Online Backup FAQ

The cost for remote data backup service depends on what plan you choose. AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup pricelist:

Amount of Storage	Annual Fee
2GB	$19.95
5GB	$29.95
10GB	$44.95

Yes, these databases are backed up by making a point in time or scheduled backup file of them using the built in backup tool within SQL Server and Exchange Server. Click the appropriate link for detailed information 1 – SQL Server Full Backup: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms187510.aspx 2 – Exchange Server Backup: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/822896 You can then file the raw backed up files in a folder that has been marked for backup by AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup. As long as the day’s file is named the same each time (e.g. not named by being date stamped), the session file will be seen as a version of the previous one and will not count against the account size usage.

Yes, our system provides full backup for open files. Note that there are some files however that still should not be backed up directly even though AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup does support open files backup. Some examples of open files that cannot be directly backed up by AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup are SQL, Exchange, SAGE, Intuit, QuickBooks & Quicken and MYOB.

Safe from Loss: Your data is backed up to AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup’s datacenters that are themselves backed up to a redundant site. Unless the data is lost on the local drive and the data server and the redundant server all at once, the data is always preserved.

Safe from hacking: AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup three layered encryption known as UltraSafe protects your data. Before the data leaves the local drive, it is encrypted using 256 bit AES encryption. AES is the US Dept. of Defense’s standard for encryption. It is then compressed using a proprietary compression tool. It is then sent via a 128 bit encrypted SSL link. Since the session packets are only the digital differences of the changed files from one day to another, they are unintelligible without the original file. Upon arriving at the data center, the packet is compared to the original file, encrypted yet again and filed away under its version number and date stamp.

When your backup is running, there is an AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup logo (blue icon with key) which toggles in your taskbar. You can pull up the details of your currently running backup set by right clicking on the icon and selecting ‘Show currently running backup’. At the end of the data transfer you will be able to see the status log of the backup process if the data was being transferred successfully. Details on the Upload Agent provide you with an indication on the files that were backed up. A blue icon next to your file indicates that the file has been successfully uploaded to our data center. If the back up process is still running, the icon shows “orange” color. For unsuccessful backups, the icon shows red. Note that this indication is at the file level, which means that in a backup set, you can have files that are successfully backed up, files still being backed up and files which are not being backed up. We have the provision of delivering backup email reports after each backup is performed. In the client software, in wizard view, you may run “restore online” and recover your files to verify successful upload to our data center. That is how you can test effectively if the data has been transferred. You can also log in to My Account and check for your files from there. A recover/share option is available on the My Account page.

AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backupprovides two types of reporting to our customer on the status of their backup. They are:

1. While running a backup session, you can view the status of the backup. The Upload Agent blinks in the taskbar when a backup session is active. You can right click on the icon and select ‘show currently running backup’. A yellow icon next to your file indicates it is still performing backup. A blue icon indicates that backup has finished successfully.
2. You can request for email reports to be sent to one or multiple email addresses. In the Wizard View, you can set up your Email Backup report on Step 3 of setting up your backup. Multiple Email addresses can be entered by separating them with a comma. In the Classic View, which can be accessed by through the ‘Advanced’ dropdown list on the top right corner of the Client Software window, you can navigate to the Options tab and Email Backup Reports to provide an email address. Backup history is also available under the Classic View -> Options -> Backup History.

The standard form of data transfer is over the internet using SSL. This is fully dependent on internet access existing at the client’s location. We provide another service called “PMU Service”. PMU stands for Physical Media Upload. We have the provision of PMU only in USA and Australia. We send a hard disk to you; you upload your data and send it back to AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup. It will be uploaded to our server in a secure manner. As long as a PMU is under progress, the customer should not backup files.

We have datacenters in several locations worldwide including the USA, Australia, England and India.

The time it takes to complete the backup process, depends on several factors that are mentioned below:

• How many files are involved in the backup process
• The total size of the files to be backed up.
• The speed of the internet connection.
• The types of files that are being backed up – related to compressibility, i.e., some files like word documents compress better than others.

Our product supports backing up VMware and Virtual PC files properly and securely. .vmdlc. Basically, there is no difference between a general file and Virtual PC files or VMware at a technical level. Our product follows the same sequence of process to backup those files. Note that these files are often open files.

We support all windows platform where .NET 1.1 is supported. To be very clear, our product, thus, supports all Windows 2000 or later versions. We do not support Linux/Unix OS, and Mac OS.

You can schedule your backup on an hourly, daily, weekly or monthly basis. You can also reconfigure your scheduled backup at any time. You can specify scheduled backup for a standalone PC or a PC in a network. For a PC in a network environment, backup can take place even if no Windows user is logged in to the machine at the time the backup is scheduled to run.

Yes, if Live Protect is set for some files which are updated regularly, then our product performs differential backup and updates the change of files each time the file is updated and saved. Our product may work in the background when running scheduled backup and when a back up is manually invoked.

Your data will always be available for access as long as an internet connection is available. You may access the data by going to our web site at http://myaccount.managedoffsitebackup.net/or using the AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup software if it is installed in the computer you are using to access the data.

Please be aware that your username and password will be required in order to access the data.

Yes. You can install our product software on more than one computer and log in to the same account on different computers. Your data from different computers will be backed up under each computer’s machine name. You can easily restore data from one machine to another. However, your total backup size for all the different computers’ data should not exceed your subscribed storage size.

The time required for restoration will depend on the total gigabyte count in the set and the download speed of the internet connection available at client’s location.

We support specific packages’ files like QuickBooks, Sage, etc as long as the raw data has already been backed up to a folder. This initial backup should be done using the built in QuickBooks backup utility. AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup software will then back up the folder containing these files.

Users are allowed to establish multiple accounts for monitoring purposes. An account can also be shared among multiple computers as long as the storage size purchased is not exceeded.

AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup is a data file backup service and does not support backing up system state. However, taking a point in time image of your system state and filing that image in a folder file that is marked for backup by AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup will allow you to protect your system state. Ideally, the AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup Online local backup functionality can be used for that purpose.

AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup does not support backing up system state.

However, user may take a point-in-time snapshot of the system state and mark that file for backup protection. This will effectively back up an image of the system state, allowing user to restore their system when required.

Yes. Normally, the data will be dispatched in the next business day. Please be aware that there is an additional cost involved in sending a drive to a user.

Yes. As long as you have an internet connection, you may access your files at any time, any day, anywhere.

Every version of every backed up file is kept until you actively delete them from the data server.

AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup software does not allow user to set the number of versions being stored.

However, you may choose to delete certain version(s) of the file, or delete the file from the backup server and un-check the file from the list of protected files/folders if you do not wish the file to be backed up again.

Only the whole total space of the files as they existed on the local drive at the time of backup is used in calculating the used space of an account. Versions will not be counted against the backup space. However in case your latest version is smaller in size than any other previous version, then the version with the largest size will count towards storage size.

All accounts can be upgraded to larger account sizes. You may do so by calling us at 888-282-4932 or emailing techteam@avci.net.

AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup datacenters are located in Australia, England, India and the USA. All the datacenters are certified Tier 4 and SAS 70 compliant.

Tier 4 data center is considered as most robust and less prone to failures. Tier 4 is designed to host mission critical servers and computer systems, with fully redundant subsystems (cooling, power, network links, storage etc) and compartmentalized security zones controlled by biometric access controls methods.

• Redundant capacity components
• Dual-powered equipments and multiple uplinks
• All components are fully fault-tolerant and dual-powered including uplinks, storage, chillers, HVAC systems, servers, etc.

AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup complies with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability ACT. (HIPAA); enacted by the US Congress in 1996.

Locally based backups are quick for backup and restores and AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup software is able to do that as well through its Local Backup function. However local backup without having redundant hard drives and offsite storage only provides a STORAGE service and NOT a true BACKUP service. You may be able to store your data in the NAS but if anything were to happen locally to the data (disaster, media corruption, etc.); you will not be able to retrieve the data as compared to AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup. For a backup to be classified as satisfactory and sufficient backup, the facility must be able to provide automatic backup, offsite storage and be able to keep a fully versioned history of files in the backup.

If the definition of ‘run when idle’ means the computer is in the state of Stand By or Hibernation mode, then the answer will depend on the capability of that computer installation platform as to whether it can wake itself up from those states for a scheduled AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup event to occur. AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup utilizes the Windows Task Scheduler services. You can edit the Windows Task Scheduler for AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup by following steps below after creating a scheduled backup from AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup client software.

1. Navigate to Start -> Program Files -> Accessories -> System Tools -> Scheduled Tasks
2. Right Click on the AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup Online Backup icon
3. On the task tab, set the Windows Account password.
4. On the settings tab, check “Wake the computer to run this task”.

For backup storage requirements above 200GB please provide us with your contact details so that our friendly Sales Consultant can get in touch with you shortly and work out an attractive plan.

Offsite Backup AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup can backup mapped drives to AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup server as well as to restore data from AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup server to mapped drives as long as the user has rights to the drives.

Local Backup AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup can backup to mapped drives as well as to restore data from mapped drives as long as the user has rights to the drives.

1 backup account cannot have more than one username. Username is unique for each backup account. A username used cannot be re-used or recycled for other AVCI.net Tech Team Remote Backup accounts.