It only took a few hours after launching, but Google Drive, the new cloud storage service, is already facing widespread criticism when it was discovered that the search giant owns its users’ files the moment they are uploaded.

This is not the first time Google has dealt with privacy concerns, and it certainly won’t be the last. However, while past allegations have mostly surrounded users’ personal information and how Google uses it, this controversy has to do with users’ personal uploaded files and data, and what Google can potentially do with this information.

In order to understand the extent to which Google controls your data, it’s first important to examine Google’s Terms of service, as well as KineticD’s for comparison:

KineticD’s Terms of Service – for full terms, click here:

“END USER acknowledges and agrees that all materials, including without limitation, information, data, software, music, sound, photographs, graphics, video, and email messages or other kinds of messages (collectively, "Content"), whether publicly posted or privately transmitted, are the sole responsibility of END USER.”

Google Drive's Terms of Service - for full terms, click here:

"Your Content in our Services: When you upload or otherwise submit content to our Services, you give Google (and those we work with) a worldwide licence to use, host, store, reproduce, modify, create derivative works (such as those resulting from translations, adaptations or other changes that we make so that your content works better with our Services), communicate, publish, publicly perform, publicly display and distribute such content.

The rights that you grant in this licence are for the limited purpose of operating, promoting and improving our Services, and to develop new ones. This licence continues even if you stop using our Services (for example, for a business listing that you have added to Google Maps)."

While it is made very clear throughout the first paragraph that Google does indeed own your data the second it’s uploaded, the last sentence is potentially even more concerning than any other area of the terms.

In that sentence, Google never clearly defines what exactly it can do with your data, and they only provide one simple example of a Google Maps listing, while leaving the rest open to interpretation.

Without a clear definition of boundaries, it seems that Google can simply do what it chooses to with your data, and the wording in these terms expunges them from any legal obligations.

It’s important to note at this point that while Google has done a commendable job of providing free services for over a decade now (seriously, no company provides more free and useful services), there really is no such thing as a free lunch, as they say.

“If you’re not paying for the product, you are the product”

This saying has never rung truer than it does in today’s digital age, especially in Google’s case. If you are not paying for a service, then you, and more importantly, your data, is the product that is being sold. With Gmail, Google Search, Google+, Google Maps, Google News, and so many other “free” data-gathering products already at their disposal, adding Google Drive to the arsenal is just the next logical piece to be added to the massive data mining puzzle.

With that in mind, and considering Google’s checkered past regarding privacy issues, it’s more necessary than ever to read the fine print and always understand who really controls your files, and what, exactly, they can potentially be used for.

As we negotiate our way through another very promising new year in the cloud computing world, there is still some widespread confusion with various aspects of cloud backup. One of these points of confusion seems to be the difference between “synchronization” and “backup.” Today we are going to define what each term means, examine the differences between the two, and give you a clear road map on what to look for in a data backup service.

Let’s begin by taking a look at how Wikipedia defines both “synchronization” and “backup.”

“Data synchronization refers to the idea of keeping multiple copies of a dataset in coherence with one another.”

“Backup or the process of backing up is making copies of data which may be used to restore the original after a data loss event.”


From these definitions alone we can immediately see that these are two very different concepts and processes. Simply put, when you synchronize in the cloud world, you are backing up specific files. Conversely, when you run a backup process, you are copying all of your specified data so that it can be recovered and restored following a data loss event.

Dropbox, the popular file-sharing service, is a web-based file hosting service that uses file synchronization to enable their users to store and access files and folders with other users across the Internet. Of course, if you were to suffer a data loss event, only those files you synced through Dropbox would be recovered. For instance, in the case of the all-too-familiar server crash, you ideally would need your operating system, program files, and all user files to be recovered and restored as soon as possible.

From this example we can conclude that the process of synchronization has its shortcomings when it comes to securing the full slate of your crucial data at all times.

Looking at this from the perspective of a small or medium sized business owner, synchronization likely does not provide you with enough data protection capabilities. With that in mind, if you are looking to start backing up your data on the cloud, here are some important considerations to keep in mind when choosing a cloud backup service that will give you more than just file synchronization:

1) Can the cloud backup service scale as your data growth increases? As your company expands your data grows with it, and it is important to find a service that can scale the backup of your data at the same pace as the data itself grows. Additionally, if you are a small or medium sized business owner you may not need a ton of storage room at the beginning, but finding the right service provider that can protect all of your data at any point of your business life cycle should be of paramount importance.

2) Does the backup service provide a hybrid cloud solution? Since the best and safest way to backup your data is to store it in at least 2 separate places, a hybrid backup solution keeps a local copy on your machine or local network and one in a secure data center, which should be replicated for security and redundancy. This is not only safer but also has the added benefit of speeding up the recovery process should something go wrong.

3) Is this a secure backup service? Investigate the backup provider fully. How long have they been around? What is their historical recovery track record? Are they using advanced encryption technology? What are others saying about them?

4) Is the backup automatic? Find a backup service that automatically backs up your data in the background with no interference or slowdowns to you and your employees.

5) Does the backup service provide a customizable retention policy? As your business may have different retention policies than others, it is important to find a service provider that allows you to adhere to your backup data retention policies. Using granular backup schedules, you should have the option of setting the number of daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly generations to be kept in the cloud.

It’s important to make sure you get the answers to these important questions before you make a decision.

At KineticD we have developed advanced software solutions to put all these concerns at ease. Our products are designed to meet the small and medium sized business owner’s needs and provide you with enterprise-level security at a fraction of the cost. Not convinced yet? Try out our  free 14 day trial today and see how we can help you meet your backup needs.

Finally, we’d just like to wish all our devoted readers a happy and healthy new year. 2012 is going to be a very exciting year for KineticD and our valued customers. We recently just reached the one petabyte storage milestone with 100% data recovery track record! That’s the first of many more exciting announcements to come this year so stay tuned for those announcements as well as upcoming tips and useful information in the cloud backup space by subscribing to our RSS feed or following us on Twitter, Facebook or Google+.  

Any questions? Let us know in the comments below!

In a perfect world, there would be no need to backup your company’s data; computers and hard drives would last forever, outside threats like malicious hackers and natural disasters would be non-existent and employees would never forget to save a file. Of course, this perfect world, unfortunately, does not exist, and for this reason, businesses of all types and sizes know that keeping their data backed up and protected at all times must be of the utmost priority if they wish to remain in business in the first place.

However, just as there is no perfect world, there is also no perfect backup solution. Indeed, from the relatively ancient technology of the digital tape all the way to modern day continuous online backup, there are myriad things that can potentially go wrong with whatever method of data backup you might choose. Nevertheless, of all the backup methods available, online data backup is by far the most successful data security method when it comes to avoiding bad backups. So, how does cloud storage seek to overcome the unfortunate inevitability of occasional data errors and other backup hindering problems?

Automatic data backup logs and recovery tools
Unlike the more antiquated methods of backing up data, most online data backup client software includes the capability of instantly tracking and subsequently correcting the errors that can lead to unsuccessful backup attempts. Although less commonly catastrophic with incremental backup methods, unforeseen events like power failures can still lead to incomplete or error-filled backups when utilizing cloud services. The more advanced online data backup companies meet the challenge of overcoming dangers like these through the use of backup logs and automatic system assessment tools that alert both the cloud vendor and end user that something has gone wrong with the data backup process. In fact, in many cases, the client software installed on the company’s computers will automatically scan for errors, fix any it might find and then resume backup automatically.

Maintaining data security through advanced encryption methods
Of course, since online backup involves the transfer of sensitive company files over the Internet to the backup company’s servers, and files in transit can of course potentially be vulnerable to interception, online backup companies must employ high-grade levels of data encryption to keep their customers’ data out of the wrong hands. Files are often encrypted on the client’s end, before they are sent to the online backup company’s servers, and, once there, further encryption methods are often employed. As an additional security step, in many cases the data cannot be unencrypted by the online backup company at all while being stored on their servers because, through the use of client-side encryption keys, the client is the only one that can actually unlock the encryption and access their files, which of course serves to further guarantee that the data of a given enterprise remains completely private.

Hybrid backup solutions
As stated before, there is no perfect backup method, and any modern day cloud storage provider of merit understands that no matter what level of data encryption is implemented to protect their customers’ data (both while on their servers and in transit between them and the end user), hackers, eavesdroppers and packet sniffers could still, at any time, potentially threaten the integrity of your company’s backup. For this reason, many forward-thinking online data backup providers are beginning to encourage their users to house an onsite copy of their backup in addition to the one on the online backup company’s servers. This effectively creates a new hybrid form of backup in which data is passed both to the onsite servers and those of the cloud vendor at the same time. Another advantage to this dual-layered backup approach is the speed at which companies can achieve a complete system restore from a local backup cache as opposed to one that is online.

At KineticD, we take the security of our clients’ data very seriously indeed, and that is why we have created the most advanced software around for our data protection solutions for small and medium businesses. Our software instantly reports any problem that may occur with your continuous backup procedure so that it can be remedied immediately. We use the highest level bank-grade encryption available to keep your data as protected as possible, and we also employ extensive data mirroring (keeping multiple copies of your data at physically separate locations) so that you never have to worry about us losing any of your files due to unforeseen, geographically specific circumstances like fires, earthquakes or theft. Above all, we know that a bad backup means that you might as well have no backup up at all, so that is why we go out of our way on every level possible to maintain the integrity of all the files that you choose to back up with KineticD.

When it comes to the decisions made by businesses, money is almost always, above and beyond, the bottom line. And for good reason; the purpose of creating and developing a business in the first place is, of course, to generate capital, and so it’s no wonder that more and more enterprises of all sizes are turning toward cloud storage solutions to cut costs when it comes to their IT, data management and backup concerns.

But, how does the cloud help businesses save money in the first place? Well, first and foremost, the scalable solutions offered by many online data backup and cloud storage providers allow companies the ability to only pay for the amount of infrastructure that they need at any given time, and this is especially advantageous for SMBs. Indeed, by allowing the bulk of their data management and backup needs to be handled by a third party provider, businesses of all sizes can instantly cut costs by not having to invest unnecessary funds toward the creation of expensive in-house data management systems and IT infrastructure. Much like the obvious efficiency of purchasing your electricity from a utility company as opposed to erecting your own personal power plant, outsourcing your data management needs to a third party should be considered a “no-brainer” for businesses of almost all sizes and types.

However, while the scalability of online data backup and cloud computing solutions is becoming more and more of a well known (and thus increasingly sought after) commodity, it is also unfortunately easy for businesses to underestimate the myriad additional cost reductions that can also come about by taking advantage of what the cloud has to offer. After all, it is a well known axiom that “time is money”, and the easier it is for the employees of a given enterprise to access, share and protect their data, the more time that is saved, and thus the more money. The utilization of third party cloud storage service providers allows businesses to keep their IT slowdowns (and indeed shutdowns) to a minimum, and the “set it and forget it” nature of automatic, incremental online data backup also help businesses save time and cut costs.

It is for these reasons and many more that businesses are turning in increasing numbers to the cloud for the management and protection of all of their company data, with the amount of new enterprises signing up increasing at an average of 18% a year. Usually, the main aspect that initially attracts many businesses to begin harnessing the power of the cloud is the immediate and obvious savings that they can reap. However, over time, it is the previously mentioned factors of sheer convenience offered by cloud computing that keeps them signed on year after year. For example, once a business gets used to its employees having the ability to easily access any of the enterprise’s files that they might need during important business trips, the harder it is going to be to decide to go back to the more traditional, internal IT infrastructures of days gone by.

Indeed, the real long-term savings that cloud computing can help bring about for your enterprise take many subtle forms, and often have to do with the convenience that they bring to your business, and thus these savings can often be somewhat difficult to quantify. However, we here at KineticD think that once you give our online cloud storage and backup solution a try, you’ll be hard-pressed to want to keep doing things the old-fashioned way. That’s why we are offering our free 14-day trial, so that SMBs can test our services out for themselves at no risk and see just what outsourcing their data concerns to the cloud can do to help save them time and money.

On the 13th of October, online backup and data storage  got a reality check. Backify, a LiveDrive powered cloud backup and recovery vendor, announced free storage of up to 512 GB with an option to “upgrade” to “unlimited space”. But, while the whispers, mutterings and wonderings were reaching a crescendo, LiveDrive announced that it was blacklisting Backify and withdrawing support because the firm was “a fly-by-night” operation and had not paid the fees due to the parent company, according to LiveDrive MD, Andrew Michael.

In today's world of sophisticated phishing sites, where businesses exist that illegally make money by disguising malicious software as antivirus solutions for example, the Backify offer "smelt" sour to many right away. I guess it's the simple truth that if something sounds too good to be true, it often is. A blogging web site, http://blog.forret.com immediately looked at the offering from that angle. And when testing the offering, saw tha t the backup client they downloaded didn't say "Backify" but was called "LiveDrive". However " neither the Terms of Use or the Privacy Statement mention the LiveDrive company or product."

LiveDrive's official statement is that it cut ties with Backify because it had misused the “trust” of the business relationship with LiveDrive. Backify had assumed a conflicting role in the market and was indulging in unfair practices. While LiveDrive was offering “unlimited” space for $39 a month, Backify was offering the same for just $2.99 a month. Though LiveDrive claims that it has no problems with that, it was deeply embarrassed when customers (who discovered the engine behind Backify services) began to demand that LiveDrive offer them the same service at the Backify prices or lack of it.

Further, the firm’s credit card declined with each new payment to LiveDrive resulting in a stalemate. Backify in turn blamed LiveDrive and has stated in their homepage that Customers are having problems with their accounts due to “errors in the LiveDrive API”. They further insisted that LiveDrive was responsible for the problems with their payment systems and the former had responded to their complaints by terminating the reseller contract and all accounts created on their server.

Unfortunately, this has not helped the hundreds of customers who signed up for Backify’s services on “faith”. They suddenly found themselves being charged for services that were purportedly offered to them for free and then left floundering as Backify ceased operations overnight and all phone calls to the firm reached the voicemail. Moreover, LiveDrive informed them that their data has vanished into cyberspace and they no longer have access to the accounts that were made available to them by Backify.

We at KineticD, feel that this is just another example of a practice that reminds us all too well of 1999. The dot.com bubble, when you could get everything for free online. Startups tried to justify it with "grabbing market share" at all cost. Once they had the market share they would build a business on it. We all know how that story ended. Cloud or Online Backup companies need to survive in the business world. If they don't survive your data doesn't either.  It is your choice of how much of a gamble you want to engage in when backing up your data; however, if you rely on retrieving your backups when you need them, use common sense when selecting a provider. The cheapest offering on the market, is probably just that, or it might even be a HOAX or a fraud scheme.

There is no doubt about it; no one can dispute the importance of consistently backing up your company’s information if you want to avoid data loss disasters. However, if you really want to be sure that you are doing everything within your power to protect your company’s data from corruption, infiltration from hackers and all other forms of data loss, there is a lot more that must be considered than just having a solid backup.

Indeed, the fact of the matter is that no matter what level of data encryption is being used, how many redundant, mirrored copies of data are backed up or how well the emergency sprinkler system works in the off-site data storage center, something can always go wrong. This is where risk assessment methods come into play; trying to abstractly assess where things are most likely to go wrong within your company’s IT system. By utilizing one of the many risk assessment protocols available today, your company can more easily predict how likely risks are to happen, and learn how to avoid these risks in the first place as well.

One of the fundamental advances brought about by risk assessment protocols in general has been the creation of glossaries of terms that people can use to more easily describe the often very complicated aspects of risk assessment and management itself. One system that specializes in this field is called “Factor Analysis Information Risk”, or “FAIR”, which gained notoriety after it was endorsed by the chief information security officer of Mutual Insurance. Started back in 1996 by a business community consortium called “The Open Group”, besides seeking to standardize the language of risk, FAIR also seeks to help businesses see how their overall risk levels may eventually effect them financially, on both individual elements of their business’s IT system and macroscopic levels as well, so that they can be more potentially prepared if disaster strikes.

Another very popular risk assessment option that is used by both businesses and government agencies has the unlikely and essentially unpronounceable name of “NISTRMF” (which stands for the even more cumbersome “National Institute of Standards and Technology's Risk Management Framework”). This risk assessment protocol can be applied to any information technology system, and has been found to be highly effective at both analyzing risk levels within companies or organizations and also helping them find out just how effective the methods that they are currently employing to minimize risk are in the first place. In addition to this, NISTRMF specializes in helping government agencies everywhere match their security levels to the standards set by the federal government.

While many of these risk assessment protocols are available to almost all enterprises, some companies have gotten big enough that they have created their own risk assessment systems. One of these is TARA (or “Threat Agent Risk Assessment”), which was created by Intel. Like many of the other risk assessment methods, the goal of TARA is to help companies find out where their highest levels of risk potentially exist, and what they can do to both minimize these risks and be prepared to deal with them if they do indeed come into fruition. In addition to this, Intel has created a huge filing system that is available to all users of TARA, within which they have stored massive amounts of data concerning different types of threats and how they have historically been overcome.

There is no doubt about it; competing in the business world is indeed “risky business”, and risk assessment is thus a very important aspect of making sure that your company stays ahead and avoids data loss and other IT disasters. And, while no system is perfect, by using a combination or risk assessment systems, security protocols, off-site data backup and other risk management tools, business owners can rest assured that they have done all that they can do in order to keep their company’s assets and information as safe and secure as possible.

There is no denying that cloud computing is in fact the way of the future when it comes to IT for both personal and business use. Small and large enterprises everywhere are increasingly turning to utilization of the cloud to get the most out of their data. However, regardless of all of this new found popularity, there are a lot of folks out there who might still be wondering, “What is cloud computing, anyway?”

Well, to start off, the expression “cloud computing” itself comes from visual abstractions that were drawn up in the past to illustrate the networks created by telephone systems, and later for computer networks within businesses and the Internet itself. All of these ended up resembling a cloud-like structure. As far as a simple definition is concerned, cloud computing is the process in which individuals and businesses alike can access applications and data that are stored on hard drives and servers that are housed remotely, allowing the individual or company to have equal access to this information from almost any location through the use of client and web-based interfaces. Users of cloud services are able to enjoy many advantages, including file sharing, file versioning, remote data access and automatic backups of their in-house computers and databases.

There are also many different types of clouds out there to choose from! One of the oldest types is called an “internal cloud”, which is the name for any cloud network that is created by and housed in the enterprise that is using it. ”Private clouds” are networks in which the administrator’s data is strictly personal and thus never shared with anyone, while public clouds are the type that allow for the sharing of data and collaboration in the cloud. Furthermore, a “virtual private cloud” is one that is contained and delivered over a public network, but is made virtually private through the use of special tools and data encryption. Finally, an “external cloud” refers to the type of cloud computing that is currently becoming more and more 'in vogue' with businesses, and would be defined as a public cloud operated and maintained over a private network by a third party. Nowadays, the third party in question is often an online data backup company.

Of course, the increase in the popularity of cloud computing is certainly easy to understand when you consider the multi-fold advantages that participating in cloud computing can bring about. Smaller businesses can use the cloud to make up for their lack of data storage facilities and processing power, while businesses of all sizes can enjoy the peace of mind, knowing that their backed up data is in safe hands. Not to mention save money that they would have otherwise have had to spend on creating their own separate storage services. Both of these major advantages are serving to change the entire nature of IT for business from the ground up, with the convenience and accessibility of cloud computing becoming more and more expected from businesses of almost all types and sizes.

We here at KineticD are very proud to be part of this revolution in IT, and we understand that many small to medium-sized businesses have a lot of tough choices to make when it comes to how they are going to implement their IT infrastructure in this increasingly cloud-based IT business environment. We believe that we do indeed have the solution; large enterprise-grade online backup and cloud computing services at a price that smaller businesses can afford and a scalable pricing system that can accommodate for a growing business’ often rapidly changing needs. After all, why shouldn’t your business have all the tools that current technologies have to offer? That is why we came up with KineticSecure and KineticExtend, our all-in-one online backup and data mobility suites that are specifically tailored with modern day small to mid-sized business in mind. And, to make sure that all businesses can have an equal chance to try out our services, we always extend a free 14-day trial to our potential customers, so there’s truly no excuse not to check out what the KineticD advantage is all about!

There is no doubt about it; online data backup has opened the doors to many new innovations and information access methods that help businesses of all types and sizes to truly get the most they can out of their data. These new advantages are now afforded to companies of all sizes, which has served to level the playing field when it comes to competition. Small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) everywhere have tools that up until now were only available to the bigger enterprises, now at their disposal. With cloud computing, the world of disaster recovery, mobile data access and global cloud collaboration are letting businesses everywhere enjoy an unprecedented level of data flexibility that would have been unthinkable only several years ago.

However, it is important to keep in mind the aspect of online data backup that lies at the heart of all of this new found data efficiency; keeping your system backed up in the first place! It’s a sad fact that massive data loss has been the culprit of many a developing business’ demise, and automatic, online data backup helps keep this from happening to developing businesses. This is done by relieving them of the burden of having to be disciplined about backing up at all. Indeed, with online data backup, companies can simply “set it and forget it” as they say, and get on with other business matters that are more developmentally important to their burgeoning enterprise. Furthermore, the advanced encryption levels now used in online data backup ensure that a company is not putting itself in the position of suffering any sort of security vulnerabilities by backing up, or accessing and sharing, their data in the cloud.

The nature of business itself is changing, with enterprises of all sizes now required to be more mobile in order to keep up with the competition. Gone are the days when a business could simply set up shop somewhere and rely solely on telecommunications and email to interface with the outside world. As technologies of all types, including phones and computers, have become more and more mobile in society in general, so too has the business world. Business information now needs to be accessible from anywhere at any time to maintain its value and relevance. Online data backup spearheaded this revolution by bringing about a scenario in which all of a company’s data is centralized, constantly up to date, and accessible in a variety of ways from any location. Businesses no longer have to put off expanding due to the often expensive overhead of wide area networks. Online data backup makes it possible to have as many different locations or branches as your business can afford.

Collaboration, both within a company and with other businesses worldwide, is now easily achieved and quite common using the power of cloud computing. Multiple users can now combine forces to work on a single file or group of files, with all parties being able to alter the data they are accessing at will without fear of making mistakes. This is due not only to the power of cloud computing, but also to the implementation of file versioning by the online backup companies; a practice in which older versions of files are temporarily saved on the online backup cache in case there is a mis-save or corruption to the version of the file that is being edited. In addition to this, when seeking to collaborate with others on businesses trips, employees no longer need to worry about having all of their data with them on their mobile device. Instead, if they forget something, or just don’t want to take the time to copy all the files they might need onto their laptop or other portable digital device, they can simply access the data from the online backup servers, or from their business PC itself. This is done using mobile desktop applications, which are now often supplied by many online data backup companies.

We here at KineticD make it a top priority that any business who’s data we are protecting enjoy the greatest flexibility possible when it comes to accessing and using that data in the first place. KineticSecure, our online backup service, backs up your company’s data continuously while KineticExtend, our suite of mobile data applications, makes your company’s data available to employees wherever they might be - through easy-to-use graphic interfaces that are either web or client-based. With the rock-solid reliability of our data backup system, our state-of-the-art cloud computing services and the around-the-clock availability of our customer service team, it's no wonder that every day more and more SMBs everywhere are turning to KineticD to help them both protect and get the most out of their data.

When it comes to the configuration and implementation of IT for small to medium-sized businesses, the times are indeed “a’changin’”. Gone are the days when corporate IT administrators had to be tethered to their data centers in order to oversee and manipulate the day-to-day goings on with business data. Through the widespread popularity of online data backup and cloud computing, IT administrators everywhere are now able to monitor, access and otherwise manage their company’s data from anywhere, including while on the go. So they can use laptops, smartphones and other portable digital devices.

Cloud computing itself has undergone quite an improvement with the more common use of web-based interfaces to interact with online data. Unlike in the past, when the only way to access an online data backup company’s servers was through the use of specialized client software (which, due to its more advanced capabilities than web-based applications, is still in common usage and usually forms the primary communication and data transportation method for online data backup). Nowadays, small to medium-sized businesses everywhere are enjoying heightened levels of data access through the use of simple web-based interfaces, which can allow multiple users to access varying levels of company data from almost anywhere - as long as either Internet access or cell phone reception is available.

In addition to this, IT administrators can now enjoy new ease in the creation of users, the assigning of users to various groups, the deletion of users and the awarding of varying levels of rights and permissions to users - all while on the go! Ready access to audit logs that keep track of all user activity on a company’s system is another added perk to modern day online data backup, with IT administrators now automatically being alerted as to when any unauthorized activities are attempted by users, or of any other suspicious or unusual activity that may be taking place with any data or hardware on the system. This allows the IT administrators to be kept more up-to-date and security-aware than ever. And the list goes on; using either the client software or the web-based portal, administrators can schedule when backups are to take place, be alerted of any corrupted file that may be stored on the system (before it becomes a real problem!), create backup sets and much, much more.

Also, many activities that used to have to be carried out manually by the person in charge of the company’s IT system can now be set to be performed automatically by the online data backup company’s software. This includes bandwidth throttling and the analysis of which folders or hard drives experience the most changes in data. Thereby identifying which ones could be potentially better preserved through the use of continuous backups, as opposed to only scheduled ones. Whereas in the past IT had to remember themselves when to schedule backups and double-check that they had indeed successfully taken place, now the process of performing backups can be automated. IT administrators only have to sit back and wait for the post-backup report to be automatically generated and sent to them from the client software or web-based interface! Features like data encryption and compression can also now be automatically applied to in-house data from the online backup company’s software, making the IT administrator’s job even easier!

Of course, we here at KineticD are proud to help make the IT implementation of your small to medium-sized business much more efficient and easier to deal with through the use of our award-winning client and web-based online data backup/cloud computing software. In fact, we specialize in providing enterprise grade services at a price that smaller businesses can afford, without cutting back at all on what we can provide our customers in the process. By using our award-winning KineticSecure and KineticExtend suits of online backup and cloud computing software (voted “Best SaaS Business Application for SMB” by the Security Products Guide), your business will be able to enjoy all the features discussed above and more. Don’t just take our word for it - sign up for our free 14-day trial today and find out just how easy IT can be with KineticD!

The increasing popularity of online data backup has served to bring into common usage many innovative new technologies, one of which is data deduplication. Simply put, data deduplication is the process in which redundant (or duplicated) data is removed from disk storage, with only one copy of the previously duplicated data remaining. This lone copy is then designated with references to all the files that it pertains to so that all of these files remain functionally intact. This method of data compression helps save disk space and also serves to speed up the data transfer times necessary for backing up.

Now, technology experts might be quick to point out that data deduplication is not literally a technology unto itself, due to the fact that it can be performed in different ways using different types of technologies. There are two main types of data deduplication, “in-line” and “post-process”. With in-line data deduplication, data is deduplicated as it is stored onto the hard drive or server being used, while post-process deduplication, as its name implies, involves data undergoing the deduplication process after it has been transferred on the digital storage device. The latter of these methods is the older and more common form of deduplication, with many companies claiming that deduplicating at the time of committing the information to the storage device (once again, “in-line” data deduplication) is too time-consuming a process. However, most online backup companies today employ some combination of both methods in order to bring about the most efficient and stable deduplicating process.

So, what is so important about deduplication when it comes to online data backup? Well, as businesses everywhere continue to create more and more data, storage space may indeed become a financial concern - on both the company’s servers and the online backup account. Deduplication can help keep these data storage costs to a minimum. In addition to this, many larger companies find it difficult to schedule backups due to a lack of ideal downtime of their company’s systems. Deduplication helps cut down on the amount of data that needs to be transferred during these backups, allowing companies to devote less of their system’s bandwidth resources toward the backup process and more toward other important aspects of their business. All while saving on overall digital storage space as well.

Of course, we here at KineticD take the job of making sure that our customers have the most efficient and hassle-free online data backup implementation available very seriously, and that includes the practice of data deduplication. With KineticSecure and KineticExtend, our all-in-one suites of online backup and cloud computing services, your business will automatically have data deduplication services at your disposal. Our client software will detect all unnecessary duplicate files and eliminate them from the online backup during the backup process, saving your company time through faster system backups, and money you might otherwise be forced to spend toward larger amounts of storage space. Our extensive data deduplication process also makes it possible to offer extensive versioning of your online files, allowing you to retrieve much older versions of files that you may have deleted from your system in order to save disk space.

For these reasons and many more, we invite you to give our award-winning online backup and cloud computing services a try today. With our free 14-day trial your company has nothing to lose, and yet so much to gain!