#985 – Should I Disconnect My Backup Drive When I’m Not Backing Up?

To disconnect or not to disconnect

That is the question.

Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous ransomware,

Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, and by backing up, end them.

OK, ok, deep appologies to Mr. Shakespeare, but the question remains: should you leave your external drives connected, perhaps risking ransomware, or disconnected, risking not having backups when you need them?

Should I Disconnect My Backup Drive When I'm Not Backing Up? has my strong opinion.

Also this week

• Hiberfil.sys, Swapfile.sys, & Pagefile.sys
• External drive not showing
• Preparing for the very worst
• Unallocated space

As always, links below.

TEH Podcast

This week Gary and I talked about encryption back doors, Gary's new iPhone and its irritations, and of course the usual cool stuff mixed with some self-promotion.

TEH 204: Encryption back doors, iPhone annoyances, Car play and cameras

•

Take care,

Featured Article

Should I Disconnect My Backup Drive When I'm Not Backing Up?
I have strong opinions.

Some people disconnect their backup drive when not backing up because they fear ransomware. I explain why that's a Really Bad Idea.
Read: Should I Disconnect My Backup Drive When I'm Not Backing Up?

Also This Week on Ask Leo!

What Are Hiberfil.sys, Swapfile.sys, and Pagefile.sys, and How Do I Remove Them? Normally hidden files with a purpose.
Hiberfil.sys, pagefile.sys, and swapfile.sys are Windows system files that support two very important features: hibernation and virtual memory. Read: What Are Hiberfil.sys, Swapfile.sys, and Pagefile.sys, and How Do I Remove Them?

Why Is My External Hard Drive Not Showing in Windows? Windows might need a little push.
Occasionally, attaching a drive to a computer will appear to work, but the drive's nowhere to be found. I'll walk through one common solution. Read: Why Is My External Hard Drive Not Showing in Windows?

Preparing for the Ultimate Disaster What happens to your important data when you're not around?
If you're not around to unlock all the digital data you take such care to secure, who will be able to access it, and how? Read: Preparing for the Ultimate Disaster

How Do I Use an "Unallocated Space" Partition? It's there; might as well use it.
Unallocated space in a hard disk partition won't be used. I'll look at the two common ways to make unallocated space usable. Read: How Do I Use an "Unallocated Space" Partition?

What's the Difference Between Outlook, Outlook, and Outlook.com? So many Outlooks. So much confusion.
Microsoft continues to confuse us with product names. I'll clarify the difference between Outlook, Outlook, and Outlook.com, and help you decide which you want. Read: What's the Difference Between Outlook, Outlook, and Outlook.com?

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What's the Difference Between Outlook, Outlook, and Outlook.com? Microsoft continues to confuse us with product names. I'll clarify the difference between Outlook, Outlook, and Outlook.com, and help you decide which you want. Watch: What's the Difference Between Outlook, Outlook, and Outlook.com?

How Do I Use an Unallocated Space Partition? Unallocated space in a hard disk partition won't be used. I'll look at the two common ways to make unallocated space usable. Watch: How Do I Use an Unallocated Space Partition?

Preparing for the Ultimate Disaster If you're not around to unlock all the digital data you take such care to secure, who will be able to access it, and how? Watch: Preparing for the Ultimate Disaster

What Are Hiberfil.sys, Swapfile.sys, and Pagefile.sys, and How Do I Remove Them? Hiberfil.sys, pagefile.sys, and swapfile.sys are Windows system files that support two very important features: hibernation and virtual memory. Watch: What Are Hiberfil.sys, Swapfile.sys, and Pagefile.sys, and How Do I Remove Them?

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