We mentioned yesterday that the GDrive has not arrived, and even if it had, online storage is not online backup. However, that got us thinking… could the ability to store any type of file within Google Docs be used as the storage mechanism for an online backup system?
We’ve seen it done before… CloudBerry backs up to Amazon S3, and JungleDisk uses S3 or Rackspace Cloud Files. These applications could easily be altered to write files to Google Docs, using Google’s own List Data API.
Would it make sense to use Google Docs as your online backup solution? Consider backing up 30 GB of files with 3 common systems:
- Mozy: $5 / month, or $54.45 / year
- Amazon S3: $30 for CloudBerry Online Backup, followed by $0.15 / GB / month for storing the files, and $0.17 / GB to upload the data = about $90 / year
- Google: $20 / year
This is assuming only 1 version of a file is kept; as more versions are saved, you’ll need more disk space with Amazon S3 or Google, pushing up the cost.
While we’re one of the first to scream that the recent annoucement by Google is not an online backup solution, it’s something that could be developed with a little manipulation of current systems.
What do you think? Will Google announce an online backup solution in the future? Are you willing to give them more of your information?
Gladinet
