FAQs

  1. How secure is my data?
  2. How easy is it to install the software ?
  3. How do I get my unique User ID and Password?
  4. How do I know if my data has arrived at DataSafe?
  5. How do you charge? (see Subscribing to RemoteSafe™)
  6. What is the cost of recalling data?
  7. How easy is it to restore data?
  8. What encryption scheme do you use?
  9. What happens if my Internet connection is dropped during transfer?
  10. What happens if the power goes off during a backup?
  11. How can I be sure that the data you receive does not contain errors?
  12. Does DataSafe check for viruses?
  13. Can viruses from others affect my data?
  14. Can someone hack into my computer system while it is on or while it is transmitting data?
  15. Can anyone else gain access to my data?
  16. What happens if I lose my password?
  17. How do I know you have my data that is not online?
  18. How do I set up the software on a network?
  19. Can I backup data from other computers on a network?
  20. What is the initial password?
  21. For how long do you keep earlier versions of files?
  22. How much will my data be compressed?
  23. How long will it take to backup a megabyte of data?
  24. Who has rights to my data stored with you?
  25. What happens to my data if I stop using your service?
  26. How much will it cost for me to backup my data?
  27. How is the initial full backup done?
  28. Must I do a full backup initially?
  1. How secure is my data?back to top

    Your data is encrypted before it leaves your computer system with a key that only you have access to through your password. Only you know this password and only you can change it (as often as you desire). Only with the correct password can you decrypt the data.

    Your data is stored on our network in your own directory to which no other client has access.

    There are two tape copies of your data in DataSafe’s media safes stored at different sites.

  2. How easy is it to install the software ?back to top

    Installation is simple. There is only one programme to run and DataSafe staff will guide you through the entire process if required.

    The setup for your particular computer requires you to specify your computer’s communications details, your unique Client ID or User ID, some communication details DataSafe will give to you, and to decide on your backup times and what to backup (as for tape based backup).

    If you have any difficulties or questions, simply phone 020 7607 2262 and ask for technical support.

  3. How do I get my unique User ID and Password?back to top

    When you contact DataSafe you will be given a unique User ID and Password. This gives you access to your folder (only) on our server, using our software.

  4. How do I know if my data has arrived at DataSafe?back to top

    a) You can check the log on your computer in your iBus software. It gives full details of all data sent (or recalled).
    b) If you regularly send data according to an agreed schedule, we will monitor your backups and inform you by fax, email or ‘phone if there has been a problem.
    c) You can see what data of yours is immediately available online by using the ‘Restore Backup Catalogue’ facility and then restoring any data.
    d) You can always contact us and check.

  5. How do you charge? (see Subscribing to RemoteSafe™)back to top

    There is a setup fee which is either for a single user or a site. The site fee covers any system based on the site and the laptops of anyone based at the site. The monthly charge is based on the amount of data (compressed) you back up with us in the month.

    WE DO NOT CHARGE FOR THE HISTORIC DATA WE STORE FOR YOU.

    There is a monthly minimum of £27.00 (£50.00 for server) which covers the first 400MBytes of (compressed) data (1000MB for server), with an incremental charge per MByte thereafter that begins at 21p and reduces to less than 1p according to the amount of data backed up in each month. If you exceed the monthly minimum you will be sent a bill with itemised details of the amount of data backed up each day. This will be similar to the log in your computer, allowing you to check the details.

    There is a small annual service fee.

    Use of your Client ID or User ID beyond any agreed Free Trial implies acceptance of the DataSafe Regular User Service Standard Terms and Conditions, a copy of which is obtainable on request.

  6. What is the cost of recalling data?back to top

    The cost of recalling on-line data is the same as backing up that amount of data using the RemoteSafe™ software. If data is more than a week old, we will load it online from tape (a week at a time). There is a small charge for this service.

    Should you have a major disaster and need to recall a large volume of data, we can bring a removable hard drive to your site and load the data directly, or we can create a CD-ROM and send it to you. Check our fees for these services.

  7. How easy is it to restore data?back to top

    Restoring your data is extremely simple. The software allows you to restore data to the drive and directory from which it came or to a different directory or your choosing. If directory names do not exist, they will be created automatically. You will be given the option to overwrite files with similar names – or not.

  8. What encryption scheme do you use?back to top

    The iBUS Software has a choice of 6 different schemes:

    Zip compatible
    Blowfish
    Cast128
    RC2
    Rijndael
    Twofish

    They are currently unbreakable for all practical purposes (including the way in which we use ZIP).

    If anyone were interested in your data it would be easier for them to break into your premises and steal your hard drives with unencrypted data than to break into DataSafe’s premises, steal hard drives or tapes from our safes and then be faced with the problem of decrypting the data using brute force methods.

  9. What happens if my Internet connection is dropped during transfer?back to top

    The software recognises what has happened and after a short time normally automatically re-establishes the connection. It then checks the data that has arrived at DataSafe and continues sending from that point on. Consequently you do not have to resend the same data. See also Question 10.

  10. What happens if the power goes off during a backup?back to top

    If you lose power during a backup or for some other reason a backup is only partially transmitted, then when you next backup to DataSafe, that backup will automatically complete before the next one is done.

  11. How can I be sure that the data you receive does not contain errors?back to top

    After compression and encryption your data is checked – before it is sent to DataSafe. During transmission it is continuously being checked by the transmission software and if any errors are detected, the data is retransmitted.

    At DataSafe we periodically check the processes every day by sampling some data and checking its integrity (we cannot look at the actual data as it is encrypted). The resultant data integrity is as good as that on standard hard drives.

  12. Does DataSafe check for viruses?back to top

    We cannot check our client’s data for viruses as it is compressed and encrypted. Any virus that might be contained within is totally encased until the data is decrypted and the file is executed.

    We recommend that clients do their own virus checking regularly – as we do (See 13). If you require advice on virus checking software, please contact us.

  13. Can viruses from others affect my data?back to top

    Just as your encryption password protects your data so the encryption passwords of our other clients protect you as well. You are thus doubly protected.

    As no client data is accessible to us or anyone else, there is no way in which viruses from others can either escape out of their ‘encasing’ or enter your ‘encasing’. Any viruses that might exist are thus rendered totally dormant.

  14. Can someone hack into my computer system while it is on or while it is transmitting data?back to top

    If you have an ‘always on’ connection to the Internet it is recommended (even without iBUS) that you have some sort of firewall protecting your computer. With dial-up connections to the Internet your ISP runs NAT (Network Address Translation) software that protects you whenever you are on line. Please contact us if you require any advice.

  15. Can anyone else gain access to my data?back to top

    See 1. and 8. above

  16. What happens if I lose my password?back to top

    We cannot recover your password and know of no-one who can. Please keep a record of your password, as you will not be able to decrypt any data for which it has been used. More than one person in your organisation should know the password and it should be written down and stored somewhere.

    We can arrange for a copy of the encryption password to be stored with a solicitor for a small charge.

  17. How do I know you have my data that is not online?back to top

    Test us. Ask us to load older data from a tape. There is a small charge for this.

  18. How do I set up the software on a network?back to top

    The software can be installed on any workstation on the network provided it has full read access to the file server(s) or other computers requiring backup. These computers can then be backed up via the workstation. All workstations that can be ‘seen’ by the computer on which the software is installed can be backed up.

    As there is great variation in networks, check the details of your specific network with DataSafe.

  19. Can I backup data from other computers on a network?back to top

    All computers that can be ‘seen’ by the workstation on which the software has been installed can be backed up. On a Novell network only the file server(s) and the workstation on which the software resides can be backed up directly. However the software can be installed on other workstations on the network. They can be set up to backup automatically over the network to the file server (at no cost), before that data is then backed up to DataSafe.

  20. What is the initial password?back to top

    The initial Administrator Password is ‘password’. The iBUS software will not install properly until you have provided an encryption password.

  21. For how long do you keep earlier versions of files?back to top

    Versions of files that are up to a week old are all kept on-line. Off-line, on tape, we keep two copies of all files backed up for a minimum of two years. This can be extended for a small monthly fee.

  22. How much will my data be compressed?back to top

    i) Word processing and spreadsheet files typically compress 2-3 times. The larger they are, the more they tend to compress.
    ii) Database type files (including accounting pages) will compress about 10 times or even more if they are Windows based applications. For Dos applications, 5 times is more likely.
    iii) Bit mapped image files will compress between 2 and 25 times, depending on their nature.

  23. How long will it take to backup a megabyte of data?back to top

    A megabyte of compressed data takes 20-40 seconds with an ADSL connection to the Internet.

    However, that 1 megabyte of compressed data could have begun as 3 megabytes of word processing or spreadsheet data or 10 megabytes of database (accounts, records etc.) type data.

  24. Who has rights to my data stored with you?back to top

    Only you have access to your data stored with us. The data remains your property and is accessible only by you.

    No-one else, including DataSafe, has any rights to the data.

  25. What happens to my data if I stop using your service?back to top

    Once you have used and paid for our service we will keep your data offline for a year from the day it was sent even if you discontinue use of the service. At the end of the year the data will be destroyed unless we receive further instructions from you. You can retrieve your data online if you resubscribe to the service, or it can be provided on CD-ROM.

  26. How much will it cost for me to backup my data?back to top

    See FAQ 5. To estimate the amount of data you will backup each month and its cost, we recommend talking to an adviser at DataSafe (020 7607 2262).

    Alternatively we may be able to send an adviser to survey your computer system and provide an estimate.

    Our obligation free trial is also designed to give you an accurate estimate of the cost.

  27. How is the initial full backup done?back to top

    Depending on your location and the size of the initial backup, it can be done either over the internet or we will come to your premises with a removable hard drive and transfer the initial compressed encrypted backup on to the drive.

  28. Must I do a full backup initially?back to top

    No. You can choose any date in the past when you wish the backup to start from. The initial backup will then comprise of those files created since that date. Multifile databases, such as a Sage backup, however must be backed-up in full. In addition, if you have a full backup on tape we will store two copies for you in our on separate sites for no additional fee.

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