GB each on their PCs.

 

I've told them, that a local backup would be nice to have, since it's cheaper and faster than cloud storage, but they want to make sure it's 110% secure (from fire hazards and so on).

 

I took a look at Google Drive, which would be.. more than enough space for them, but they force you to move stuff into folders. These guys don't want any interaction with the backup software at all.

 

 

What would the best solution be? Thanks!

Although Less, we're talking WAY less secure, it should be convenient.

[Snorlax]

you can use a program to do it automatically

 

however...you can't go backing up a full pc everytime for cloud based backup

it would have to be just certain folders....

the data upload for a full pc everytime would be huge

 

Let's assume it's 1000 GB total. Surely that would take a couple of days, but once it has been uploaded, we're talking a few megabytes per day per user. Some say doing a backup of 20 GB pictures is a lot, but once it's on the cloud, it won't irritate anyone.

[Snorlax]

I would set up a windows server, with raid 1 or raid 5 inside to protect against drive failures -  have the PCs automatically back up to the local server

 

Have the local server sync automatically with a cloud service overnight,  services such as livedrive or whatever else there is on the market

 

Yes that's what I've been thinking as well, but if you can do PC -> server -> cloud, you should be able to do PC -> cloud, yes?

 

I am looking for cloud based storage services. Hook me up with names

[techguru]

Let's assume it's 1000 GB total. Surely that would take a couple of days, but once it has been uploaded, we're talking a few megabytes per day per user. Some say doing a backup of 20 GB pictures is a lot, but once it's on the cloud, it won't irritate anyone.

I think its just easier to backup certain folders

 

if the pc dies...you have to reinstall the os and programs anyway

[ShadowCaptain]

Yes that's what I've been thinking as well, but if you can do PC -> server -> cloud, you should be able to do PC -> cloud, yes?

 

I am looking for cloud based storage services. Hook me up with names

 

Of course you can, but it can be very slow, and its easier to have one set of data backed up to cloud than 10 sets of data

 

Plus you have two sets of redundancy .. you have a local backup (also mirrored) and you have a cloud version 

 

Its possible for cloud storage to be corrupt, for a data centre to go down, maybe the company just closes, maybe they lose your data in a floor or fire at their data centre

 

You should always have at least 3 copies of data and one off site

 

so data on their PC, data on your local server (mirrored for drive failure) and a copy online

[Snorlax]

I think its just easier to backup certain folders

 

if the pc dies...you have to reinstall the os and programs anyway

 

Reinstalling the OS and programs isn't the issue. The issue is them not taking backup, because they aren't tech-savvy.

[Snorlax]

Of course you can, but it can be very slow, and its easier to have one set of data backed up to cloud than 10 sets of data

 

We're talking megabytes per day. Local storage and cloud storage is expensive.

[ShadowCaptain]

We're talking megabytes per day. Local storage and cloud storage is expensive.

 

I have it at home, it should be an easy cost for businesses

[Snorlax]

I have it at home, it should be an easy cost for businesses

 

Not my call. It's an easier way (and probably best), but it's what they want.

[techguru]

Not my call. It's an easier way (and probably best), but it's what they want.

http://lifehacker.com/five-best-online-backup-services-1006345049

[ShadowCaptain]

Not my call. It's an easier way (and probably best), but it's what they want.

 

If they are asking for your recommendation than you should be telling them what the best option is, and  not letting them dictate

 

 

But there ARE cloud services that can back up automatically from windows without having to use a special folder

[Blebekblebek]

Dropbox

What is Dropbox for Business?

• Individual Dropbox for each user in your team
• 5 TB for 5 users, with more as your team grows
• Unlimited file recovery and versioning
• Centralized billing for all team members
• Admin controls and phone support

 

but some of that request a bit absurd

 

backup whole content? if your internet capable to do the thing then it doesn't matter.

[Snorlax]

http://lifehacker.com/five-best-online-backup-services-1006345049

 

I've heard good about Backblaze before, but can they sync a whole PC and not just a folder?

 

 

If they are asking for your recommendation than you should be telling them what the best option is, and  not letting them dictate

 

 

But there ARE cloud services that can back up automatically from windows without having to use a special folder

 

I know I should, but:

A: They don't have the space for a small NAS/backup server.

B: They would rather do it cloud than local, because of fire hazards, theft, and so on.

 

Trust me, I've tried explaining it.

 

 

Dropbox

What is Dropbox for Business?

• Individual Dropbox for each user in your team
• 5 TB for 5 users, with more as your team grows
• Unlimited file recovery and versioning
• Centralized billing for all team members
• Admin controls and phone support

 

but some of that request a bit absurd

 

backup whole content? if your internet capable to do the thing then it doesn't matter.

 

Can you backup your whole PC with Dropbox now? Teach me, master.

[Blebekblebek]

that's a good question that I have no answer, that feature might not appear on personal account

 

I've tried remap the dropbox folder to my D drive but it still using folder "Dropbox" as default storage in D drive.

so you might need to setting whole computer to save directly into that folder instead each windows default folder

like desktop/download/documents/etc, documents by default use C:\Users\username\Documents, move it to D:\Dropbox, same thing for desktop folder

so each user automatically use that folder without hassle.

 

or you can ask their support for that matter

as for reliability, I've had bad experience with google drive, when I reinstalled the OS and using new HDD it deletes entire backup instead re-downloading my backup to designated folder, it's probably already been fixed by now, but I can see it could be happen if there's a change in user machine (ie: Bios reset time/date)

 

the way I see it, it may be convenience but not without limitation, just like you want to be, it's just not possible to backup entire files including OS because that would be useless, even with Imaging and Mirroring drive locally sometimes it's not always works.

[Snorlax]

that's a good question that I have no answer, that feature might not appear on personal account

 

I've tried remap the dropbox folder to my D drive but it still using folder "Dropbox" as default storage in D drive.

so you might need to setting whole computer to save directly into that folder instead each windows default folder

like desktop/download/documents/etc, documents by default use C:\Users\username\Documents, move it to D:\Dropbox, same thing for desktop folder

so each user automatically use that folder without hassle.

 

or you can ask their support for that matter

as for reliability, I've had bad experience with google drive, when I reinstalled the OS and using new HDD it deletes entire backup instead re-downloading my backup to designated folder, it's probably already been fixed by now, but I can see it could be happen if there's a change in user machine (ie: Bios reset time/date)

 

the way I see it, it may be convenience but not without limitation, just like you want to be, it's just not possible to backup entire files including OS because that would be useless, even with Imaging and Mirroring drive locally sometimes it's not always works.

 

I see. I've been chatting with ShadowCaptain about it, and I think I can talk them into going local instead.

Using the Windows backup software provided with Windows, I should be able to schedule backups on all PCs, then move the backup file (image I assume?) to the local backup server.

 

If anything, I should also be able to move those files to something like Dropbox (for business) at night.

[Blebekblebek]

that would be the best solution, it may required lot's of time to set it up right.

good luck.

[Mattias Edeslatt]

Crashplan?

[Snorlax]

Crashplan?

 

That's going to cost 10 dollars per month per PC, am I right?

Also, do they have the software to do what I request?

[JaSoN_XzIoN]

How about setting up windows backup do do a weekly/monthly full backup and a daily incremental backup to a certain folder on the computer and have that folder sync up to drive or Dropbox or something similar?

Edit: my bad, just seen it has been suggested

[Snorlax]

How about setting up windows backup do do a weekly/monthly full backup and a daily incremental backup to a certain folder on the computer and have that folder sync up to drive or Dropbox or something similar?

Edit: my bad, just seen it has been suggested

 

That's most likely what I'm going to do, except I'm moving them to a local server instead.

 

What's a "daily incremental backup"? Compared to a full backup.

[JaSoN_XzIoN]

That's most likely what I'm going to do, except I'm moving them to a local server instead.

What's a "daily incremental backup"? Compared to a full backup.

That would be your best bet. Incremental backups only backs up the changes that has been made since the last backup, so instead of backing up everything every day it will only back up the work they have done during that day

[Snorlax]

That would be your best bet. Incremental backups only backs up the changes that has been made since the last backup, so instead of backing up everything every day it will only back up the work they have done during that day

 

Ah yes. In Windows there is this feature called System Image Backup. I think I will be using that, because there's no scenario, where they would want to withdraw files from the server, unless their PC broke down. I think, from what I've read, System Image Backup only applies newly changed files to the new image instead of a complete backup again. But I'm not really sure.