If your hard drive died right now, would you lose anything important? Family photos, work documents, tax records? If the answer is yes, you need a backup. The good news is it's much easier than you might think.
Why Backing Up Matters
Hard drives don't last forever. They can fail without warning — and when they do, your files can be gone for good. Viruses can also destroy or encrypt your data (that's what ransomware does). A proper backup means even the worst-case scenario is just an inconvenience, not a disaster.
Option 1: Use an External Hard Drive
This is the simplest and cheapest method. You can pick up a 1TB external drive for around £30-£40. Here's how to set it up with Windows:
- Plug in your external drive
- Open Settings → System → Storage → Advanced storage settings → Backup options
- Click "Add a drive" and select your external drive
- Turn on "Automatically back up my files"
- Click "More options" to choose what gets backed up and how often
Windows will now automatically back up your files whenever the drive is plugged in. Simple as that.
Option 2: Use Cloud Storage
Cloud backup means your files are stored online, so even if your house floods or your laptop gets stolen, your files are safe. Popular options include:
- OneDrive — Comes free with Windows (5GB free, 1TB with Microsoft 365)
- Google Drive — 15GB free, works with any Google account
- Dropbox — 2GB free, very easy to use
For most people, OneDrive is the easiest since it's already built into Windows. Just sign in with your Microsoft account and choose which folders to sync.
Option 3: Do Both (Recommended)
The best protection is the 3-2-1 rule:
- 3 copies of your important files
- 2 different types of storage (e.g., your PC + external drive)
- 1 copy offsite (e.g., cloud storage)
This might sound excessive, but it means you're protected against pretty much anything — hardware failure, theft, fire, viruses, you name it.
What Should You Back Up?
At a minimum, make sure these are backed up:
- Photos and videos
- Documents (Word files, spreadsheets, PDFs)
- Desktop files
- Downloads folder
- Any work-related files
- Browser bookmarks
How Often Should You Back Up?
Ideally, backups should happen automatically every day. Both Windows File History and cloud services can do this without you having to think about it. Set it up once and forget about it.
Need Help Setting This Up?
If you'd like someone to set up a reliable backup system for your computer, I'm happy to help. I can also recover data if you've already lost files. Free pickup and delivery within 3 miles of B11.