FAQs

What is off site backup?

It is a fully automated service that allows you to select all important company data stored on your servers or PC’s to be uploaded via your internet connection to secure servers at a location away from your business premises and at a time most convenient to you. It is a cost effective and more reliable alternative to performing data backups in house.

What are the benefits of off site data backup over conventional methods?

• The service is hardware independent. If your present tape/disk drive fails you would have to replace it with an identical unit if your existing tapes were to be used. If this type of drive is no longer available your tapes are of no use whatsoever. In addition if you upgrade your server you do not need to purchase a backup drive.

• It is performed 365 days per year

• No back-up media to be relied upon. Backup tapes should be renewed every six months as they can stretch and become damaged during use and transmission.

• No dependency on a member of staff remembering to change the tapes on a daily basis and remove from site for safe keeping. No concerns over holiday/sickness cover.

• Fully automated – electronic solution – reliable modem technology and communications reduce the risk of error or oversight.

• Data is stored off site fully encrypted and password protected.

How does it work?

A small software program is installed on the server or PC that holds your data. The system is then set to connect to our remote servers via your Internet connection (normally during the night) and upload your selected data files. This data is fully encrypted and password protected so only personnel with authorization or passwords, can access it. It is then stored remotely on our servers. Manual backups can also be performed at any time by the client.

Is knowledge necessary in order to perform off site data backup?

• User familiar explorer-liked interfaces

• Wizard guided backup setting

• No training or extensive IT knowledge necessary

• Scheduled backup allows server/PC to be backed up automatically

• “Backup and Shutdown” feature allows users to backup their desktops / notebooks easily without having to stay behind

• Have one of our remote backup specialist remotely install our software for you

Will off site backup work on my computer?

Yes, Offsite backup supports all major computer platforms including Microsoft Windows (from 2000 to Win7), Mac, Linux, and Novell Netware.

Will off site backup work from our applications?

Yes, Backup Planet online backup supports all file types in addition to supporting Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft Exchange Server, Sharepoint and MySQL.

Will I receive reports concerning my off site back up?

Backup Planet online backup provides comprehensive email reporting.

Are multiple versions of data stored?

Yes, by default all Backup Planet backups have a retention period allowing users to retrieve different versions of data.

Is off site data backup secure?

Yes, All selected data is encrypted on the client’s machine prior to being sent across the Internet and it is stored in it’s encrypted state on our secure servers located in world class datacenters.

Is my data secure before it leaves my computer?

Yes, all data and files are fully encrypted before they leave your computer or network.

Is my data stored securely?

Yes, all data is 256-bit encrypted and stored in a secure location. Not even Backup Planet have access to your data.

Is my data duplicated?

Yes, backed up data is replicated in its encrypted state to a second server in a different geographical location for added protection.

When can I access backup files?

You can access backup files anytime, anywhere with our online backup software or online with our web restore.

Is there a faster way to perform my initial backup?

Yes, With PlanetLITE the only way to perform your initial backup is over the internet. We suggest letting your computer sit for multiple days and let the backup job run from start to finish. You may have to change your power settings to prevent your computer from going to sleep or hybernating.  PlanetPRO users can perform a free seed load for the initial backup. This can be done by performing a Sead Load backup to an external USB hard drive. This drive can be shipped to us and we will lod your data into your backup account. For detailed instructions on performing a sead load view Knowledge Base Article 185.

Can external hard drives be backed up under my plan?

Yes, Backup Planet can backup external hard drives, NAS storage devices, ISCSI, USB Thumb Drives, Network Drives, anything that you can explore from My Computer you can select to backup with Backup Planet.

What is the storage capacity provided for the free-trial program?

Backup Planet provides 100 Gigabytes quota on all both PlanetLITE and PlanetPRO trial acocunts. To get started with a free trial, download and install Backup Planet for your apropriate operating system. The first time you launch Backup Planet you will be prompted to create a free trial.

Can I subscribe to Backup Planet using a free email address (Yahoo, Google Gmail, AOL, Hotmail)?

Yes, you can choose to use your free email address to subscribe to Backup Planet. If there are problems during your order or want more details about payment, please contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

My e-mail address has changed. Does Backup Planet need to know about it?

Yes you should change the email address associated with your account if you no longer use that email address.  You can do this by clicking on the User Profile icon in the bottom left corner of PlanetPRO / PlanetLITE software.  You can also update  your email address by logging into our web portal using the link at the top right corner of our website.

Are the Software Updates free?

Yes, the Updates are free if you are a registered user of Backup Planet. Our software development team is constantly working to keep our software up to date to support the latest software and technology. The frequency of releasing updates is once every 3-6 months. Your backup software will automatically update prior to its next scheduled backup once we release an update.

Can Backup Planet view my files?

No, all files are encrypted with a 256bit AES encryption before being uploaded to Backup Planet. The encryption key used to encrypt all your files(your backup planet account password) is never sent to the server.  If you misplace your encryption key please follow the steps in our knowledge base on a lost encryption key.  You will have to create a new backup set with a new key and re-backup all of your data.

Backup Planet can not recover your encryption key and does not have access to your files

Always perform a test restore on a regular basis to verify your data is recoverable!

Can I get technical support during trial period?

Yes, email technical support is available during the trial period. Please send your technical concern to: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Another great resource is our knowledge base is full of useful information setting up Backup Planet.

Do I have to Backup All Files Every Run?

NO! Backup Planet backs up the first time all the selected data, after that Backup Planet only backups up the changes!

Does Backup Planet support Bare Metal Restore (BMR)?

Yes, Backup Planet has integrated with Microsoft Windows Backup Utility and StorageCraft's ShadowProtect to offer an automatic offsite bare-metal system backup and restore solution. By integrating these two applications with PlanetPRO, users are able to perform complete offsite bare-metal system backup easily for better protection. In case of a total-loss disaster happened to a computer or a server, backed up image containing the complete operating system and installed applications with the latest configurations and settings, along with all data, can be restored easily to a computer, even of completely different hardware.

I have a tape drive, Why do I need Online Backup?

There are to many reasons to list but here is a sample:

• Remote Access – Access your Data offsite. In the event of a fire or server/computer theft you can be backup in business in a short time!
• Support – We are IT People, we developed Backup Planet to make it easy to use and are here to assist you!
• Non-removable Device – Tapes can be stolen easily, putting your business at risk!
• Manage Your Data From Multiple Locations – Manage and review your backups for multiple locations in one simple web site. Easy to use with Graphic User Interface, All point and click, No fancy options, no hard to use custom programming.
• Accessibility – Online Restores are simple and you can give the username/password to whomever you want to be responsible to restore data in the event of a mistaken file deletion or catastrophe. No need to dig up tapes!
• Restore Direct to Source – Restore your data without searching through tapes, looking for the right archives!
• Scalability – New employees? New Servers? More videos/pictures??Simply upgrade your account to backup more data. No need to buy bigger tape drives!!
• Fire – Do you take your tapes offsite? How often? With Backup Planet you can have an offsite backup as often as you want with no user interaction.
• No Hardware – With tape drives you have the initial expense of purchasing the drive and numerous tapes. The cost of the drive alone could pay for Backup Planets secure online services for up to 3 years in some cases.

Our service works like regular data backup software, with one important difference. Instead of sending backups to a tape drive, hard drive or other media attached to the computer, it sends the data securely over the Internet to our backup servers safely offsite. Our system is completely automatic. In fact, you may even forget it's working. Most businesses put their lives on the line every day and don't realize it. With businesses depending more and more on the data in their computers, proper backups are becoming increasingly critical. Tired of tape backups? You're not alone. Tape backup has been around for more than 25 years and still has a 50% failure rate.

• More than 50% of employees back up their data to a misconfigured tape backup system (Iron Mountain).
• More than 34% do not test their backups and those that tested (77%) found their tape backup failed to recover (Storage Magazine).
• Nearly 50% of tape-based backups (or backup systems) fail to restore correctly (Gartner Group).

Tapes wear out, just like a VHS, but you can't tell by visual examination whether it's still good or not. Tape drives are expensive and difficult to replace; new tapes cost $30 to $180 per unit and should be rotated out of service bi-monthly. To be effective, tape backup needs to be run daily, but it's easy to miss a day (or a week). People forget to rotate the tapes.

end faq