Back up on a web server ?

[fab5freddy]

Does anyone recommend backing up your RAW photo files
on a web server ?

i have 200 GB of space on my web server, and
was thinking of keeping online backup there....Is that a good idea ?

cheers, FF

 

[Nicolasdec]

I Had a very good article about this. now i lost it. I was thinking of doing the same thing i have 1 TB with godaddy of web space. after i read the article i changed my mind. and i heard the same thing in radio and tv shows. Also why did you just go and make a new thread we were chatting about this in the tread you made before.

 

[mattscott306]

FTP upload times are pretty slow, so it's not very economical to use that as a backup. While you can, it's not exactly recommended.

 

[Georgie]

I backup online to a Dreamhost server.

Yeah, I do. The trick is to use rsync. That way only the first upload is really slow (and if you're smart you'll do that first sync from an academic institution or a large corporation with fast upload speeds available). After that, updating your backup from home on a paltry 60k/s uplink isn't so bad. Rsync is the way to go.

I back up to Dreamhost, where I have 500 gigs of space. They're a great deal, and I have only very positive things to say about them (despite the rants of a few, vocal and disgruntled former customers). If you'd like to start an account there, use this code for $50 off: "JORJ_NET_REFER" (that's the setup fee waived).

And finally, google for "rsync backup dreamhost". On the first page you'll find a number of step-by-step accounts of how to set this up. The instructions are easily modified for any other service provider, they're not actually Dreamhost specific. Again, it's the glory of rsync (poor Windows fans don't know what they're missing).

 

[fab5freddy]

thanks george, that seems like a good solution to back up with dreamhost.

i think i'll go with that even though some people are warning me against web crawlers, that will expose your files .....

wonder if there is a way to encrypt the backed up data or password protect certain folders ?

FF

 

[SC68Cal]

thanks george, that seems like a good solution to back up with dreamhost.

i think i'll go with that even though some people are warning me against web crawlers, that will expose your files .....

wonder if there is a way to encrypt the backed up data or password protect certain folders ?

FF

Encrypt it in a .dmg

If you use FTPFS (part of the Google MacFUSE project) you can use this method.

I get leery of using online backups, because you don't control who can access the data, both within the hosting company as well as the public at large.

 

[fab5freddy]

ok, so are you saying that if you encrypt to a dmg file,
then it's ok to back up on a dreamhost web server ?

 

[localoid]

On most Web hosting solutions, you can store files outside the root web directory and no one (or not bot) can access those files via HTTP or a Web browser. You however, as the site owner, can access those files via FTP, SSH, etc. Keep in mind that if your site (or the server) is hacked, your password is cracked, an exploit is discovered, etc. such storage may no longer be secure.

 

[fab5freddy]

sweet! from some of you experts out there it looks like it is safe to back up on a web server. Now the only issue is upload speed of 100 GB of files!
But i could just upload during the night when i am asleep or at work....

 

[eto]

Now the only issue is upload speed of 100 GB of files!
But i could just upload during the night when i am asleep or at work....

Uploading 100 GBs in one shot? ...ouch!

Residential connection? ...ouch!

Make sure to use an FTP client that allows resume. Unless set up properly the server will most likely "forget" about the control initialization and will error out right at transfer completion. Which sucks hard after uploading 100 GBs but is easily taken care of with "resume transfer".
Check out Transmission.