Online Backup Solutions for Families
What About Carbonite?
www.carbonite.com (affiliate link)
Pros: Very easy to use, excellent backup status icons, great integration with Windows XP via right-click menu
Cons: 24-hour automated backup window, can't back-up open files
Carbonite doesn't offer a free version, but they do offer a 15-day trial. Alternatively, you can buy a boxed version of Carbonite at Staples, Amazon.com and J&R. I believe the boxed version includes several months of use, but the price is the same as signing up for the same amount of time on the Carbonite website. You also lose out on the free trial. But hey, that pretty box might look great on a shelf.
Installation and Configuration:
Like Mozy, Carbonite offers a simple installation. Just visit the website, enter your email address and a password to create an account and download the 1.8MB software. After installing the software you're prompted to restart your desktop, but you do not need to reboot your computer. This last part was a bit strange, but appears necessary to integrate Carbonite with Windows Explorer.
Carbonite offers three initial options: 1) Backup files on your desktop and in your "My Documents folder;" 2) Back up everything (except system files, program executables and temporary files); 3) Do nothing (you'll specify which filed to back up). This is a lot simpler than Mozy's backup sets, but also less flexible. If you typically store all your files in "My Documents" choose option 1 and you'll be all set.
Once installed, Carbonite integrates tightly with Windows. Backing up a file is as simple as right-clicking it and selecting the appropriate option from the Carbonite menu. In addition, Carbonite adds status indicators to the icons of the files it's watching. These little circles make it extremely easy to see which of your files have been backed up. The image to the left shows that three of the four files are backed up (green circles) and one is scheduled to be backed up (yellow circle). These indicators may seem like a minor feature, but I found myself using them constantly during my two-week trial.
Backup:
Like Mozy, Carbonite's first backup may take some time. Carbonite states "full speeds" of 2-3GB per day. Of course, if you're using your computer while it's backing up, your actual uploading will take much longer. Additionally, once you have 50GB of files uploaded, Carbonite will limit you to 500 MB of uploaded files per day. 50GB is a lot and you're unlikely to hit that limit unless you're backing up your entire music collection, but it's still something to keep in mind.
I pointed Carbonite at my test folder and sat back to watch. The files backed up very quickly. Too quickly: it turns out that the free trial doesn't back up audio and video files by default, so Carbonite skipped over 50MB of my test files. This is only an issue with the free demo software: the full version should back up audio and video files without any problem.
Unfortunately, Carbonite also skipped over my open Outlook file, marking it for the next backup. Closing Outlook freed the file and should have permitted it to be backed up. However, even though I let the system idle for over 10 minutes, the file was never backed-up. I let the system idle again the next evening and my Outlook file was backed up almost three hours after it was closed. Subsequent attempts to backup the file worked as expected. After the initial backup, Carbonite will back up each file 10 minutes after you make your changes. However, each changed file is backed up only once every 24 hours, regardless of how many times you change it. Although this frequency can't be changed, you can "force" a backup by right clicking on the file and selecting the appropriate option.
Restoring Files:
Files are restored from the "Carbonite Secure Backup Directory" on your computer. Unlike Mozy, there's no option for restoring files via a web browser or having a DVD-ROM shipped to you. If you've got a ton of files to restore, plan on leaving your computer idle for a long time.
Final Thoughts:
To put it simply, Carbonite just worked. Everything about this program seemed geared to the home user. I really liked how easy it was to see the status of files with the status icons. However, I wish there was a way to restore files using a web browser. I also don't like the fact that changed files are backed-up only once every 24-hours, but being able to force a backup of a file addresses this somewhat. Finally, the lack of private key support means that your files are accessible to certain Carbonite employees, so if you're storing top secret information, this may be a concern. However, according to Carbonite website, private key support is planned for a future version.