Cloud Backup and Storage

Cloud backup copies the data on your computers, phones, servers, and NAS devices to secure off-site data centers over the internet, so a second copy exists somewhere your own hardware can't take down with it. When a drive fails, a laptop is stolen, or ransomware encrypts a network share, you restore from that copy instead of starting over.

It's the practical way to satisfy the 3-2-1 rule that data protection professionals recommend: three copies of your data, on two types of media, with one copy kept off-site. Shipping drives to another building satisfies the rule too. Cloud backup just does it automatically, every day, without anyone remembering to.

Google Drive, OneDrive, and Dropbox mirror a folder across your devices. That's sync, and sync is not backup. Delete a file or let ransomware encrypt one, and the change is copied everywhere within seconds. Your second copy becomes just as broken as the first.

Cloud backup keeps history instead of mirroring the present. IDrive retains up to 30 previous versions of every backed-up file, and those versions don't count against your storage quota. Its Snapshots feature gives you a point-in-time view of your whole account, so after a ransomware incident you pick a date from before the infection and roll back to it. True Archiving means nothing leaves your IDrive account because it left your computer. Files stay until you delete them yourself or run Archive Cleanup.

• One account, every device. Back up Windows PCs, Macs, Linux machines, iPhones, iPads, Android devices, servers, external drives, and Synology or QNAP NAS units into a single IDrive account, priced on storage rather than per machine.
• Automatic and incremental. After the first full backup, IDrive transfers only the changed portions of a file. Continuous Data Protection picks up edits as you make them, between scheduled runs, so frequently edited documents are never more than minutes behind.
• Restore however you need to. Recover a single file from a browser, roll back to an earlier version, restore deleted files from Trash within 30 days, or rebuild an entire machine from a disk image. For very large restores, IDrive Express ships a physical drive so recovery doesn't depend on your bandwidth.
• Covers your SaaS data too. Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, Salesforce, Dropbox, and Box all operate on a shared responsibility model: they keep the service running, you stay responsible for your data. IDrive backs those accounts up as an add-on.

Files are encrypted with 256-bit AES in transit and at rest. Choose a private encryption key and it is never stored on IDrive servers, which means nobody at IDrive can read your data. It also means only you can recover that key, so store it somewhere safe.

Is cloud backup the same as cloud storage?
No. Cloud storage holds files you put there. Cloud backup automatically protects the files already on your devices and keeps historical versions you can restore from.

How long does the first backup take?
It depends on how much data you have and your upload speed. The first full backup is the slow one. Everything after that is incremental and typically finishes in minutes. For multi-terabyte first backups, IDrive Express ships you a drive instead.

Does cloud backup protect against ransomware?
It does when it keeps versions. Because IDrive stores up to 30 versions and offers point-in-time Snapshots, you can restore files as they existed before an attack. Sync-only services can't do this reliably.

Can I back up more than one computer?
Yes. Multiple computers, phones, servers, and NAS devices back up to one IDrive account.

What happens if I delete a file from my computer?
Nothing, in your backup. True Archiving keeps it in your IDrive account until you remove it manually or run Archive Cleanup.c