ThingTone™ Software

If you are searching the Internet looking for the right backup program for your Mac, this the place to start. These are the ten best backup programs you will find for Mac OS X for under $100 (most are under $30). Rather than write a full review, I have summarized the strengths and limitations of each product in just a few words while providing links to the free trial for each (where available).

Also this list is limited to only those products that can back up data to your own media (CD-R, DVD-R, USB, Firewire). There are no online backup programs reviewed here. These are listed in ascending price order, not according to my preference. Only you can decide which of these products will do what you need.

Free Products

SilverKeeper
La Cie
Download: http://www.lacie.com/
Strengths: Simple user interface, backup scheduling, and the ability to leave out files using a filter.
Limitations: No synchronization. You must submit your contact information to download this program.
Price: Free

iBackup
Grapefruit.ch
Download: http://www.grapefruit.ch/
Strengths: Knows how to back up system preferences and application settings and do scheduling.
Limitations: Very limited information on web site, no author or company attribution, only a contact e-mail. Price: Free (for personal use)

Under $30 Products

GrabBack
ThingTone Software
Download: http://www.thingtone.net/
Strengths: Simple to use, inexpensive, good for quick thumb drive backups of a day's work. Supports compression, encryption.
Limitations: No file synchronization or scheduling. No bootable backups.
Price: $19.95

Synk
Decimus Software
Download: http://www.decimus.net/
Strengths: Many options for scheduling, including and excluding files, copy or archive, and rules (in Synk Pro)
Limitations: Uses incremental backup technology, too many options for most users, hard to know what was really saved.
Price: $25, $35 (Standard), $45 (Pro)

SuperDuper
Shirt Pocket Software
Download: http://www.shirt-pocket.com/
Strengths: Specializes in creating a bootable backup image, explains each procedure before doing anything.
Limitations: As a cloning tool this product lacks the ability to do targeted, or small batch, backups.
Price: $27.95

Knox
MK&C (Finland)
Download: http://www.knoxformac.com/
Strengths: Emphasizes encryption. (Note: most of these products can back up to a standard encrypted volume.)
Limitations: No file synchronization, awkward multiple "vault" approach for archiving and encrypting.
Price: $29.95

Dobry Backuper
DobrySoft
Download: http://dobrysoft.com/
Strengths: Full, versioned, or incremental backups and scheduling.
Limitations: No synchronization, somewhat complicated user interface.
Price: $29.95

$30-and-up Products

ChronoSync
Econ Technologies
Download: http://www.econtechnologies.com
Strengths: Emphasizes synchronization and does an excellent job making this intuitive.
Limitations: No straight file and folder snapshot backups, uses mirroring instead.
Price: $30.00

Backup Simplicity
Qdea
Download: http://www.qdea.com/
Strengths: Very simple user interface aimed at cloning a hard drive to a bootable backup.
Limitations: Really does back up everything, with no way to target or limit what is backed up.
Price: $50.00

Data Backup 3
Prosoft Engineering
Download: http://www.prosofteng.com/
Strengths: Backup versioning makes it possible to recover older versions of files, also can do bootable backups.
Limitations: Somewhat complicated user interface.
Price: $59.00

If you think encryption is only for people with something to hide, or the stuff of spy novels, think again. In fact, if you save any of your personal data (banking statements, bill payment records, an online keychain, your social security number) on a thumb drive and it gets lost or stolen, encryption could be your best friend. Said another way, an encrypted drive is an identity thief's worst enemy.

You may also think encryption costs money. "Don't I have to buy some fancy software to encrypt my data?" you might ask. In fact, if you have a Mac, you don't. Encrypted volumes are there for the taking. You can create new ones of any size on any disk you like. You just have to know how. Better safe than sorry, right? And learning how is easy.

So let's start by understanding what encryption is all about. Or if you already know, just skip ahead to the step-by-step instructions below. To "encrypt" is the process of scrambling data to put it into what seems like completely random order. This must be done in a way that no one but you can put it back into the original order, or "decrypt," the data. It would be like taking every letter on this page, dropping them into a blender and pushing the "puree" button. But the beauty of an encrypted volume is that your computer can use your password (and nothing else) to put everything back in the proper order. Everything. Once you unlock it with your password, your encrypted volume will work for you (and all of your software) just like any other volume on your system. Eject the volume and to anyone else it is just random scrambled letters, or data puree.

Creating An Encrypted Volume in Mac OS X:

-- Open "Disk Utility" (from the Applications | Utilities Folder)
-- From the Images Menu, select: New | Blank Image... ("Image" here does not mean picture, but is short for "disk image.")
-- Choose a location for your volume (you can save it on any drive, even a writable CD/DVD before you burn it)
-- Give the Image a name, such as: "My Encrypted Data"
-- Set these other attributes:

Size: (Choose an appropriate maximum size to fit your drive)
Encryption: AES-128 (or any other encryption strength available)
Format: sparse disk image (this way the volume will start small and grow as you use it)

-- Click Create. You will be prompted to create a password.

Unlike with online passwords, this volume will not have a "forgot your password" option to bail you out if you do forget. Choose carefully and be sure of your password before you start saving data on the volume. There is no way to recover data from an encrypted volume without the password.

Open an encrypted volume just by double-clicking on it in the Finder. Mac OS X will prompt you for the password and put the volume on the desktop with your other drive(s). If you like, you can have your Mac store the password in your keychain and apply it automatically when you open your encrypted volume.

That's it. You can create and use as many encrypted volumes as you need. Now if your thumb drive falls into the wrong hands you'll be safe, not sorry.

Backup software has changed a lot over the years making it important for consumers to learn the differences between the various backup options available today. While there used to be just one kind of backup program for archiving a whole computer onto external disk or tape, there are now several kinds of software for backing up your work. Which kind is right for you? Is it worth the cost? These are common questions for which you will find answers here.

What are the different types of backup software and which is right for me? Five distinct types are explained below:

--Full Backup - This is the "classic" form of backup software. Full backup programs claim to be able to backup all of your files (they do this the first time and collect incremental changes thereafter), with the hope that any files or folders you lose can be retrieved and restored individually from backup. Even at their best these programs suffer from being complicated with features, infrequently used, and therefore unfamiliar and confusing when most needed. Even so, these programs still serve an important function especially for businesses.

Examples:
Retrospect (Mac)
Backup4All (Windows)


--Cloning Backup - Cloning software also attempts to capture all of the data on a computer, usually as a single "image" rather than file-by-file. Cloning software is a great tool for administrators who need to roll out many identically configured computers or routinely conduct a testing procedure on a fresh computer. A cloned computer image is great, often bootable, backup to have in the event of a complete hard disk failure.

Examples:
SuperDuper (Mac)
Norton Ghost (Windows)


--Remote Backup - Online backup services have sprung up all over the Internet in recent years. These services promise the convenience of backing up select files from your computer to a secure location, up to a usually small limit in the amount storage. Online backups are not intended as a repository for your entire huge hard drive. Instead they encourage backing up crucial data such as your contacts, bookmarks, photos, and documents.

Examples:
.Mac Backup (Mac)
Mozy (Windows)


--Synchronizing Backup - The idea here is to keep two computers--usually home and office--synchronized so that the documents on each are always up-to-date. This usually occurs by keeping an intermediate "synchronized" copy of the files through which the latest changes are transferred to and from each computer. For a trusting and vigilant user with the right software, this can be a workable system resulting in good backups (since two physically separate computers hold recent copies of all of the work in question).

Examples:
ChronoSync (Mac)
Synchronize-It! (Windows)


--Instant Backup - This is the latest form of backup software. It aims to promote backing up the work you have just completed, usually to a thumb drive (key drive, flash drive) and optionally in an encrypted, compressed form. Instant backup software works on the principle that backing up your work as you complete it will eventually result in backups that are complete (though not a full backup or clone of your whole computer).

Examples:
GrabBack (Mac)
Quick Backup (Windows)


What are some typical user profiles appropriate to each backup type?

If you still aren't sure which is right for you, it may be that some combination of software is needed.

For example, many people count on an IT staff to back up a primary office computer. This group might benefit from doing synchronizing backups in order to bring work home, and to make extra sure those great ideas at work are getting backed up (assuming your employer's data policy permits taking work home).

Many students work on more than one computer or may not yet own a computer, relying instead on a library or lab computer and a thumb drive. For these users a remote backup or instant backup solution might be best. Also, any user who relies on a thumb drive should see the How-To on safeguarding vital data on a thumb drive.

A user who constantly fiddles with the computer to improve it, try new software, and upgrades is a prime candidate for making both cloning backups (to be able to put the machine back in working order) and instant backups (to save the work done since the last clone or major change).

Finally, most home users who are relying on a computer to build up a music, photo, and movie collection should consider some combination of a full backup solution and either remote or instant backups. Backing up to DVD and external firewire drive are the key to keeping photos, movies, and music safe over the long haul.


How much do backups really cost over time? Is it worth the cost?

The answers to these questions depend on many factors. Of course the software you choose will dictate the media required. Full backups and cloning backups usually require external storage with free storage greater than the capacity of the source drive. These also tend to be the most expensive backup programs. Synchronizing and instant backups can usually rely on very inexpensive writeable DVDs or CDs and gain added convenience with the use of USB thumb drives. These offer the least expensive backups but aren't right if you need to back up your whole hard drive. Finally remote backups are paid for on an ongoing basis, usually monthly, and so the long-term cost is a consideration.

As you can see, it's best to work out how you plan to back up your data before you buy the software or the media. Choose well, and whichever route you decide on will pay off in one of two ways. It will either be a kind of insurance policy giving you peace of mind even when you do not need to fall back on your backups, or it will save the day when you do.

The thumb drive is everywhere. Nearly everyone you know has one. We love them, but they are small and easy to misplace. Here are some things you can do to protect yourself against loss, theft, or damage to your thumb drive, and consequently, your data.

First the easy ones:

1) Write your name and phone number on it. There are still honest people in the world who will return lost property.
2) Keep it on the tether it came with. Wearing it is cooler than putting it in a pocket and finding it in the dryer later.
3) Put it away (eject or unmount) before you take it away. Many computers aren't done writing data until you eject a disk.

Now let's get serious:

4) Burn what you have on your thumb drive to CD/DVD once in a while.

Why bother? The thumb drive can be like your junk drawer; cluttered with who-knows-what with a bit of treasure mixed in. After a while you will lose track of what you have on the thumb drive. If you lose the thumb drive itself, you could be out something really important that you didn't even remember putting there, until it's too late. Finally, burning the data is cheap and a whole lot less effort than straightening up the junk drawer. Just burn it, write the date across it, and toss the disk...where? In the junk drawer of course.

5) Encrypt anything personal.

If you keep any credit card numbers, PayPal passwords, bank records, tax stuff, or other personal information on your thumb drive you should encrypt it. The last thing you need after losing your thumb drive is to find out later that someone invaded your privacy to either steal from you or to embarrass you somehow. Encrypting isn't that hard. Most thumb drives for PCs come with some kind of data "vault" software.

On the Mac encryption is a built-in feature. Many people don't even realize this. Here's how to use encryption on a Mac for free:

Creating An Encrypted Volume in Mac OS X:

-- Open "Disk Utility" (from the Applications | Utilities Folder)
-- From the Images Menu, select: New | Blank Image...
-- Choose a location for your volume (presumably your backup drive)
-- Give the Image a name, such as: "Encrypted Backups"
-- Set these other attributes:

Size: (Choose an appropriate maximum size to fit your drive)
Encryption: AES-128
Format: sparse disk image

-- Click Create. You will be prompted to create a password.

It is very important that you choose a password that you can remember. There is no known means of recovering data from an encrypted volume without a valid password. The Mac will offer to put the password in your keychain. But if you plan to take your data to another Mac you will need to remember your password.

The encrypted volume is like a disk within a disk. Anything you save to your encrypted volume will be safe and sound once you eject the volume. No one can get to your files without the password.

Combine this technique with inexpesive backup software like GrabBack for Mac OS X and pretty soon all of those ad hoc backups on your thumb drive will start to look pretty secure--and organized. More so than the junk drawer anyway.