Every computer user has some files that he or she would like to keep in the event of an unfortunate hard disk drive failure. The way to do this it the data back up, invented in the long gone days when computers still used punched cards and the fast storage meant a few kilometers of magnetic tape. There are a lot of back up solutions both hardware and software based. For example, one could use a software back up program to transfer files to a secure location, on another partition or better on another disk. The hardware back up is more of a challenge for the average computer user as it may involve the creation of a RAID array.

A very fast way to back up important data is to simply go out and buy one more hard disk drive. Nowadays, they come in many shapes and sizes, but as long as it has enough space for your files and it uses an interface compatible with your computer, you are buying the right drive for the job. In the event that the number of files you wish to back up is not that large and their total size is relatively small, you may try a DVD RW data back up or the flash memory stick approach. But if you want to go all the way, then I advise you to go and buy an internal or external hard disk drive. Using an internal disk lets you create a RAID array that can be used to automatically (and 'automagically') back up all data from your primary drive to the mirror one.

Some users may prefer to keep things simple however, plug-and-play, so the best method for them is to orient themselves towards an external drive, connectible through the eSATA (fast but expensive), USB (not very fast but cheap) or FireWire (fast and affordable). Please remember that unless you decide to use the RAID approach to data backup you will need to either manually copy your files from time to time in order to have the most recent version of those files safely stored away, or you may use a data back up software that can automate that task for you.