Backing stuff up on your computer?

[Woodsey]

I've never backed anything up on my computer because I don't have anythiny of importance on there. However I've got my itunes library on there which I obviously don't want to lose. How do i back it up and do I need any special equipment/software?

Ta

[Raindogs]

If you have a DVD writer on your PC there should be some software installed on your PC to allow you to burn files onto DVD's (Nero or Roxio).  DVD's will store upto 4.7 GB of data which should be enough for a 4GB IPod.  If you don't have a DVD writer an external hard drive is a good solution and will give you loads of space.  You plug it into a USB port and it appears automatically as another drive.  You can then drag and drop the files you want to back up onto the drive.

This one is 250GB for £55.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Western-Digital-Elements-250GB-External/dp/B000MES2UE/ref=pd_sbs_ce_3/026-7086372-2654846

[Woodsey]

ta, how often would you back up, once every few weeks?

[marcro]

DVD's works best for backing up iTunes.  For your other files consider online backup via BT's Digital Vault http://digitalvault.bt.com/base/login.jsp.

[kinboshi]

ta, how often would you back up, once every few weeks?

Back up as often as you need to.  Basically, could you manage to survive without the stuff you've updated over the past day, week, month, etc.?  Or would it be a right pain the arse if your computer blew up and you lost your data?

There is software you can get to automate the back up for you on a weekly basis (or whatever).

[Ironside]

exteral drive is the easiest way to back up files infact if you keep all your files on external drives it makes the operational use of the pc much better with your weekly scans etc going pst in no time

[M3boy]

Online backup solutions are widely available - they run in the background on your computer and you can set them up to run at what ever time you like.

PM me if you need to know a good/reputable one