The Desert Computer Tutor

Tag: hard drives

  • How to Backup Your Computer

    How to Backup Your Computer

    Why Backups Are Important

    illustration of a traditional disc drive
    Image courtesy of Pixabay
    1. Hard Drives Crash — Even though solid state drives, don’t have moving parts like disc drives, they can still fail.
    2. Computers can get stolen — especially if you travel
    3. Operating system (OS) updates can corrupt or delete your files.

    I feel so sad when I see clients who are devastated because they didn’t realize how important their data was until it was gone.  

    Think about all of the files on your computer.  Do you have an address book, irreplaceable photos or videos, music or movies you’ve purchased, important letters, legal documents, or medical records?  What would you do if they disappeared or were corrupted due to a hardware or failure or software glitch?

    When you have a backups, you can easily restore your files from your backup.   

    The Ultimate Backup Plan

    Follow the 3, 2 , 1 rule  

    1. 3 backups
    2. 2 different types
    3. 1 off-site

    If you have important files and photos and don’t want to risk losing them, this is the way to go.  With my Chromebook, I store everything in Google Drive and trust Google not to lose my stuff but you may not be as trusting.  With my PC, I use and external backup as well as Google backup and sync.  Another option would be to use Microsoft’s One Drive cloud plus an external backup.  This plan qualifies as “2 different types” and “1 off-site” but it’s only “2 backups.”  Decide on a plan that makes you comfortable but DECIDE and IMPLEMENT!

    Off-Site (Cloud Storage)

    Illustration of cloud backup
    Image Courtesy of Pixabay

    Google Drive, OneDrive, iCloud, Dropbox and other cloud services, enable you to store your files off site on their computers, but they are not doing continuous backups as you work and you have to make sure that your files get saved to the right location.

    Continuous Backup Inside Software

    Software programs, like Word or Excel can be set to update continually as you work but they may not be set up to do this by default. You may need to adjust the settings. Google docs does continuous backups automatically!  This protection assumes that your document file is connected to a cloud service.  It doesn’t do any good to have your document updating as you work on it, if it’s stored on your computer and your computer drive crashes.

    Subscription Cloud Backup Services

    Another solution is to pay for a service like Carbonite, Backblaze, or  iDrive. These services backup all the changes in all applications as they occur. You set up an account and then download an app that synchronizes your files between your computer and their servers.  They provide ample storage space with the basic fee and you can always increase the capacity if you need more storage. (Services and fees change all the time, so search on the internet thewirecutter.com or call me for help.)

    External Drive Backups

    image of external backup device
    Image Courtesy of Pixabay

    External drive backups provide a safety net in case an online/cloud backup should fail. It’s unlikely that an online backup system would fail, but you never know for sure. 

    Your external drive backup should be set up to work continually in the background.  If you only use scheduled backups, you can lose changes made between scheduled backups.  For example: If you create a document on Friday, your computer doesn’t back up until Sunday, and your computer crashes on Saturday, you will loose the document created on Friday. 

    A disadvantage to external drive backups is that they can crash just like any other drive they can get stolen, or damaged by a fire or natural disaster.

    Again, in order for your files to be completely safe, you should use more than just an external drive backup.  Remember the 3 – 2 – 1 rule.

    How To Set Up Backups With Microsoft Windows

    Image of Windows Computer
    Image Courtesy of Pixabay

    For Windows 8 and 10  Use File History

    File History automatically backs up your files every hour by default, but you can choose every 10 minutes, 15 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes, 1 hour, 3 hours, 6 hours, 12 hours, or once per day.

    It will be set to keep your backups forever, unless you change it to 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, 1 year, or 2 years old. You can also have it automatically delete backups as necessary to make space on your drive.

    1. Connect an external hard drive to your computer using a USB port.  
    2. Open the Settings app or Control Panel from your Start menu.
    3. Navigate to Update & Security > Backup.
    4. Click Add a Drive and select the drive.
    5. Select More options to choose how often to backup, how long to keep backup copies, and which files to back up. 

    Windows will backup your files to the drive, as long as it is connect it to your computer.  If you move your laptop, be sure to remember to plug your drive in again.

    For Windows 7:  

    1. Go to the Control Panel
    2. click on System and Security
    3. click on Backup your Computer
    4. click Setup Backup
    5. click on the name of your external drive
    6. click Schedule to choose the day and time
    7. click Save Settings and Run Backup

    Apple Computers

    Image of Apple Computer and iPad
    Image Courtesy of Pixabay

    Use Time Machine

    Time Machine keeps a day’s worth of hourly backups, a month’s worth of daily backups, and weekly backups until there’s no more space.

    1. Connect an external drive to your Mac and you’ll be asked if you want to configure it as a Time Machine drive
    2. Click Use as Backup Disk and Time Machine will automatically begin backing up everything
    3. Click the Time Machine icon on the menu bar and select Open Time Machine Preferences or open the System Settings window and click Time Machine to access its preferences window.

    Enabling Time Machine on a MacBook will also enable the Local Snapshots feature. Your Mac will save a single daily snapshot as well as a single weekly snapshot of your files to its internal storage if the Time Machine backup drive isn’t available. This provides you with a way to recover deleted files or restore previous versions of files even if you’re away from your backup drive for a while.

    Mobile devices

    Tablets and smartphones have built-in auto-backup systems.  Check in Settings to be sure the backup feature is turned on and that it has backed up recently.

    Archiving Files

    storage devices for file storage
    Image Courtesy of Pixabay

     

    Files that you don’t intend to edit or view frequently, don’t need to be backed up continually and can be archived.  You can move the files to an external storage device and store it offsite by giving it to family members or putting it in a safe deposit box at a bank.  Consider making more than one copy and storing them in more than one location. This can save you money on cloud storage fees.

    In Conclusion

    check on your backups
    Image Courtesy of Pixabay

    Setting up backup systems is critically important but it’s also a simple matter of deciding on the systems you want to use and setting them up.  Once your backup systems are in place, you only need to check occasionally to be sure they are working properly.  (Just choosing your doctors and getting your regular checkups.)

    You can do this!  Get it done so you can…

    Enjoy!

  • What to Do With An Old Computer

    What to Do With An Old Computer

    When I saw this astonishing video I realized that I should address this issue in my Techie Tips.   

    Screenshot 2017-09-09 at 11.06.45 AM

    When clients ask me what to do with their old computers, I recommend recycling them at Best Buy.  It’s quick and easy.  You just drop them off at the customer service desk.  

    Many times, my people like to donate them to a charity or give them to a friend or relative.

    In any case, you need to protect the data on your hard drive if you have any sensitive information on it that you would not want criminals to see.

    How It Works

    You cannot actually erase data on a drive.  When you delete something, the space on the drive gets marked as “vacant” or “writable” so new data can be written over it.  The original information is still there until it’s overwritten and can be found with specialized software.

    Some people assume that they can reformat their hard drives, but that just erases the directory that the computer uses to find the files.  It doesn’t delete the files.  The physical bits and bytes still exist.  With regular use, the data  will get overwritten, but it’s a random process and you won’t know which files have been overwritten and which haven’’t.

    A “full format” will overwrite the drive with zeros but it’s still possible to recover data with specialized software.

    The Solution

    DBAN is a free software that overwrites the drive multiple times.  I found a comment online by a Tech who said that after 20 passes, nothing can be recovered.  He swears by it 100%.  I looked up DBAN and it has a disclaimer that it’s not “certified safe.”  I imagine certification would be important in situations where there is legal liability — where you are responsible for someone else’s sensitive data.  If you are willing to install the software and do 20 passes this might be a good solution for your needs.

    The most common recommendation is to remove the hard drive from the computer and smash the disks or memory chips with a hammer (wear safety glasses.)  I did that with my old PC laptop and I thought it was fun but you might not share my enthusiasm for taking things apart to see what’s inside.  

    I told Angel Sanchez at NYPC Repair (on Hwy 111 in Palm Desert near the Red Barn) that a lot of my clients would probably not want to deal with removing the hard drive and he said you are welcome to bring your computer into the shop and they will take it out and smash it for you with no charge!  Isn’t that great!  Love NYCP Repair!

    In Summary

    Now you know the whys, the hows and simple solutions.  Your choice will depend on your level of comfort about the security of your files.  For most of us, it isn’t an issue but if it is, you know what to do.

    As always, let me know if you have any questions or need help.  

    Enjoy!

    Mardi  

    P.S. If you have found this information helpful, please support my mission to make technology simple, easy and fun for mature adults.  Share this post with others and encourage them to sign up to receive all my Techie Tips via email.   They can sign up here  Thanks!

  • Important Reminders From “The Trenches” This Week

    If anyone calls you and says they are from Microsoft and you have a problem on your computer, hang up.  It’s a scam!  Microsoft does not have the time or staff to monitor your computer.  Never let someone access your computer remotely unless you know them.  One of my clients was victimized this week so I wanted to remind you again.

     External hard drives are not the best solution for your back ups!  Hard drives can fail and, if your house were to burn down or be burglarized, you could lose your back up along with your computer.  It’s so sad when people lose valuable docs and precious photos.  There are many cloud-based back-up options available.  Many of them offer free storage.  Please be sure you have back-up systems in place. 

    It is really dangerous to continue to use Windows XP!  Recently a local business was held hostage by a hacker who kidnapped their files and demanded a ransom of $500 within 30 minutes or $1000 if it took more than 30 minutes.  You must have an operating system that is supported by frequent updates and always allow the updates to install.