fastest/easiest/best way to backup data?

hello tech guru's.

what do you think would be the fastest and easiest way for me to back up some of my data?

i am using linux ubuntu and i want to switch to mint. i dont know if that makes a difference from windows.
i already downloaded the iso. i just need to get some of my files to another hard drive or dvd's.

i have about 200 gigs of movies and music i need to save. i have an old windows netbook with a 320 gig hard drive that i was going to put it all on.

the only 2 ways i can think of is to burn it all to dvd and then rip it to the hard drive or transfer it using my flash drive but that would be 16 gigs at a time. i dont have a problem with that but my files copy over so slow. i think that would take all day.

thats pretty much it though right? is there some sort of utility i could use?

i wish i could just use a cable to transfer from one to the other.

thanks for all your help

reply to post by CardiffGiant


How about backing up your data on a cloud server such as Google drive? You may need to pay a small subscription fee for that much data though. Good luck.

reply to post by CardiffGiant


Gigabit ethernet or 100mbit for that matter (if the Windows computer is older, it's likely to be 100).

GNOarmy
reply to post by CardiffGiant

 

How about backing up your data on a cloud server such as Google drive? You may need to pay a small subscription fee for that much data though. Good luck.

i never thought about taking it to the cloud. i have a sky drive account. that would definately work in the short term. i want to be able to access the movies and music without being connected to the net.
even if i had to split it up between google drive, sky drive and maybe another one.
thanks for the idea. i might go that way

theantediluvian
reply to post by CardiffGiant

 

Gigabit ethernet or 100mbit for that matter (if the Windows computer is older, it's likely to be 100).

edit on 26-11-2013 by theantediluvian because: (no reason given)

i just pulled up the gigabit ethernet article on the wiki and i am a bit lost.

in computer networking, gigabit Ethernet (GbE or 1 GigE) is a term describing various technologies for transmitting Ethernet frames at a rate of a gigabit per second

^^^from the article
is there a gigabit ethernet cable that i can use to go from the linux laptop to the windows netbook and transfer it that way? how would i transfer the data using this tech?

www.bestbuy.com...

ive been seeing these a lot but i have never understood it. it says gigabit switch. is it a router?
a router capable of handling large amounts of data or is it something that you use in tandem with the router?

i dont have wifi on the netbook. of course it did but it just stopped working all of a sudden.

i could however hook the netbook up directly to the router with the ethernet cable and then network my laptop and netbook together and transfer them that way correct?

is that where the switch comes in? makes it faster

edit*
just watched a little vid here
www.newegg.com...

my router has a switch built in. thats all the ethernet plugs on the back. i didnt know that was the 'switch'.
it's not gigabit. a step down but that will work.
i could just connect the netbook to the router.

thanks for the help all. i never thought of going right to the router or using the cloud. i was going to do flash drive transfers or burn a bunch of dvd's.
very nice.

now that i have this info i will be running mint tomorrow.

maybe not. now all i have to do is figure out how to get the files from the laptop to the netbook once i plug the netbook into the router/switch.

Get an external USB hard drive. Copy data to it. Then copy it somewhere else like the cloud or your other laptop. Have it in two places at least. You can get a 1 TB external for around $60 on Newegg.
www.newegg.com...

can both computers be connected to your home network at the same time?
If so just transfer them over the network, no need for fancy doodads

heres a in-depth forum post on how to set up windows shares on ubuntu
ubuntuforums.org...

basically just make sure you have samba installed then setup your share folders in '/etc/samba/smb.conf'

If you on a recent version of ubuntu then you might even be able to get away with just opening up Nautilus, right clicking a folder then choosing 'sharing options'

reply to post by CardiffGiant


With that much data it would be easier to buy a new tb hard drive and just add the drive. No time wasting backing up. And from the looks of it, you're looking at bestbuy for routers or whatnot, which means you're not bothered by spending a small amount of cash to do this.

BTW, if you don't have gb ethernet cards, the switch/router/cable won't make any difference. You'd need two gb cards to use gb speeds.

You can buy a tb hdd for under $80.. of a 500gb for under $60.. or a 320gb for under $50.. etc.

just pop that in, take the old one out, install what you want, pop the second one back in, and your data is there intact.

that's how I'd go about it with that much data.. possibly investing in an external caddy or something later to ensure you can keep it separate.

I think Cloudbacko (free.cloudbacko.com...) is the excellent free backup data with unlimited space, unlimited storage, and no installation required. I am using it since a very long time.CloudBacko support Windows, Linux, Mac, UNIX etc and even can combine free cloud storage available from Google Drive, One Drive and Dropbox into Single large storage. One can store 100TB of Backup free of charge. So this appears a good option for going ahead.

a reply to: carries523

thanks but i dont know....
i just checked it out and some of the words on their page were not spelled the right way which screams not legit to me and it said you have to sign in with your favorite social media...i dont use any social media.

i just bought a new laptop today and it has a free asus cloud storage thing on it i think...

ive been copying files over in 5 gig bits onto a memory stick and then onto the new laptop. gonna get a portable 1tb hard drive tomorrow and each night when i crash or leave the house copy a few gigs at a time.

the cloud stuff makes me a tad nervous cause how i get my files....you know