"I am beginning to think that the old fashioned external hard drive swap may be the way to go given out current technology and internet speeds etc."
Strong agreement here.
Particularly so if the original poster has an "offsite location" where he can keep a hard drive. Could be a safe deposit box, a locker at one's workplace, a lockable desk at work. Perhaps even at a relative's home. The idea is that the backup normally be located somewhere _other than_ where the computer is, as insurance against theft, fire, etc. (Isn't this what the "online backup" outfits are, anyway?)
Best way to maintain an offsite backup is with multiple backup drives:
- backup 1 - near computer
- backup 2 & 3 - alternately stored offsite
(Actually, you will have two at home, and one offsite. You take one from home, bring it to your offsite location, retrieve the third already there.)
Best way to maintain multiple backups is to use three "bare drives" with a USB/SATA "docking station" setup at home. A USB3/SATA dock can be had for under $30, like this one:
http://www.amazon.com/Plugable-Dock...=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B003UI62AG
They can be booted from, just like you would a "standalone" external drive. But they make "swapping drives around" easy.
This takes a little more effort to maintain and manage the backups yourself. The upside is that YOU will always have control over your data (not some online place that can go out of business, etc.). And although it costs more initially to buy the dock and drives, once purchased you don't have them dipping into your pocket every month, which adds up
.
