Dropbox is one of the oldest names around when it comes to cloud file storage, and the company has built a reputation as a reliable platform for file sharing and collaboration. Recently, Dropbox has been taking a few sidesteps from its roots and promising secure data backup features along with its staple file sync and share. Dropbox is not alone here. Most cloud storage solutions seem to be trying their hands at backup -- if not in practice, at least in terminology.

Data loss events frequently occur, but it seems that a good portion of companies are not fully prepared for these damaging events. An Avast report states that 60% of all backups performed are incomplete and restores fail 50% of the time. An increasing number of organizations depend on digital data, so data backup and recovery should be a top priority to potentially minimize both downtime and loss of data and ensure continuity of business operations.

A while back, we wrote about the differences between backup and data protection. While the points made there are still valid, the industry’s definitions of these terms have continued to evolve, as has our thinking on the topic. At N-able, we’ve settled on a definition shared by analyst firm William Blair in a recent report: data protection solutions should include backup, disaster recovery, and archiving/retention of backups.

Microsoft’s OneDrive has proven itself a reliable platform to store and share files, and considering its ubiquity among Windows users, it’s often a small business owner’s first foray into leveraging the cloud for their operational needs. That familiarity leads many end users to wonder if OneDrive can be more than a file storage and sharing app -- could OneDrive also help me backup and protect my files?

With the surge of remote workers and a need for increased flexibility, the traditional workplace is a thing of the past. According to Slack’s Future-Forum Pulse Report, the percentage of people working in hybrid and remote arrangements has increased to 58% in the United States. This means that organizations will need to adapt to a hybrid model to maximize employee productivity while supporting collaboration in and out of the office.

In 2022, we have a massive amount of data storage services right at our fingertips. From free, local software included on our devices to premium, top-of-the-line cloud storage services that hold up to 15GB of data for free (and a lot more if you pay). Of course, we can't forget the trusty hard drive, the clunky brick you carry around in your bag that acts as a safe haven for your files until you drop it. When it comes to backing up files, safety is often overlooked.

Businesses of all sizes lose an average of $4,500 for every minute of downtime they experience, and often that downtime is a result of data loss. Data loss can occur for a multitude of reasons, such as theft, natural disasters, software corruption, or human error. In addition, you can combat the adverse effects of data loss by creating a backup strategy.