Backing up my Mac

[Daino92]

Hello,

I do not have an external drive at the moment. Wondering if anyone had any solutions to this or suggestions? Is there a way to do this with a cloud storage provider?
Thanks!

 

[Weaselboy]

Sure... I use the app Arq to backup to BackBlaze B2 servers. I just backup my personal data in the users folder that way.

Cloud backup software for Mac and Windows : Arq

www.arqbackup.com

 

[D.T.]

If you're a beginner, I'd just go with the Backblaze "native" service, it's really super simple to set up, you can access your backup directly (and all the individual files) through the web and iOS client (I've used it as a recovery tool for a couple of accidental file overwrites), it's a couple of clicks to a complete restore - and, if the event it's necessary, you can order a physical backup copy on a flash drive / HDD.

$6/machine/month, unlimited storage.

A few caveats, but nothing that would be affected by what I suspect are your backup needs.

 

[Daino92]

Sure... I use the app Arq to backup to BackBlaze B2 servers. I just backup my personal data in the users folder that way.

Cloud backup software for Mac and Windows : Arq

www.arqbackup.com

Got ya, thanks!
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If you're a beginner, I'd just go with the Backblaze "native" service, it's really super simple to set up, you can access your backup directly (and all the individual files) through the web and iOS client (I've used it as a recovery tool for a couple of accidental file overwrites), it's a couple of clicks to a complete restore - and, if the event it's necessary, you can order a physical backup copy on a flash drive / HDD.

$6/machine/month, unlimited storage.

A few caveats, but nothing that would be affected by what I suspect are your backup needs.

Thank you!

 

[BigMcGuire]

My wife and I use BackBlaze Unlimited and have for a few years now.

Arq is great if you know what you're doing around complicated backup applications - and a bit cheaper. You can use Arq with BackBlaze's B2 for pennies a month to store 200+GB.

I'd still highly recommend looking for a sale on external drives - get a small one (1-2TB) and do TimeMachine to that drive. Nothing beats having a local backup (but you don't want it to be your only backup - so still highly recommend the above).


I have all my data in OneDrive and my photos in iCloud Photos. I have BackBlaze Unlimited backing up my computer 24/7. I have Time Machine (for Mac) and Acronis (for Windows) backing up to an external 8TB drive that sits next to my desk. I also use Arq to backup certain parts of OneDrive to B2's Cloud during work hours as well as use Arq to back up to my 8TB drive.

Can never have enough backups!

For simplicity - as D.T. said - I highly recommend BackBlaze - been using them for years.

 

[Clix Pix]

I am old-fashioned in some ways and really prefer to keep my backups all local — that is, on external drives that I either keep here at home or store in my bank safe deposit box. (Of course right now during the pandemic, the latter hasn’t been possible, or rather, it would be possible if I made a specific appointment, but I have decided against that, just preferring to wait until I can access my safe deposit as part of a normal routine again).

I have both archival drives and drives which back up current materials, mostly image files. I find this the easiest method to keep track of everything and to access anything I need to when the need arises, which it does from time to time.

Mainly Samsung T5 external SSDs for current (within the past year or so) data, and larger-capacity Seagate desktop drives for the archival stuff seems to work out well for me. We all have our preferences, though, and ways of working, and sometimes it takes a while to figure out exactly what is the best system.....

Whatever you do, just DO it! Buy an external drive, go online and sign up with a cloud service, but just back up your files NOW!!!

 

[Daino92]

My wife and I use BackBlaze Unlimited and have for a few years now.

Arq is great if you know what you're doing around complicated backup applications - and a bit cheaper. You can use Arq with BackBlaze's B2 for pennies a month to store 200+GB.

I'd still highly recommend looking for a sale on external drives - get a small one (1-2TB) and do TimeMachine to that drive. Nothing beats having a local backup (but you don't want it to be your only backup - so still highly recommend the above).


I have all my data in OneDrive and my photos in iCloud Photos. I have BackBlaze Unlimited backing up my computer 24/7. I have Time Machine (for Mac) and Acronis (for Windows) backing up to an external 8TB drive that sits next to my desk. I also use Arq to backup certain parts of OneDrive to B2's Cloud during work hours as well as use Arq to back up to my 8TB drive.

Can never have enough backups!

For simplicity - as D.T. said - I highly recommend BackBlaze - been using them for years.

Thanks the the answer as well. I am not a power user by any means. I use my MBA for light internet browsing and in a few months, for work from home. I will be using a Microsoft suit for work and also have access to our VPN. So I will not be storing any work files locally on my machine. I only want a back up option that I'll be able to recover my personal data in the event that I need too. It seems like for me, Arq might be the best option as the software does not seem too complicated and I am guessing that I will have under 300 GB's of data at a given time. I also agree that I should look for an eternal SSD, but for the mean time Arq seems like a winner. I think at last check....I had less than 10 non native apps installed! I use google phots for my Photos and really the only files that I will store on my computer locally is a resume...I do not really edit videos or even photos. If I were more active on my computer I might consider paying $6 a month but it does not seem worth it.