Similarly, a file-level backup may not allow for the recovery of the OS or applications. I have seen situations in which someone created an image backup that was valid for restoring an entire system, but it did not allow for the recovery of individual files or folders. You might, for example, try restoring data to an old PC or even to a virtual machine to verify that things are working as they should.Įven if backups are completing successfully, there are no guarantees that the data within those backups is good or that it can be recovered with the required degree of granularity. Second on our list of personal data backup best practices is to test your backups to ensure you can actually restore your data if needed. Failing to create backups regularly is the single most common mistake that consumers make with regard to their data. As such, you should back up your system on a regular basis. If you've ever had your hard drive fail or suffered data loss as a result of a ransomware attack, you know that any data created or modified since the time of your last backup is gone.

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