The Art of Backing Up Memories

In just a week and a half, my son will take the stage for his first performance. He loves his music class and often sings the songs at home, but the idea of performing in front of an audience makes him nervous.

Preserving Memories: A Personal Responsibility

This experience made me think: am I storing these videos in the safest, most cost-effective way? Plus, I volunteered to digitize my wife’s family videos a few years ago, making me responsible for preserving her family’s memories too.

Here’s how I ensure we never lose these precious moments:

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1. Sync with the Cloud

Since our phones double as our primary cameras, backing up photos is simple. Just enable iCloud Photos or Google Photos, which automatically sync your latest captures.

Additionally, Amazon Photos offers free photo backups for Prime members, plus 5GB of free video storage. By using both iCloud and Amazon Photos, I immediately have my photos saved in two places. But what about videos and other important files?

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2. Create a Local Backup

Even with cloud storage, keeping a local copy is essential.

The safest option is using a RAID storage device like a Synology or QNAP. RAID devices store multiple copies of your files across different hard drives, providing redundancy in case of hardware failure. For most households, a two-drive setup is sufficient unless you’re managing a video production studio.

I use a Synology NAS to store keepsakes, Blu-Ray backups, and full Time Machine backups of our laptops. If RAID sounds like overkill, a simple USB or network-attached hard drive works too. However, RAID offers the advantage of automatic data repair if a drive fails

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3. Backup your Backup

“If you have one copy of a file, you have no copies. If you have two copies, you have one.” — A wise person, probably

To truly protect your data, store a full backup at a second location, like a safe deposit box or a friend’s house.

Synology devices can replicate data to another Synology offsite, though I’ve struggled with ports, firewalls, and other technical issues. Still, it’s a solid long-term solution for those up for the challenge.

Alternatively, several cloud services can back up your entire drive, though they can be expensive.

The simplest method? Copy your backup to a second hard drive and store it offsite. A 4TB drive costs around $100 and should suffice for most people.