How to Backup is a free online mini-book explaining basic ideas about how to backup your network, backup technologies, and backup strategies to keep your systems online, and your data available.

How to Backup is a simple read. It doesn't get too theoretical. It doesn't cover enterprise backup - it's for small businesses and home offices.

You think you know what a backup is, but, do you really?

What is backup?

A backup is a copy of your data.

A backup is an archived copy of your old data.

A backup is a system that can be used to deliver your data, if the primary system fails.

A backup is a system that keeps operating, transparently, even if part of the system fails. It's fault-tolerant.

A backup lets you recover from bad data, quickly.

A backup with frequent incremental backups lets you undo a huge run of bad data.

A backup is a part of a system that costs less than the entire system, that allows nearly all people to keep working in the event of an equipment or data failure.

Links to variations on this booklet

How to Backup the Network at Home