5 Best Backups for Online Data Archiving, 2016

Online data archiving is just one way to backup your files, but if you want to store your data long-term or free up space on your computer, then it’s hard to beat.

Data archiving has traditionally been done offline, using methods like tape storage and external hard drives to keep a static copy of important files that don’t need to be accessed regularly.

As more and more people turn to the Cloud to keep their data safe, however, plenty of online backup services have abandoned the traditional approach of removing files from Cloud storage whenever they’re removed from the user’s computer. Instead, they’re now supporting online data archiving so that, once your backups are stored in the Cloud, they’ll stay there – no matter what happens to the original.

So if you’ve got old files that are filling up your PC, but that you won’t want to lose, then read on, because we’ve put together the 5 best backups for online data archiving, 2016! Alternatively, to find out more before you decide which provider you prefer, head over to our Data Archiving Guide.

Best Backups for Online Data Archiving – Summary

[top5table ElephantDrive IDrive SOS Syncplicity Zoolz ratings=”5,4.5,4.2,4,3.7″]

Winner

ElephantDrive

[vpnbest value=”5″] 5/5

ElephantDrive takes a refreshingly straightforward approach to online data archiving, without any complicated folders or advanced settings to worry about if you’re looking for a quick storage fix.

Once a file that’s been synced to your Cloud storage account is deleted from your computer, ElephantDrive will mark it as ‘archived’. You’ll still be able to access the file, and it will stay in your backup account for as long as you like, but you can easily identify which documents still exist on your local device, and which have been removed.

One common problem with online data archiving is that archived files can take up a lot of space, and can be tricky to remove for good. Fortunately, ElephantDrive provides a solution to this too – allowing its users to customise their Archiving Settings by setting the length of time that archived files are saved for. Of course, if you’re not worried about running out of space, then you can opt out of this altogether, and just manually remove any files that you’re positive you won’t be needing any more.

Under new pricing plans, ElephantDrive now offers 1TB of storage space for $9.95 per month – with a free trial on offer too.

Visit ElephantDrive »

2nd place

IDrive

[vpnbest value=”4.5″] 4.5/5

Like the other providers on this list, IDrive’s True Archiving service promises to hang on to all of your files, even ones that you’re not keeping on your PC.

With 1TB of storage space available for a very reasonable $3.71 /month in your first year, most personal users won’t need to worry about running out of space – and if you are concerned, then you can always take advantage of IDrive’s Archive Cleanup service. This process takes you back to a more conventional backup setup; identifying which of your stored files exist on your hard drive and removing those that don’t. It’s a handy way of automating a cleanup of your backup account if you want to make space, but watch out, as data that’s deleted this way can’t be restored!

Along with True Archiving, IDrive subscribers will also get the benefits of end-to-end encryption, file sharing, NAS backups, and plenty more – so why not take it for a spin today?

Visit IDrive »

3rd place

SOS

[vpnbest value=”4.2″] 4.2/5

When SOS set out to do something, they really do it properly – as their comprehensive Zero Knowledge security policy will attest. It comes as no surprise, then, that their ForeverSave File Retention feature takes a thorough approach to online data archiving, with indefinite storage provided to any files removed from your local device.

There’s more on offer, with all previous file versions saved too, so if you want to access a past revision of a document months after you deleted it, then it’ll be available at the click of a button. Of course, if that sounds a little unnecessary then you can change your ForeverSave settings, and you can manually get rid of anything that you want to delete for good.

SOS has a broad range of pricing plans available, from 50GB for a monthly fee of $4.99 to 10TB for $299.99 /month, with the added bonus of excellent security, file sharing, and more. Check out their website and sign up today by following the link below!

Visit SOS »

4th place

Syncplicity

[vpnbest value=”4″] 4/5

Online data archiving is seamlessly integrated into Syncplicity’s Cloud storage, which gives you the option to keep files in the Cloud only, without also having to sync them to your local device. Designed to minimise the storage space used on your computer, archiving your data with Syncplicity means you won’t have to worry about hunting for archived files in out of the way recycle bins – they’re just as easy to find and retrieve as anything else.

On top of this, you can also remove entire devices from your Syncplicity account, so that they no longer sync to the Cloud, whilst still retaining all of the files and folders that you’d backed up. Alternatively, you can also choose to ‘wipe’ these devices – deleting all of their data from Syncplicity forever.

Syncplicity storage is fairly limited, with a single paid plan for personal users offering 100GB for $5 per month – making it a good choice for those looking to backup or archive smaller amounts of data. There’s also a good free subscription, giving access to 10GB and full features. If Syncplicity sounds like the provider for you, use the button below to give it a try!

Visit Syncplicity »

5th place

Zoolz

[vpnbest value=”3.7″] 3.7/5

Archiving is one of Zoolz’ greatest strengths, and is particularly useful given the fact that storage plans limit the number of devices that can be backed up to a single account. The option to retain files from a device no longer connected to your account, then, is extremely useful for long-term storage as well as for maximising the potential of your subscription.

Zoolz’ archiving primarily works on a whole-computer basis, allowing you to retire devices but hang on to their files – avoiding some of the perils of failing to immediately restore data from a crashed or replaced computer. Archiving is more complicated to do on a file or folder level, however, so this may be a solution best suited to those looking for larger-scale storage.

You’ll get the advantage of some seriously low prices with Zoolz too – with storage plans ranging from 100GB of storage for one device for approximately $1.20 per month to 4TB for up to five devices for around $23 /month.

Check out Zoolz for yourself – just click the button below!

Visit Zoolz »

Public Cloud Storage

Another popular trend in online data archiving today is public Cloud storage, provided by companies including Amazon AWS, and Microsoft Azure. Offering large quantities of space and pay-for-what-you-use pricing, these are a great choice for tech-savvy users wanting to hang on to large quantities of data, and happy to put up with minimal user interfaces and waiting a few hours for file retrieval.

If you like the sound of the pricing but aren’t too sure about navigating the somewhat sparse software, then there are plenty of user interface tools designed to make the process more user-friendly – our personal recommendation goes out to CloudBerry Backup, which adds lots of extra functionality for your money. You’ll need to pay extra for these services, but with Public Storage pricing starting at just $0.005 per GB per month (for Backblaze’s B2 service), it’ll hardly break the bank!

3-2-1 backups

As well as keeping your archived data in the Cloud, industry experts recommend also storing your files locally – on external hard drives, disks, or even magnetic tapes, depending on the scale of your data. In fact, they advise on keeping not just one, but three backups – one online, one locally, and a third on a network-attached storage device, or a removable hard drive stored in a different geographical location.

By doing this, you can ensure that no matter whether your hard drive fails, your Cloud storage provider goes bust, or your locally stored device is damaged by fire or flood, there’ll still be a copy of your data that’s secure and easy to retrieve.

Conclusion

If you want to store files for the long haul, data archiving is a great way to go about it. While it’s great to have a local copy (or two) of these files in reserve, Cloud storage is an essential part of ensuring that they stay secure and easy to access – and the services listed above are the best online archiving services on the market. So pick your favorite and give it a try today!

Best Backups for Data Archiving – Summary

[top5table ElephantDrive IDrive SOS Syncplicity Zoolz ratings=”5,4.5,4.2,4,3.7″]