What is the best data backup option for students?

With the information industry set to celebrate World Backup Day on March 31, the topic of protecting files, documents, music, photos and video, among other content, is gaining attention. Such considerations are especially important for students, but many may be unaware of the backup options available to them.

One should start by considering the two schools of thought for backing up data: on-premise and the cloud.

On-premise options pertain to more traditional backup methods, including external hard drives, CDs and portable flash drives. Each can get the job done, but may not be a suitable option for students who rely on multiple devices -- which may include a laptop, tablet or smartphone -- on a daily basis.

Using the cloud may be a better option for students. With online backup, content from multiple devices can be uploaded to a single hosted application, allowing a student to create a document on a laptop and recover it to a tablet computer should the computer's hard drive fail.

Students can also leverage online backup to protect their information in the event that one of their devices is lost or stolen.