Backing Up Your Data

Regular file backups are a part of good digital hygiene. It's important to back up your data for those unexpected moments when something goes wrong and years' worth of photos are suddenly erased (or worse, stolen). We tend to ignore the need to back up our files until it's too late. Fortunately, modern technology is making it easier to back up files quickly—even automatically. It's a great relief to know your data is secured and available.

Cloud vs. Local Storage

For decades, the safest and best way to preserve copies of data was on external drives or servers—USB sticks, DVDs, even floppy disks. With the advent of near-universal internet access, many people are switching to cloud storage services, like Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive. Here's a breakdown of each type of storage:

Box: Our University's Solution

Our university officially uses and recommends Box, a cloud storage service. Box integrates with the Microsoft suite, giving you all the functionality of OneDrive. It also supports sharing, collaborative editing, and near-universal file previewing. All students and employees automatically have a Box account attached to their NetID - it's a simple as logging in. With Box, you'll have storage space to save files only related to university work until you graduate or leave the university.