Backup software & schemes

I really need to start backing up my data. What advice for software (preferably free) and backup schemes would you recommend?

I would prefer software that has been around for a long time so that I have some reassurance that I can recover my old files years from now.

As far as backup schemes, I'm thinking about doing a full backup right now, then doing incremental backups of specific folders every week.

Any thoughts on online backups? A friend asked me about elephantdrive.com. It offers unlimited storage for $9.99 a month, but of course I'm concerned about them being around whenever I need to recover my data.

 

For online backup, you can try Mozy which gives 2GB free

 

I don't think 2GB is enough for backing up a whole hard drive... If you buy an external hard drive it'll usually come with a backup software. I don't know any free backup software that's actually usable, but I would recommend Genie Backup Manager or the Acronis True Image. Look on this website for more info... http://data-backup-software-review.toptenreviews.com/

 

Yes, Acronis and Norton are well-known for their imaging software but they aren't free

The 2GB trial is interesting if he wants to try before paying...

 

Depends on how much data you have... how much you want to spend... how important your data is to you... ect, etc....

If you are like me and have over 100 gb of data, an online backup service won't work.

At any rate, I use windows home server for local backups, and acronis for weekly backups. I use two use drives for off-site backup (swap them in and out).

Instead of windows home server, you could use a another usb drive in that capacity... and simply use a program to backup to that drive (different than acronis since it is used for weekly backups. Nice to have two programs backing up your data, just in case one does not work).