Picture this: You worked all week on that most important presentation that you are to give to the board of directors at your firm, and you have just a few minutes left for the big event. You connect your laptop to the project and start up the presentation. But, it’s not opening! The file seems to be corrupted, and this just can’t be happening to you.
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Sadly, as anyone who uses computers everyday would know, situations such as the one above are quite common. Data corruption is a very real and very common problem today. In these modern times when information is considered to be king, keeping critical data safe and secure is of extreme importance.
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There are several ways to securely store and manage important data, but the best of them all is an external hard drive. Handy, affordable, and easy to use for backing up critical data, the said commodity is probably the best option out there. Optical discs can degrade over time, and floppies are too low-sized to be viable.
External Drives
The said backup gadget come in various sizes, and the way they connect to the computer also differs. While some external drives use USB (Universal Serial Bus) to connect, others use FireWire. Both are incredibly fast, and are useful for backing up tons of data at once. There are external drives with sizes that fit every purpose. Starting from 500GB, one can get drives of sizes up to 3TB and soon, even more.
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Tips on Keeping your Data Safe with External Drives
Data loss is an error condition in information systems, caused due to physical failure or catastrophes. There are several things you can do to keep your data safe with the help of an external hard drive. Here are a few pointers that may help:
• Use the right tools: Using backup software makes the whole process a lot easier. Some tools such as Cobian Backup, for example, allow for a ton of features, like advanced encryption, scheduled backups and so on.
• Take regular snapshots: Backing up on a regular basis is the best way to ensure that there are no unpleasant surprises later.
• Keep the external drive safe: Keep the external drive in a safe place and ensure that it is not always connected. Keeping it separate helps to avoid any disasters that may befall the computer and ensures that the data is safe.