Thursday, November 7, 2013

Online Data Backup Solutions


Pacific NorthWest Computers is a reseller for several different online backup providers and recently partnered with BackSync. BackSync Backup is a secure online backup and recovery solution with unlimited retention, centralized management and industry leading features. Small to Medium Business who are looking for Enterprise class backup at a fraction of the price. We don’t waste your time by offering consumer grade products re-branded with a “Pro” label.

BackSync Backup Features:
  • Exchange 2000 thru 2010 - Database, Mailbox and Mail item level restore 
  • Synthetic Full Backup - Exchange Database and regular file backups 
  • VMware ESX/ESXi – Guest level backup of licensed servers 
  • Microsoft SQL 2000 thru 2008 
  • SharePoint - 2003 thru 2010 and WSS 
  • MySQL Server 
  • Oracle Databases 
  • Active Directory and System State 
  • Open File Backup 
  • Normal Flat File Backup- Select disks, folders and files 
  • Network Drive Backup – Agent-less backups of other computers 
  • NAS (Network Attached Storage) Backup 
  • Outlook PST files 
  • Windows Registry 
  • Native Clients for Windows, OS X and Linux 
  • Backup to Local Disk, NAS, File Share or Online 
  • Unlimited file retention 

BackSync Backup Security
  • Encryption – Up to 448 bit strong encryption. 
  • Transmission – Backups are transmitted via a secured encrypted (SSL) link to the backup server. 
  • High Availability – All data is stored on high availability RAID storage networks with the ability to replicate around the world. 
  • Data Center- Backup servers are located in secured SAS70 Type-II data centers that are staffed and monitor 24x7x365. These facilities have redundant cooling, power and Internet. 

BackSync Backup is Simple!
  • Automated – Backup jobs can be scheduled from every minute to once a year or continuous as the files change. 
  • Continuous Data Protection (CDP) – Live monitoring and backup of files and folders for continuous data protection. (Great for laptops and mobile workers). 
  • Retention - Retain data on a per backup job basis up to 10 years for both live and deleted files. 
  • Consolidation – Backup as many computers as you want under a single account for easy management. 
  • Rapid Restore – Restores are performed quickly from the client. Larger restores can be done in in the data center and delivered or shipped directly to you. 
  • Easy to Manage – All backup clients and servers can be managed from a web browser. 
  • Seeding – Large initial backups can be quickly seeded with a USB drive into the data center. 
  • Reporting – Each client maintains detailed reports on every backup with the option to send notifications. 


If you are looking for a standard/non-commercial data backup services, here are some of our top picks!

  • Backblaze.com provides unlimited and inexpensive data storage solutions; starting at $5 a month.
  • If you went with a business package, from Carbonite you would have the easiest access to your data as well; you could access data from any type of device. You could also use it like an online file storage/access portal as well! Unlike some of the other online data backup providers, Carbonite does provide backup services for iphones and ipads!
    play.google.com/store/apps/details
    www.carbonite.com/online-backup/pricing-plans
  • SOS's Online Backup plans aren't the cheapest but it's hard to compare apples to apples in this industry. For example, SOS's continuous data backup feature, which backs up a new version of a file the instant it's changed, is a killer feature that I haven't seen elsewhere!

There are other "alternative" solutions such as NAS Drives (Network Accessible Storage Drive) and other alternative services like Google Drive, DropBox, SkyDrive, Etc. But we will get into those later :)

Let us know if you have any questions or comments!

Jon Pienkowski
Pacific NorthWest Computers
www.pnwcomputers.com
360-624-7379

New Virus Alert: CryptoLocker!


A New Virus Has Surfaced ~ CryptoLocker

CryptoLocker is a new, nasty piece of malicious software that is infecting computers around the world; encrypting important files and demanding a ransom to unlock them. If you get hit with this virus you risk having your personal data encrypted and lost for good!

This sophisticated malware is delivered the old-fashioned way – an executable file hidden inside an attachment that looks like an ordinary ZIP file or PDF. One small business reports being compromised after clicking on an email attachment that was designed to look like a shipping invoice from the U.S. Postal Service.

The CryptoLocker virus can be removed from an infected system, but unfortunately at this time there is no way to retrieve the private key that can be used to decrypt your files without paying the ransom. Brute forcing the decryption key is not realistic due to the length of time required to break the key. Also any decryption tools that have been released by various companies will not work with this infection. The only method you have of restoring your files is from a backup or Shadow Volume Copies if you have System Restore enabled. Newer variants of CryptoLocker attempt to delete the Shadow Copies, but it is not always successful.

Preventive Measures:
  1. BACKUP ALL OF YOUR DATA ASAP! That’s the only way to reduce the risk of losing your files forever. Also, to avoid getting your backup's encrypted your backup device should be disconnected from your computer until the next time you need to access it or run a backup. 
  2. Download and install a free utility called 'Crypto Prevent'. Crypto Prevent is a small utility that changes a few settings in your computer to help prevent the CryptoLocker infection from happening in the first place! Its not a golden bullet however, so having current data backups is your ulitimate defense. You can downloading the Crypto Prevent utility directly from the link below!
http://www.foolishit.com/vb6-projects/cryptoprevent/

If you need any assistance we can setup a visit to help secure and backup your computer for you!

Let us know if you have any questions or issues!

Jon Pienkowski
Pacific NorthWest Computers
www.pnwcomputers.com
360-624-7379