I’m very happy to provide you with this tip on FREE online backup space for your Windows or Mac computer.
There are several “cloud based” online backup providers out there these days, but I was looking for something for a client of mine, who needed to backup several Gigabytes of data to an external site, automatically and as a background process, on a regular basis. I tried out a few and found Mozy to be the one we liked the most and prices were fair too, for their Pro accounts.
Now, I assume you’re a Home user, so you can actually get MozyHome with 2GB of secure online bakcup space for free. In fact, if you click here to signup with Mozy, you get another 0.5GB extra because you used my link (I also get 0.5GB extra for my own home account, just so you know it – it’s a win/win situation for both of us 😉 ). That’s 2.5GB backup space in the cloud for you, without you having to pay anything or even register a creditcard. It runs on both Mac and Windows with a very simple-to-use piece of software.
If you ever need more space for backup, besides the 2.5GB you can get from this post you’re reading right now, you can either get your friends or family to sign up as well – that will add another 1GB of space (0.5GB to you and 0.5GB to each of them), or you can upgrade to their MozyHome Unlimited package which gives you unlimited backup space for $4.95 a month, or less if you purchase a longer period. Of course Mozy is hoping you will upgrade to a paid plan at some time, that’s why they offer a completely free service in the first place 🙂
The clever thing with Mozy is that it doesn’t have to backup all your files every time it runs a backup. It will only backup files that have changed since last time – this will be a huge timesaver for you and your Internet connection. Backups happen automatically of course, and in the background. You can determine a specific time of day to do backups or whenever the computer is idle, plus other settings.
Mozy doesn’t advertise their MozyHome 2GB free package on their frontpage, but I’ve drawn up a few screenshots below, to help you find it easily. First, click here to visit Mozy – and then simply follow the screenshots below:
Mozy is also very secure for your data. They offer you either 448bit blowfish encryption or your own 256bit AES encryption, which can be any text you like, just a word or maybe a text file that you store on a USB drive or something. With the latter, nobody will be able to decrypt your data without the key – including you, so don’t lose it.
If you have any Mozy questions, just leave a comment and I’ll do my best to help out. If you’re not already using Mozy, what do you prefer instead? Leave a comment below 🙂
I love having a backup to the cloud instead of having to remember to drag that external hard drive out, copy stuff (but what has changed since the last copy??), then put the drive somewhere safe, in case a meteor crashes in and hits the computer room… 😉 The automatic backup + being totally offsite is awesome. I’m currently using Carbonite myself, but I’ve heard great things about both.
.-= Christie´s last blog ..Sometimes doing for yourself includes knowing when you need expert help =-.
The best ever backup is DVD copy hidden in your safe. Don’t use external hard drives as they may brake easily and don’t use external hosting backup accounts as they not yours and you can’t ‘touch it’
That is an interesting offer. Cloud services are fast gaining ground and storage is one area where it has taken off especially on the consumer side.
I use Mozy for my backups, and I haven’t had any problems with it. I like the fact that version 2.0 allows use to backup to both the Mozy servers and to a local, external hard drive. It makes backing up my data hassle free.
I too like the idea of using a cloud like Mozy for online backup. You cannot beat what it does for free.
I am a Mac user and I use Time Machine for my daily backups. Time Machine is free and does all the work for you. You still have to have an external hard drive connected and it must be kept in a safe place.
I like using both for double security. One helps the other.
There are lots of free service out there. But is it really free? Yes and no. These companies like Facebook are data mining. You give them your data and guess what? It’s theirs too. It’s kind of like “party line” online backup. They will have access to everything. This is why you should pick and choose what you want backed up. I only give up files that I don’t consider proprietary.
Do we really know where their server farms are? Maybe in Bin Laden’s back yard for all we know. Just some food for thought…keep your secret stuff secret.