Having an up-to-date copy of your data and files is crucial for anyone with a computer, but even more so for businesses. Many small businesses forsake backing up because they think of it as costly and time consuming, but that doesn’t necessarily have to be the case.

Put simply, a backup is just a copy of your data – it could be anything from a single file, to a folder, but more likely, your entire drive. On-site backups are more convenient but you’re not protected against natural disasters or fire like you are with off-site backups.

One of the most common ways to back up for home users and business users is by using an external hard drive. These are really cheap nowadays – with 1TB HDDs readily available for around £50 – and are relatively fast. For some businesses, stocking up on a load of these and copying your files onto them once or twice a week will be sufficient. Remember to store at least one off site though. Windows and Apple provide free programs to make backing up easier, using Windows Backup and Time Machine, respectively.

Another option is to avoid hardware backups and go for a cloud solution. The cloud has revolutionised backing up for many small businesses; it’s now possible to backup data off-site at a fraction of the cost. You can use any cloud solution package, including Dropbox, but for businesses Carbonite and Mozy are good.