I used Backblaze in the past. I wondered what other options were available before switching it all over to my new computer. I currently have a couple of TB of files to backup.
Consider Arq. They sell a bundle with online storage, but you can also just get the app and “bring your own” destination. I’ve used it for years to backup multiple Macs to Amazon S3.
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When you look for alternatives, it is important to dig into the details, especially if you have a couple of TB to back up.
Most of the cloud backup solution’s financial model is based on preventing you from backing up large amounts of data. So there’s restrictions, such as:
- Deleted files only kept for x days
- No support for versioning
- Doesn’t backup “system files”
- Caps on upload and/or download speeds
- No backup of hidden folders
- Versioned but the older versions only kept for a month or less
- Can’t backup applications
- No backup of ISO images or virtual machines
- Large files (e.g. > 30 MB) only uploaded once every two days
- High “overuse” charge
- Backups of files more than once per day is only for small files (e.g. < 500 MB)
- Limit on how many previous versions are stored (e.g. 10)
(Every one of the above limits was in an actual cloud backup product)
If you use a bring-your-own cloud storage solution then the product won’t care at all how you use it, because it is your money that is paying for the storage.
I use Arq with Wasabi as the cloud storage. Wasabi costs $7 per TB per month.
I switched from Arq 5 to Backblaze a few years ago. Here are my reasons.
I was concerned that I could not access my backup files without a functioning Mac with the Arq app on it. While I have access to an old Mac that could serve as a backup, I didn’t consider this satisfactory. (And I don’t know if it could run the current version of Arq.) I have no access to a PC.
I see that their bundle Arq premium adds web access, but the “bring your own” setup does not.
I discovered that Arq 5 would periodically spend many hours reindexing my data, and during this period no backups occurred. I do not know if this is still happening with Arq 7.
Arq 6 was widely considered a disaster, and it was relatively quickly replaced by Arq 7. I never upgraded to 6 and switched over before 7 was released. That shook my confidence in the developers.
Backblaze gives me access via its web site as well as with iOS/iPadOS clients. Although I’ve never restored via a mobile device, it’s nice to know I have access to files from my Mac while traveling, if needed.
I know there are disadvantages to Backblaze, at least in the fact that they don’t back up everything. To me the tradeoff was worth switching to them. By the way, their basic monthly price, now $9/month, includes one year of versioning. You do have to manually select that to change from the default 30 days, but there’s no increase in cost.
Thank You everyone. John.