I guess it all depends on my mood at the moment whether I find people losing their data in a hard drive crash sad or funny.  Of course, a hard drive crash is never funny; it is a pain in the neck!  But people who are so short sighted that they don’t back up their files several times a day (if it is important!) have no one to blame but themselves data loss when their hard drive crashes.

I never think in terms of “IF a hard drive crashes.”  I think in terms of “WHEN a hard drive crashes.”  I read some kind of article a while ago that said something to the effect that 3% of all computer hard drives will crash.  Well, if that’s the case, I’ve seen more than my share!  I have been around personal computers since the very first MacIntosh came out around 1982ish.  My mantra, ever since “day one” has been “backup backup backup.”  I have helped my office “mechanize” with the purchase and installation of the IBM compatible PCs around the same time.  In the office that I was the “IT manager” for I required that everyone backup their computer at lunch and before going home for the day.  I have seen many many many hard drive crashes.  My own personal computer at home has crashed more than once.  This was very frustrating, but I had my files intact.  The biggest issue for me was getting the computer repaired, but I had no loss of files, only loss of productivity while waiting for the repairs.

I recently found out about a system, called an ARAID system that solves all of that by providing automatic backup.  This system is a second hard drive installed into your own PC that provides PC data storage and data protection by continuously backing up your data.

It is, in essence, a complete duplicate of your hard drive.  So if your hard drive crashes, you have the ARAID there to take over.  There is no loss of data, no loss of productivity.  This is a great idea for small businesses and personal computers alike.

(This post brought to you by the folks who make this ARAID backup system)