It all started at the beginning of 2010. My friend Mandy had her laptop crash and she lost all of her data. Next time around she promised she'd backup. I told her there were some great online backup software solutions.

Introduction

Quick Note: If You're Just Interested in the Backup Comparison Table, Click Here.


I had been a web designer for about 10 years, and was known as the "internet expert" in our circle of friends.  So one day when Mandy asked me to help her out with her backup problem, I said sure. She was like,

"I NEED online backup software thats easy!"

The Criteria

Now, at the time I didn't know anything about online backup software.  If you're like me, you started your business keeping track of your data, but then it spiralled out of control. Way to much to backup, and when, and how to do it quickly. But mostly, it was just a few hard drives and that was it. Well, that wasn't gonna work anymore.

Mandy and I sat down and mapped out everything a good backup system ought to do.  Here are the criteria we came up with:

  • Type of Storage
  • File Syncing
  • Type of Backup
  • Pricing
  • Size Limit
  • OS Support
  • Free Trial
  • Remote Access
  • Automated Backups
  • On-Demand Backups
  • Ease of Use
  • Incremental Backups
  • File Encryption
  • Mobile Applications
  • Multi computer support


The First Cut

After a couple of hours, I had a short list:

  • Back Blaze
  • Live Drive
  • Mozy
  • Elephant Drive
  • Sugar Sync

The Table

I'm an Excel fanatic, so the first thing I did when I got into the office the next day was put all of our criteria into a spreadsheet on one column, and each of the companies across the top.  Then I set about doing research: visiting each website looking at features, and calling the software providers to see how their customer service was.

Below is what we ended up with. 

The Table: Comparing Online Backup Software
Companies backblaze Mozy Elephant Drive sugar sync Live Drive

Type of Storage
          File Syncing
                  Type of Backup
                          Pricing
                                  Size Limit
                                          OS Support
                                                  Free Trial
                                                          Remote Access
                                                                  Automated Backups
                                                                          On-Demand Backups
                                                                          Incremental Backups
                                                                          File Encryption
                                                                          Mobile Applications
                                                                          Multi computer support
                                                                          Ease of Use
                                                                          Total Points

                                                                          34

                                                                          47

                                                                          21

                                                                          34

                                                                          65

                                                                          Final Analysis

                                                                          So my final recommendation to Mandy (and to you, since you're probably looking for something similar) is to use carbonite or mozy.  Who should use which?  Here's some more in-depth info to help you decide:

                                                                          Live Drive

                                                                          These guys have absolutely exploded in the last year or so. I'm a big fan. Plus, you can sync between computers, stream movies directly to your iPad or iPhone and access your files from anywhere in the world.

                                                                           


                                                                          mozy

                                                                           Mozy, while not as slick as Live Drive definitely has some strong points.  First of all, for almost the same price as carbonite' basic plan, you get UNLIMITED clients.  This is so helpful for small businesses that serve lots of people.

                                                                          One Final Note

                                                                          Although Mandy and I have different needs and have tried our best to thoroughly research and evaluate each software package, no one but you can say what's right for you.  Our recommendations are based on what we need, but I'm not you and I don't run your computer!

                                                                          So which software did we choose?  Actually both.  I went with Live Drive because I'm a sucker for great interface design and recently purchased an iPad. Mandy choose mozy.

                                                                          While Mandy and I found what we needed with our choices, we both liked the timesheet approval process and easy budget tracking of Elephant Drive. If you are working on a team, box also offers some nice built-in management tools.

                                                                          I hope you find my research as valuable, now don't forget to backup!