6mo ago

Is a cloud backup an acceptable backup for a home server?

If I have a home server connected to Proton Drive for example, would that be sufficient to back up my data?

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The common wisdom about backups is the 3-2-1 backup strategy, which recommends:
3 total copies of your data, including your original or “production” data
2 different forms of media
1 off-site copy
Proton Drive can be a decent off-site backup, but it would be a good idea to make a separate backup of your data on a different form of media like an external hard drive, just in case Proton Drive goes down, or the data there gets corrupted and you need to restore a known good version.
- Since my current data store isn't massive at the moment, if I have a fire (and I'm home), part of my plan is to grab my NAS on the way out.
  But I still have off-site backup (and a local duplicate of my data).
  
  Just always keep in mind that you might not be home and that this might not be your priority in the heat of the moment (no pun intended).
  
  But I still have off-site backup
  I also have extensive emergency planning that's documented and practiced. I know what's valuable, and what isn't. Valuable stuff is already protected or planned for, not stuff I need to grab.
  If I needed to leave, right now, I'd be out the door in under 5 minutes and have 3 day's supply of food and water (with a compact cook kit), a week of clothes including cold-weather gear, phone chargers, batteries, flashlights, blankets, spare sunglasses, medicines, first aid kit, a small tool kit, spare glasses, etc, etc. And this list of stuff is documented.
  Grabbing my little 5lb NAS is a trivial add-on that was only added to the list once everything else was organized. And it has its own bag, only need the NAS and power supply. I've added a handle to it (mostly to make it easy to move around), and everything has large, clear labels (no guessing which power supply goes with what device).

40 comments