Welcome to our General FAQ section. If you have question about our service and software, you should find the answers below. If you have a particular question that’s not here, please contact us and we’ll get an answer to you as quickly as possible.
Why should I backup my data offsite?
Storing a backup of your business data offsite means your data is protected in the case of a disaster such as fire, flood, robbery or a computer failure.

Why should I backup my data online?
Online backup has several advantages over traditional backup methods, such as backup to disc or tape:

Online backup (also known as Remote Backup) does not require user intervention; No tapes to    change, no CDs to label, No USB drive left behind in the office.
Online backup maintains your data offsite. Perhaps the most important aspect of backing up is    that backups are stored in a different location from the original data.
Traditional backup requires manually taking the backup media offsite.
Online backup software uses a retention period for your data; meaning it keeps multiple    versions of your files, making it easy to restore data from alternative dates.
Online backup is often far more convenient than other methods of backup, as there are fewer    steps to be taken by the user. Fewer steps mean fewer things to go wrong or be forgotten.

Source: Wikipedia

Backup247's online backup service is fully automated, making it simple and easy to ensure that your critical data will always be safe.
Why should I choose Backup247?
At Backup247, online backup is our sole focus; enabling us to be 100% committed to protecting your valuable data. Our software is in use in thousands of businesses around the world and is updated regularly by our development team with new features to make your backup routine easier and quicker.

How do I sign up?
Easy! Just download and install our free software trial. To continue using the service after the trial period, simply visit our registration page and fill out the form. We’ll take care of the rest. The 14 day trial is absolutely free and with no obligation whatsoever.

Note: Trial accounts are limited to 500MB. Unconverted trial accounts and their associated data will be removed and stored data deleted after 30 days.
Is it Secure?
Backup247’s software uses 128 bit encryption for transfer of data between your computer and our server. The same level of encryption is also applied to your data before it is sent to our servers. This encryption key is known only to you and is not stored by Backup247. Without it the backup files are useless to anyone.

How do I backup?
Once your backup is scheduled, the backup job will start automatically at the desired time. See our Quick Start Guide for details on how to configure a backup job.

What can I backup?
Thanks to its built-in agents, Backup247 OBM is able to back up open files, live databases and a wide variety of operating systems. In fact, we think this product is so versatile; if you find something that you can’t back up, we want to know about it so we can work out how you can!

What should I backup?
There are no hard and fast rules for what you should backup. As a guideline, we recommend that you backup whatever would be necessary to continue running your business in a catastrophic event. At a bare minimum, we recommend this should include your accounting software files, client database and emails.

Can I backup multiple computers on one account?
Yes. Install the agent software and configure a backup set for each individual machine. On the OBM control panel, deselect the “Run on this computer ” option for all the backup sets you do not wish to run. You'll need to do this on each machine you wish to backup.

How do I know my backups are working?
After each backup job is run, you'll receive a full email report, listing all the files that have been backed up. Backup247’s support team also monitors the status of backups and the software itself has inbuilt file verification.

What internet connection do I need?
A broadband or ‘always-on’ connection is recommended, however a dial-up connection can also be used thanks to our In-File Delta technology.

How can I backup a large data set?
Should your initial upload contain a large amount of data to backup, it could take considerable time to perform the first full backup across your Internet connection. Using the Seed Loading facility, your backup set can be first copied to a removable hard drive or DVD, then transported directly to our data centre. Your files will then be loaded onto to our servers. Please contact us for more details if this service is applicable to your needs.

How much are my files compressed before being uploaded?
The compression ratio of your files depends upon their content, however most documents are compressed to 25-50% of their original size.

What is In-File Delta?
In-File Delta technology allows for the backup of very large files over low speed internet connections. When the backup job runs, a delta file containing only changes made to the files in your backup set is generated. As it is these files that are uploaded, bandwidth and data transfer requirements are kept to a minimum.

How do I restore?
With Backup247 you can restore your data either to the original location using the OBM software or log in to the backup server via a web browser from an alternate location. You can also restore previous versions of your backups that are still held on the server. Please see our Quick Start Guide for details.

I have a laptop computer that is not always connected to the internet, can I still use your service?
Yes. Backup247’s Off-line backup feature is designed for notebook users who are off-line most of the time and cannot rely on backup schedule to backup regularly. The backup interval allows a notebook user to specify the interval between backups. When this interval elapses, the backup will run automatically when the machine is next online.

Can I change my encrypting key?
Once the encrypting key is set, it cannot be changed. This is necessary to retain the integrity of the Backup Set, making sure that backup data is only encrypted by one key.

Should resetting an encrypting key be absolutely necessary, the backup set will need to be recreated and re-encrypted.
Can I still use an application when doing online backups?
Yes. Our advanced software can backup application data while the application is still running. Particularly, we have special agents for MS Exchange Server, MS SQL Server, Oracle, Lotus Notes and MySQL, which allows these applications to be backed up while they are online. Using Volume Shadow Copy we are also able to backup other types of applications while they are online. EG, Outlook .pst files.

How do I pay?
We accept both Visa and Mastercard payments through our secure payment portal. All transactions are made using industry standard encryption and recurring payments are automatically deducted from your credit card every month.

Don't forget, you can also try out our service, absolutely free for 14 days!