Q .: what if we already have a tape backup system?
Using a tape backup system and a remote backup system offers the best of both worlds. Critical files, like billing, customer contact files and databases can be kept on the remote backup system. While, the tape system can be used to create a full backup of the entire system once or twice a month, instead of on a daily basis. The tapes and drive will last longer and require less maintenance. The remote backup system can provide a quick and easy way to retrieve critical files and databases without the hassle of searching through tapes.
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Q .: what if we already have a zip drive?
Frankly, we believe it's not optimal for most users to use a zip or other removable disk media for backup. A remote backup service is completely automated and has the required file redundancy to protect important data. The only safe way to use a zip drive for backup is to have three disks and make the same backup three times. That way when one of the disk fails you are still protected.
Q .: how long will a remote backup take?
Offices with high-speed internet connections should find this service comparable with tape drives. Dial up users will be able to do incremental backups in thirty to sixty minutes. The initial backup can take several nights to complete. We recommend backing up the most important files first and then selecting other files as the backup progresses or, the initial backup can be run over the weekend.
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Q .: onsite, offsite - what's the difference?
Basically, remote backups work like regular tape backups, with one important difference. Instead of sending backups to a tape drive or other media attached to the computer being backed up, a remote backup sends encrypted file data over the internet to a computer file storage system safely off-site.
This usually happens at night while your business is closed and nobody is using the computers. It's completely automatic. In fact, you may forget it's working every night.
Q .: why are remote backups considered more beneficial?
The data is immediately stored off-site using an automated backup system. Also, only an internet connection is needed. Completely eliminating the need for expensive backup equipment and media. And, since the system is automated, manual labor is eliminated.
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Q .: how secure are remote backups?
Very. All files are encrypted using Blowfish or DES encryption which is selected by the user with their own personal encryption code which is only known by the user of the system. Blowfish encryption has never been broken by a hacker. DES is used by the federal banking system.
Data security is a major concern to ISecureDat and its clients. Our Remote Backup System has addressed the issue of protecting data by using a very sophisticated compression and encryption system. Using two distinct layers of protection, each with its own encryption technology, the remote backup archives are virtually impenetrable.
ISecureDat compresses and encrypts all data before it is transmitted from the your office. Only you knows the encryption "key." and this key is not transmitted with the archive. Remote Backed up archives cannot be viewed, decrypted, or used in any way without the key.
Remote Backup (North American edition) supports the following encryption standards and bit lengths. The multi-encryption feature makes ISecureDat remote backups the most secure backup software available. Plugin encryption modules are available for most countries.
 
Secure Key Generator Clients can enter their own Encryption Key, or they can use the Key Generator. The Key Generator creates "statistically perfect" encryption keys that are much more secure than human users can create.
 
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Q .: what is encryption?
Encryption is basically a mathematical formula that scrambles a data file. And the only way to unscramble it is with the encryption code.
ISecureDat offers a free service to retain a copy of your encryption key if you wish. Click here for details
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Q .: wouldn't I be better off running my own remote backup system instead of paying a fee?
While you're certainly welcome to setup your own system, following are several costs you might want to consider first.
1) a remote location
2) additional computer equipment
3) licensing for both an OS and the backup software
4) system maintenance and repairs
5) IT costs
6) additional costs like: hydro, communication service (ISP), facility maintenance
7) learning curve
8) taking time away from running your current business
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Q .: what types of files should I consider backing up?
These are some file types to consider.
1) accounting records
2) e-mail backups
3) certificates and certificate keys
4) VPN pre-shared keys
5) inventory control records
6) payroll and employee records
7) medical records
8) original artwork or designs
9) taxes and legal records
10) data base(s)
Your computer stores its data in files which need to be backed up and others do not. Although Remote Backup can back up virtually any file on your computer, not all should be.
Data files are considered critical files because they contain your most recent and critical data like your customer records, accounting files, word processing files, and other data you work with on a daily basis.
Program files are usually not considered critical because if they are lost they can be restored from your original distribution diskettes that came with your software. For this reason it is important to store the original copies of your software diskettes away from your computer, not in the same building if possible.
Your computer also has a lot of other non-critical files. These are files that are left over from installations of programs, temporary files, compressed folders, others that would not affect the operation of your computer or business if they were lost. These should not be backed up either.
The vast majority of the files on your computer are probably program files and other non-critical files. They can be identified by their file names. Program files have common extensions like:
.exe .dll .ovl .reg .cab .zip .hlp .bmp .sys .wav .tmp
Some file types that probably should be backed up include:
.mdb .sql .dbf .fpt .ini .lnk .doc .xls .pst .msg .txt
These are by far not the only file types that should be backed up, but they are common data file extensions. For an extensive downloadable list of extensions, what their use for and in, what's included in the auto-select feature of this Remote backup system and what's automatically excluded from the backup list: Extensions.pdf
Please note: if you are using the auto select feature of the backup software, whenever a new application is installed all files for it are automatically selected for backup. You will need to keep a close eye on what files are being backed up using the "Include" and " Exclude" options to make adjustments in the software selection area.
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Q .: can open files be backed up?
For RBackup versions 9.4 or higher:
Yes, it will! Our remote backup client software (v. 9.4+) natively supports open files of virtually any type. This includes SQL, Exchange, Oracle, Quickbooks, Outlook, etc. This is a standard feature at no additional charge.
NOTE: ISecureDat is currently using v10.0
For Remote backup versions 9.3 or prior:
Open files such as database files can be somewhat problematic to back up.
There are two ways to back them up: turn the Database Server off to back up its files, or back them up using an Open File Utility (such as the "OFM" from St. Bernard Software) which allows backing up the files while they are in use. I'll discuss both methods here.
For companies who can bring their database server down for a few minutes, this backup method is both cheaper and more reliable. It goes like this: shut down the database server, copy the database to a temporary location on the hard drive, start the Database Server, then back up the copied files from the temporary location. This process can be done manually, or it can be automated.
Remote Backup can run two batch files during backup sessions - one before the backup starts, and the other after the session is over. You can include commands in these two batch files which stop the database server, then restart it after the backup is completed. The process (including examples) can be found in the Knowledge Library at this link.
An open files utility allows Remote Backup to back up virtually all open files, including Exchange, SQL Server, MySQL, Oracle, Outlook, Windows system files, and more.
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Q .: can I download the client software right away when I order service?
You can, in fact you'll be taken directly to a download link. ISecureDat will take the information you provided in the form you send to create a custom account for you and e-mail your account name, a random generated password and will reserve your requested storage space. It is suggested you do not launch the application until you get this information from ISecureDat as you will not be able to complete the process without it.
We suggest reading the "Quick Start" PDF if you haven't already. Another PDF you should download is the How to Create Schedules. This is a useful aid to learn how you can setup different schedules to either backup different areas of your organizations system or schedules for different types of backups.
The initial backup schedule is an incremental one. The first time you run your backup, it will create a full backup, but will be incremental thereafter. You will need to create an additional schedule to provide for a full backup as your plan calls for.
NOTE: the more information you provide on the initial application, the less time it will require to setup your account and subsequent contacting you for additional information.
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Q .: compiling a backup is slow scanning files
The length of time it takes to backup, is dependent on the number of files being backed up, the size of those files and the upload speed of your Internet connection. Please keep in mind that for most broadband connections, upload speed is considerably slower than download speed.
Please also check to see what types of files are included in your backup sets. Make sure you are not backing up unnecessary files such as temporary Internet files. If you are backing up your Microsoft Outlook ".pst" files, keep in mind that these files can be very large and will change every time you send or receive a new email. Therefore, you may be transmitting these large files on every backup.
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Q .: can your software back up 20 gigabytes a night?
Yes, our software is capable of backing up 20 gigabytes of data every night. Do you have enough bandwidth and drive space to back up 20 gigabytes every night?
Just one gigabyte takes 5.4 hours to send over a fast Cable Modem capable of 512 mpbs speed. Twenty gigabytes would take 4.5 days. Over a 30 day period you would need 600 gigabytes on your Server computer to store all those backups. You can decrease the amount of time needed by getting a faster Internet connection.
Our software compresses data before transmitting it, an average of 85%. So in your case, 20 gigabytes might be compressed to 3 gigabytes, requiring 16.2 hours to transmit over a 512 mbps Cable Modem. That’s still testing the practical limits of ANY Remote Backup solution, simply because of the time required to send a backup.
Our software has the ability to select critical files that need to be backed up. Do you REALLY need to send 20 gigabytes every day? Most companies don't. Most, in fact, most of our customers send fewer than 50 megabytes a day, which is compressed to around 10 megabytes before transmission, requiring 3.2 minutes to send over a 512 mbps Cable Modem. They do this by selectively backing up only the files that change from day to day - the files that store your most critical data.
These times are, for the most part, simply what the Internet requires. There’s little any software can do, other than compress the files, to decrease the time required to send this much data.
To reduce the time, back up only critical files that you cannot restore from other resources like your original distribution CDs, and your Windows CD itself.
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the first backup is huge. how do I do it?
DO NOT BACK UP ENTIRE DRIVES
A common misconception among new users is that they must make an initial full-disk backup before starting their remote backups. Such a backup can easily be as big as many gigabytes, mostly of files that are part of the operating system or installed applications. These files do not usually need to be backed up because they can be re-installed from the original CDs if needed. Backing them up uses unnecessary bandwidth and an extraordinary amount of time and storage space which will cost you.
It is the DATA they generate that needs to be backed up and DATA files are usually a very small percentage of the files on a hard drive.
Select backup files carefully. Use the AutoSelect feature and select Folders and Files - NOT ENTIRE DRIVES.
As an example: A new client has 14 gigabytes of documents on his computer. That's too big to send over the Internet (see size explaination above).
The first thing to decide is, "Do I really have to back this up?" Avoid backing up existing data that is no longer pertnant if you can. If you really must back it up, decide if you have to back it up in a format that can be restored from online.
Fourteen gigabytes is a huge amount of data. It will require 21 CDs to back that up if it's not already compressed and 8 CDs if it will compress (depending on the type of files they are). You could spend HOURS swapping CDs.
ISecureDat software is REMOTE BACKUP software. There are no remote backup systems (RBS)that can do remote backup better than ours, but there are dozens that can do CD backups, or backups to hard drives, much better than ISecureDat's.
If you do not need much of the initial data on your Server for restoration with remote backup, use some other software to make the first backup to CDs or tape, or some other media. NOTE: You will not be able to restore this data using our remote backup system. This data should be stored or archived in a separate location away from the server. Preferably at a different address.
If on the other hand you really need to be able to restore that data using a remote backup access, you can use ISecureDat's "Copy to Disk" function. This is a feature of the Client software that was built to solve this problem of large initial backups.
"Copy to Disk" operates like a regular Remote Backup session, but instead of sending backups over the Internet to the ISecureDat Server, it sends the data to a hard drive or other mapped device with a standard drive letter. If that device is a CD burner with Packet Writing software enabled, the software will copy to a series of CDs which you can then send them to ISecureDat and they will be copied to your backup folder. Once done, they will be available for restoration over the Internet using the standard method.
Data placed on CDs using the "Copy to Disk" function can be restored online through the regular Remote Backup client interface.
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