The 10-Minute Backup Plan That Saves Your Photos
One copy is zero copies. Turn on cloud backup for the irreplaceable stuff (iCloud Photos, Google Photos, or OneDrive), add an external drive with File History or Time Machine for everything else, and let both run automatically. Ten minutes, done.
The hardest house calls I do aren't the broken screens — they're the failed drives full of baby photos with no backup. Some of those files come back with data recovery. Some don't. Almost all of that heartbreak is preventable with a setup that takes about ten minutes.
The principle: one copy is zero copies
A hard drive is a machine, and machines fail — usually without an appointment. If your photos exist in exactly one place, you're one bad day away from losing them. The goal is simple: two copies, in two different places, one of them automatic.
The 10-minute version
- Turn on cloud backup for the irreplaceable stuff. iCloud Photos, Google Photos, or OneDrive — whichever ecosystem you already live in. A few dollars a month covers most families' photo libraries, and it happens automatically, which is the entire point.
- Add an external drive for everything else. Plug it in, turn on File History (Windows) or Time Machine (Mac), and let it run. Set a phone reminder to plug it in monthly if it's not always connected.
That's it. Cloud for the priceless, drive for the bulky, both automatic.
What doesn't count as a backup
- Files "on the desktop" of the same computer
- A USB stick from 2015 in a drawer, last updated in 2015
- "My email has most of it"
- An external drive that lives plugged in 24/7 next to the computer (one power surge or spilled coffee takes out both)
Want it set up for you?
This is one of the most common things I do on house calls — a proper automatic backup configured for your actual stuff, explained in plain English, usually within a single visit. It's a lot cheaper than data recovery, and infinitely cheaper than the alternative.
Questions people ask
What is the simplest backup plan for family photos?
Cloud backup for photos, an external drive for everything else, both automatic. Two copies, two places, no remembering.
Does an external drive that stays plugged in count as a backup?
Only partly. One surge or spill next to the computer takes out both. Pair it with a cloud copy.
Can you set up backup for me?
Yes. It is a short in-home visit and I show you how to confirm it is working.