| Web-based storage service providers offer small and | | | | almost always because the person worrying about it |
| medium-sized businesses with an alternative to | | | | simply doesn’t fully understand either the |
| backing up their data on tape, disk or hard drives | | | | technology or the process. |
| alone. For a monthly service fee — usually | | | | In fact, all stored data is encrypted before it’s |
| quite reasonable — business owners can | | | | moved to the internet, and the data stays encrypted |
| schedule data backups to be delivered via the | | | | until the customer him- or herself needs to access |
| internet and stored on disks at a storage service | | | | it. Even then, only the business has the encryption |
| provider's data center. | | | | key needed to release the data to view. The level |
| Once they understand how it works, many small to | | | | of encryption is extremely high, as well. Online data |
| medium-sized business owners eagerly accept their | | | | storage companies most frequently use the same |
| IT manager’s suggestion to move their data | | | | types and levels of encryption utilized by large |
| storage system to the services of a web-based | | | | financial institutions and the federal government. |
| storage provider. The reason why is simple: | | | | Another plus of online data storage is the time |
| compared to the costs of traditional backup systems | | | | necessary to recall whatever data is required. |
| (including hardware, various media and costly, | | | | Typically, recovery time for data stored online is |
| constant human interaction) the savings and benefits | | | | much less than the time needed to recover from |
| of an online backup system are impressive, in terms | | | | tapes, CDs or zip drives. And with online data |
| of dollars, man-hours and reliability. | | | | storage, there’s no IT personnel involved in |
| Large companies usually have the IT budget | | | | either accessing or restoring
no time spent |
| necessary to pay for on-site backup systems and a | | | | picking up media from an off-site storage facility and |
| full-time, 24-hour staff to handle backups and | | | | bringing it back to the office
no time spent |
| restores. However — even though their data | | | | searching for the right tape and then downloading it |
| is just as critical to success — most small | | | | to a server
no human error and no salaried time |
| businesses usually don’t have the money to | | | | wasted on the mundane (but necessary) |
| pour into that kind of data storage system. | | | | machinations of manual data retrieval. |
| There’s hardly money for even a dedicated | | | | Considering the time, personnel and budgetary |
| backup server — forget about a dedicated IT | | | | savings of using an online data storage system |
| staff. The sad reality is that, most often, a small | | | | instead of media-oriented in-house backups, |
| business' IT staff is so overloaded with and | | | | it’s no surprise that so many small to |
| overwhelmed by the many, vital tasks of managing | | | | medium-sized business owners are opting for this |
| the company’s data on a daily basis that they | | | | process in lieu of their old reliance upon media-based |
| frequently shove running backups to a back burner, | | | | storage. The speed, reliability and cost-savings of |
| just hoping they’ll get to it before disaster | | | | online data storage so far outpace the budgetary, |
| strikes. | | | | personnel and space requirements of media-based |
| There’s no worry about security of data in | | | | systems that online backup is poised to replace |
| the hands of a reliable online data storage company, | | | | media backups as the system of choice in |
| either. When that concern is voiced, it’s | | | | today’s business world. |