Just in time for the start of the semester, Marty and Eric talk about ways you can organize and manage your document backups

The Simple Backup Plan (3-2-1)

Rule: 3 copies, 2 types of storage, 1 off-site.

Step-by-step (7 steps)

Make a home base: Create folders: Teaching, Research, Service, Admin.

Turn on encryption: FileVault (Mac) / BitLocker (Win).

Cloud copy (off-site): Save active work inside OneDrive/Google Drive/Box (edu account). Make sure version history is on.

Local versioned copy:

Mac → Time Machine to an external drive/NAS.

Windows → File History/Windows Backup to an external drive/NAS.

Air-gapped copy (optional but great): A second encrypted SSD you plug in weekly, back up, then unplug and keep elsewhere (office/home).

Label & note: Keep a one-page “Backup Map” listing where copies live and how to restore.

Test restore: Once a quarter, restore one random file from each place.

Weekly rhythm (easy to remember)

Daily: Work from your cloud-synced folder.

Weekly (Fri): Plug drive, let Time Machine/File History run; if you have a second SSD, run it, unplug, store off-site.

Quarterly: Do a 5-minute test restore.

Tips that prevent headaches

Compliance first: Use IT/IRB-approved storage for FERPA/PHI/IRB data.

Ransomware safety: Keep one offline copy or use cloud “file lock/immutable” if available.

Email ≠ backup: Export gradebooks/key emails (PDF/CSV) into your term folders.

Name things clearly: 2025-FA COUN62356 Syllabus v03.docx.

Exclude junk: Downloads, caches, node_modules, giant temp files.

Notifications on: Set backup apps to alert on failures.

One-line defaults (pick these if unsure)

Cloud: OneDrive (edu)

Local backup: Time Machine (Mac) / File History (Win)

Extra SSD: 2TB USB-C, encrypted

iDrive

Idrive.com

Backblaze
Backblaze.com 

Carbonite
Carbonite.com

pCloud

pCloud.com

Sync
Sync.com 

Crashplan

Crashplan.com

GoogleOne
one.google.com 

OneDrive

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/onedrive/online-cloud-storage

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