OneDrive for Business Critical error!
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@JaredBusch said:
OneDrive for Business is not a backup program.
Why not? I'm interested in this because I'm planning on using it for a backup program at home.
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@Carnival-Boy said:
@JaredBusch said:
OneDrive for Business is not a backup program.
Why not? I'm interested in this because I'm planning on using it for a backup program at home.
Backup means a decoupling. ODFB is coupled to the source. If you build your own decoupling mechanism (see below) you can use it as storage for your own backup mechanism, but it is just synced storage intended for another purpose.
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..that and the fact that it seems a bit crap and unreliable.
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If you attach ODFB to the filesystem you want to back up, it is coupled and not a backup (deletion or corruption of the source destroys the replicant automatically.)
So to use as a backup component you need to decouple the original file from the replicant location. You can do this with a script easily enough. Take an hourly zip of a directory and copy it to the replicant folder for example.
To make this better, make it make copies with the date in the name so that you have multiple restore copies at different times. If you don't do that, you'll accidentally recompile the naturally decoupled piece.
In this scenario, though, your script is the backup system and ODFB is just online storage. You could do the same thing with Rackspace CloudFiles
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@Carnival-Boy said:
..that and the fact that it seems a bit crap and unreliable.
Seems unreliable when attempted to be used outside of its use case, yes. Does that make it crap?
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@scottalanmiller said:
So to use as a backup component you need to decouple the original file from the replicant location.
Does ODFB not store previous copies, so if you corrupt the source, you can just restore from an earlier version?
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or to put it another way, if ODFB is not a backup, how do Office 365 users backup their data?
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@Carnival-Boy said:
or to put it another way, if ODFB is not a backup, how do Office 365 users backup their data?
O365 is a big licensing thing. Every component of O365 is completely unique vis-a-vis backups. Typically ODFB isn't primary storage so backups are done traditionally.
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@Carnival-Boy said:
@scottalanmiller said:
So to use as a backup component you need to decouple the original file from the replicant location.
Does ODFB not store previous copies, so if you corrupt the source, you can just restore from an earlier version?
I've actually never tried. I don't believe that it stores versions like Sharepoint does but will need to look. Maybe it does.
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Yes it does offer that. You have to manually turn on versioning or else it only keeps the last edit. But the option is there.
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@scottalanmiller said:
Typically ODFB isn't primary storage so backups are done traditionally.
I may be missing something here. Surely it's intention *is *to be primary storage? Otherwise, what's the point of it exactly?
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@Carnival-Boy said:
I may be missing something here. Surely it's intention *is *to be primary storage? Otherwise, what's the point of it exactly?
The primary storage is the local HDD. ODfB is secondary storage.
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Bad marketing I reckon, then. If it's not primary, they should call it TwoDrive or SecondDrive.
So instead of:
"OneDrive - One place for all your work files" its "TwoDrive - a secondary place for all your work files"I thought the local HDD was basically a local cache - used solely for performance and offline access, like an OST file is used for Exchange.
Also, regarding my original question: if ODFB isn't a backup, how do you backup your primary storage (the local HDD)? Backing up local hard drives isn't an option in a corporate environment. And if you're still running traditional file servers and syncing those to ODFB, my other question stands - what's the point of ODFB?
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@Carnival-Boy said:
I thought the local HDD was basically a local cache - used solely for performance and offline access, like an OST file is used for Exchange.
I too was under this impression - are we both wrong?
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@Dashrender That is how I also read it for the personal side. They were comparing it to Dropbox.
Not trying to confuse ODfB with backups, however having the most used stuff on a PC automatically sync to cloud storage for an online copy (like a backup) and can be shared with others (like other cloud file sharing programs) is an awesome tool. You can attach ANY PC to your ODfB account and have the data synced to your PC.
I understand what @scottalanmiller is saying that it is NOT a true backup, but you have to admit its like a backup.
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@technobabble said:
@Dashrender That is how I also read it for the personal side. They were comparing it to Dropbox.
Not trying to confuse ODfB with backups, however having the most used stuff on a PC automatically sync to cloud storage for an online copy (like a backup) and can be shared with others (like other cloud file sharing programs) is an awesome tool. You can attach ANY PC to your ODfB account and have the data synced to your PC.
I understand what @scottalanmiller is saying that it is NOT a true backup, but you have to admit its like a backup.
No, I don't agree with you at all, I don't consider this a backup at all, in fact nothing like one. A backup as Scott says has always been disconnected from the source. I view OneDrive and ODfB as a replacement for your network shares. A place that whomever you allow can share files with one another. I've never considered my network shares to be backups.
I think the confusion comes in that people realize there's a local copy of the file, two copies of the same file, one local and one on ODfB. It's like how most companies treat their My Documents folders. They're redirected to a network location, but the PC makes local copies to work from more efficiently, but the network guys never consider it the backup for My Documents.
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@Dashrender I see what you are saying and I get it.
I have heard a lot about the network shares of the My Documents but in my travels, it hasn't been used. Using ODfB I now understand why it would be used. Funny how a new way of doing the old thing gets new adopters.
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@technobabble said:
@Dashrender I see what you are saying and I get it.
I have heard a lot about the network shares of the My Documents but in my travels, it hasn't been used.
If they aren't redirecting the My Documents, are they simply not using them? or how are they backing up that data stored there?
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@Dashrender Those PC's would be backed up also.
Most of the offices that have servers are ancient and the God who set them up told the followers that they can't change anything.
Smaller small businesses have at one time spent oodles of money and well don't you know that you don't need to upgrade to fancy new stuff...so say we all.
disclaimer: not exactly true, but maybe it is....
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Sounds like most of them need a Scott style sit down about their business and how to move forward.
