It's relatively easy to back up when you're at home or at the office: you can set up a system that fetches data from one or more computers and stores it automatically. But when you're away from your usual equipment, backups become more difficult. Further, you might want to back up some data—specifically, digital photos and videos—even when you're traveling without a laptop.
If you bring your computer along, you face two main questions. First, do you back up your data to local media (DVDs, say, or an external hard drive), or use the Internet to back up to a remote location? Second, if you do choose to back up remotely, what's the best way to do so safely and efficiently?
Note
I cover several options for backing up a laptop while on the road in "Mobile backup tips" in the August 2006 issue of Macworld at http://www.macworld.com/2006/07/secrets/augmobilemac.
Backing up your laptop directly onto a hard drive or to optical discs is invariably quicker than backing up over the Internet. You also avoid any worries about sensitive data being intercepted in transit, and you have a handy copy of your data available for instant restoration if you need it. On the other hand, if your laptop is stolen, left in a car trunk, or otherwise lost, you're likely to lose all your backups at the same time. So a word to the wise: if you choose to keep your backups with you, at least keep them separate from your computer.
Local backups are best for people who generate large volumes of data—videos, for example. If you create several gigabytes of new files every day while away, backing up remotely might simply be too time-consuming. A local backup is also the only good option if you're traveling somewhere without high-speed Internet access.
On the other hand, if you generate only a modest amount of data on the road and fast Internet access is available (especially if it's free fast Internet access!), backing up remotely is an excellent option, because all your data is kept safely off-site. But be sure that the backup software you use encrypts the files before they're sent over the Internet, because otherwise you run a slight risk that a hacker could intercept your private data while it's in transit.
If your Mac laptop has a built-in CD or DVD burner (or if you've brought along an external SuperDrive for your MacBook Air), that makes optical media a convenient option while on the road. You can store a number of blank discs comfortably in the computer's carrying case and can perform backups without needing any external hardware. Keep these tips in mind:
Even if you normally back up every file on your Macintosh, save time and media while traveling by backing up only your most important files—specifically, those you've worked on during your trip. (When in doubt, you can do a Spotlight search in the Finder for just those files modified in, say, the last day).
If you need to back up just a few files each day, you can get away with inserting a blank disc, manually dragging files on the disc's icon, and using the Finder's File > Burn Disc command. Otherwise, use backup software just as you would normally. But configure it to back up only those files that have been modified since your trip began.
Some backup software can keep adding to a CD or DVD until it's full. If your backup software lacks that feature, you may use up a lot of discs backing up relatively few files per session. One solution is to use a utility called BurnAgain FS from freeridecoding (http://freeridecoding.com/burnagainfs, 15 €—about $23), which lets you add data to CD-R, CD-RW, DVD±RW discs.
If your backup software supports encryption, use it. You wouldn't want someone who stumbles upon your backup discs to get easy access to any personal information stored in your files.
If you're going to be gone for more than a few days, consider mailing one of your backup discs home once a week or so; that gives you an additional measure of safety.
Another alternative is an external hard drive; for ease of transportation, I suggest a bus-powered (no AC adapter required), pocket-sized model. See Choosing a Hard Drive for more details. You can potentially press your iPod into service as a backup device while traveling, though you'll have to sacrifice space you'd otherwise use for music or videos. You can also use a flash drive (see Hardware You Shouldn't Consider and Why), but the ratio of cost to capacity is significantly worse than for hard drives—even the more-expensive pocket drives—so they're not my first choice.
You can go about backing up your files remotely in any of several different ways, depending on your circumstances and preferences. As I mentioned earlier, though, all these methods presuppose that you have a relatively small amount of data to back up—you'll likely be constrained by the upstream bandwidth of your Internet connection and may also have time constraints that limit how much data you can comfortably back up.
Internet backup services: For backing up a relatively small quantity of data, consider an online backup service. For example, CrashPlan can back up your laptop's files to the company's own servers (called CrashPlan Central), to another computer you own back at home or the office, or to a friend's computer anywhere on the Internet.
iDisk: Alternatively, use your iDisk if you're a MobileMe member (see iDisk), but be sure to encrypt your files (using a backup program that supports encryption, for example, or a stand-alone compression or encryption program) before uploading them, as Apple does not currently offer secure iDisk connections.
Push or pull backups with home server: If you run backup software on a server at home or the office (see Backing Up a Small Network), you may be able to connect to that server remotely, but that's not as easy as it may sound. "Push" backups work only if you can mount your backup server's volumes remotely; "pull" backups work only if your server can mount your laptop's volume remotely. Sometimes this is possible, but often not—your firewall at home must enable access to the necessary ports, and the ISP providing your remote access must permit file-sharing access over their network. You also run a risk that your files may be intercepted in transit by a hacker, unless you take extra steps to encrypt the link between your laptop and your server.
Note
Back to your Mac: If you're running Leopard and are a MobileMe member, you may be able to use Apple's Back To My Mac service to mount a shared drive on the remote Mac without worrying about many of these technical details. For extensive information about how to make this work, read Glenn Fleishman's Take Control of Back to My Mac.
Client-server backups with home server: Client-server backup software, such as Retrospect, normally polls only the local network for available clients. In some cases—for example, with the more-expensive Retrospect Workgroup or Retrospect Server—you can manually enter an IP address for a computer outside your local network. However, if you're traveling and don't know which IP address you'll have at any given time, this method is problematic. A possible solution is to use a dynamic DNS service, such as the one provided by easyDNS, to assign your laptop a domain name whose IP address changes as needed, and then enter that domain name in Retrospect (http://www.easydns.com/dynamicdns.php3). In most cases, CrashPlan can figure out how to contact the other computers you (or a friend) are running it on, even if they don't have routable IP addresses.
Note
Safe and easy networking: Whether using "push," "pull," or client-server backups, you can get around most difficulties in contacting your backup server remotely—as well as ensuring private, encrypted communications—with a VPN (virtual private network) connection to your home network, but the details of setting up such a system go beyond what I can cover in this book. To learn how to do this, read Take Control of Your Wi-Fi Security.
Imagine this: you're on your dream vacation to the middle of nowhere, and you've spent the last two weeks snapping some amazing photos with your digital camera. Then, a day before you fly home, your camera is stolen. Or lost. Or accidentally dropped into that scenic canyon. Your insurance might cover the camera, but you'll never be able to recreate the photos.
Had you been traveling with your laptop, you could have transferred your photos to the computer and then saved them onto an optical disc or uploaded them to a photo sharing site over the Internet before the camera disappeared. But you left the laptop at home for a reason: you're on vacation! Without it, all you've got is that valuable memory card, and you have no way to back it up—or do you?
As a matter of fact, you do have several backup options. They'll cost a bit of money, but you may find the investment worthwhile. In some cases, you may even be able to use the same techniques to back up video from your digital camcorder. Consider these options:
An Eye-Fi card. If your camera accepts SD memory cards, you can use an Eye-Fi Share ($99.99) or Eye-Fi Explore ($129.99) card, each of which has 2 GB of memory plus a built-in Wi-Fi transceiver. With the card configured properly, your camera can connect directly to an open Wi-Fi hotspot and automatically upload your photos to any of the photo sharing sites discussed earlier in Photo Sharing Services. Be aware, however, that you may need to take the included USB Card Reader with you and configure the Eye-Fi card for the wireless networks you visit with a borrowed computer (http://www.eye.fi).
A portable media player. A number of pocket-sized gadgets are designed for backing up and viewing photos and videos. You pop your camera's memory card into the device (or hook up your camera using a USB cable) and transfer the photos to its hard drive; you can then display the media on the built-in screen. A few of the many manufacturers are Archos (http://www.archos.com/products/video), Cowon (http://www.cowonamerica.com), Epson (http://www.epson.com), and HyperDrive (http://www.hyperdrive.com).
A borrowed computer. If you pack an appropriate USB card reader or adapter, you can pop into a local cybercafé and use one of their computers to upload the photos to a photo sharing site or email them to yourself. Be sure to delete the photos from the borrowed computer and empty the Trash before you leave!
Tip
Jeff Carlson, who edited this book, gave more tips for backing up your digital photos while traveling in an article he wrote with Glenn Fleishman for Macworld: "Back up photos on the road," at http://www.macworld.com/2006/10/secrets/novdigitalphoto.