2. Does it make sense to use Online Backup if you have a slow Internet connection?
Depending on the speed of your connection and the size of your backup, your initial backup over the Internet may take several hours. Many people with large backup sizes and slower Internet connections will often run their first backup over the weekend. Once the first backup is completed, each subsequent backup is usually a small amount of data that can be backed up in just minutes over a slower dialup connection. Our software can also resume a canceled backup, so you can start the backup during your slow times and cancel it during your busy times. The next time you start the backup, it will pick up from where it was canceled until the entire backup is complete.

3. What files should I select?
Since your entire hard drive is likely to be much larger than the amount of storage you have purchased on our backup server, you should be selective in the files that you choose for backup. In general, you can avoid backing up any programs that you can reinstall from a purchased CD, such as Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, etc.). Why pay for storage for "stuff" you can easily re-install? Try to focus your selection on things like your "My Documents", network departmental drives, network personal drives and data files of your important programs like accounting, income tax, contact management, etc. Your online backup software comes with predefined filters, which allow you to automatically select categories of files without knowing where all the files are located. Check the online help for Filters to learn how they can be used.

4. How do you delete files from the Backup server?
In order to control how much data is stored on the online backup server, your online backup software allows you to view all of the data stored on the server and selectively remove files from the server. To view the data stored under your account, run your online backup software and click on the folder tab labeled "Restore". In the left windowpane, Right-Click on the Desktop icon and select "Get Volume List from Server". This will show you each computer that has been backed up to your account. Now you can navigate the folders to see what data is stored on the server. To delete files, click on the button with the Red "X" to enable the Delete Files mode. Mark any files you wish to delete by clicking your mouse in the empty box next to the file(s) you wish to delete. Click the "Delete Files Now" to issue the command to delete the selected files from the server. WARNING: Once a file is deleted from the server, it can no longer be restored.

5. Should you also have a local backup in addition to online backup?
It's up to you. We encourage people to do both local and remote backup for absolute protection. Users that want an added level of protection will perform local backups in addition to their online backup. Local backups can allow you to backup ALL of your files, while the online backup is a great way to automatically store your critical files off-site. When it comes to your important data, you can never be too safe.

6. Can I backup open and locked files with the online backup software?
The correct and the only right way to backup an application is to shutdown the application before running a backup job (unless hot backup is supported). When an application is shutdown, it frees its acquired system memory and flushes all application data from system memory to its data files. The data files now contain everything needed to start an application successfully. Backing up application data files when it is shutdown will guarantee data consistency and backup files usability. Please consult our User’s Guide for more information on how to use PreBackup command and PostBackup command to shutdown and restart application before/after a backup operation.

7. How is data privacy maintained?
All data are encrypted with user's defined encrypting key before they are sent to the online backup server. Without the encrypting key, the backup files are useless to anyone. The backup user is the only person who can decrypt the backup files to reveal the original content.

8. What should I do if a backup error is reported in my backup report?
i. Check if this is a configuration problem (e.g. network problem, proxy setting problem)
ii. Check error log and activity log which can be located in C:\Program Files\BusinessDataConnect\log (default location) for more information
iii. Try running backup again manually to see if the same error occurs.

9. What platforms does Business Data Connect support?
Our client software can be installed on Macintosh OS X, Windows 98SE, Me, NT, 2000, 2003 (.NET) or XP, Linux and Novell NetWare systems. The Business Data Connect Client software communicates to the Business Data Connect Server using the TCP/IP protocol.

10. What happens if I exceed my quota?
In most cases, your account will allow you to exceed your paid storage quota on the backup server. If you exceed your quota, it is likely that a message will pop-up on your screen to notify you that you have exceeded your quota and you are likely to incur an additional charge for the additional storage used. Check your pricing plan to determine the costs for additional storage.