We’re excited to present you a brand new keepvault.com! We freshened up the KeepVault brand and completely overhauled the web site inside and out. Continue reading →

KeepVault version 4.20 is now available from our download page: www.keepvault.com/software

This release adds much-requested operating system support for:

• Windows 8
• Windows Server 2012 Essentials
• Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials

Important and useful new features for all users:

– manage your devices from the web console

KeepVault version 4.15 is now available from our download site: www.keepvault.com/software

This release adds important and useful features for all users:

– the max file size increases from 20GB to 200GB

– backup of password protected network shares is now supported

– better handling for backup of hidden files and folders

Vail, Aurora, and Breckenridge (collectively known as ‘Colorado’) were the codenames given to Microsoft’s new Windows Home Server and Small Business Server (SBS) platforms.  Here are some preview screenshots of KeepVault v4.0 running in the new SBS Essentials 2011 environment.

Easily installed and configured, KeepVault for SBS supports backup to both a local or network device and simultaneously to secure online storage.

KeepVault supports simultaneous local and online backup

The console has been completely re-written from KeepVault v3.x for Windows Home Server, to take advantage of the new layout with the ‘Colorado’ platform.  Users are able to enable/disable protection of the built-in ‘shares’ and also specify specific folders for protection.  Backups can be encrypted and compressed; encryption always occurs before sending the data over the Internet. A full discussion on the new features in KeepVault v4 will be forthcoming, shortly before its release in mid March.

KeepVault Online Backup running in SBS 2011

The popular KeepVault Connector functionality will continue to be available.  KeepVault Connector installs a lightweight client on your Mac + PC computers.  This client then automatically and in real-time archives new and changed files in monitored folders to your WHS or SBS.  KeepVault Connector functionality is available over both your local area network and via the Internet (requires you enable remote access).  It is a great way to ensure that company or personal files are always backed up.

KeepVault Connector archives files to SBS 2011 over your local network or Internet

The definition of what makes a ‘small business’ small varies based on who you ask. Is it, for example, defined by the number of employees? Or maybe it is the gross revenue? Or perhaps it is the amount of data it produces?  Does any of that matter when it comes to determining a good backup strategy?

The answer is ‘no’ ….. and ‘yes’!  For example, I often see small businesses defined as having 10-99 employees. That does not, however, necessarily define the backup needs of the company – for example there might be 99 employees and only a handful of computers in a central office with very little data being created. On the flip side, a few graphic artists or photographers producing lots of data, working in multiple mobile locations could present a much more taxing backup environment.

The other day I read a post about new smart switches from Cisco targeting small business and wondered who exactly Cisco was targeting and what metrics they used to determine small?  Perhaps ‘small’ refers to the amount of money the company wants to spend, or their IT expertise?

The truth is your backup strategy will depend on many factors; budget, number of devices, location of devices, security, types of data … At this point many companies give up and hire an IT professional, and certainly for a lot of companies that is the right approach to take.  The IT professional will, or should, have the experience to design a backup strategy to your specific needs.

However, in many instances you can design your own backup strategy and system to match your needs and budget.  Over the next few posts we’ll try to demystify backup for truly small companies, those with small budgets, or only a handful of computers or locations to backup. We’ll provide setup instructions and real world examples. Stay tuned!

Being a Mac user myself it’s been a personal goal to provide Mac support for our KeepVault customers.  While the code that underpins KeepVault (“the engine”) has always been cross-platform we haven’t until recently offered a Mac user interface. Last month we rolled out phase 1 of our Mac strategy; KeepVault Connector for the Mac.

KeepVault Connector is an addin for the Windows Home Server and Windows Server platforms.  It provides real-time file archiving from client PCs & Macs to a designated server via a LAN or WAN connection.  Once archived to the server, these files can then be protected to the online KeepVault storage.

Visit our forums for easy to follow setup instructions:
Mac – http://www.proxure.com/forums/viewtopic.php
PC – http://www.proxure.com/forums/viewtopic.php

The ability for consumers and businesses to easily and reliably capture information from laptops and desktops is huge.  IDC estimates that  “as much as 60% of corporate data resides unprotected on corporate laptops and desktops”.  Once KeepVault Connector is installed that problem is hugely reduced.

Look for more Mac announcements in the near future!