SpiderOak
Pros
- Supports multiple computers on one account
- Windows PC, Mac and Linux support
- Version history
- Securely synchronize folders
- Backup external hard-drives, network drives, USB drives, and other removable media
- "Zero Knowledge" data privacy policy
Cons
- Sharing files isn't very secure (no password protection)
- Limited storage space (100 GB increments)
- No drag & drop restore
- Memory & resource hog
- Default configuration doesn't backup important data files like Outlook e-mail, Quickbooks databases, etc.
- Interface is slow & clunky
- If you forget your password, you cannot access your data
- Software doesn't load upon startup
Complete Review
SpiderOak is an online backup & syncing service available for PC, Mac, and Linux platforms. Installation takes less than 5 minutes, after which you select the files to back & sync, verify your email address, and the upload process begins.
A big surprise from SpiderOak is their support options. Normally lacking with online backup companies, SpiderOak offers a wide range of support options, including e-mail, phone, Twitter (@spideroak_help), Skype chat and Skype phone support. And the support you get isn't from an overseas outsourced support center: the CEO and founders of SpiderOak respond to many customer service and support issues to keep on top of the issues facing their users.
Backup
SpiderOak takes data security to the extreme. Like every other backup service, data is encrypted and transmitted over a secure connection. However, SpiderOak takes things a step further, encrypting even the file and folder names, so SpiderOak employees can't even tell what you have backed up.
Because you're limited on how much storage space you have available, SpiderOak supports the backup of data on external drives (unlimited backup services like MozyHome and Carbonite do not support this). In addition, you can install SpiderOak on as many computers as you'd like.
One important feature of SpiderOak's backup service is that older versions of a file are kept. So if you overwrite your thesis and don't notice right away, restoring it from one of the many other backup services would give you the overwritten file. Only services which support Version History would give you the complete version, rather than the newest version (the overwritten one).
In addition, if you delete a file, it's moved to your "Deleted Items" folder in SpiderOak, and is only removed if you delete it from there (via the SpiderOak software interface).
Like every other backup service, only the changes of the backup set are transmitted during a backup process. However, since SpiderOak runs across multiple computers, they have to go a bit further. Say you have two files on two different machines, which are 50% identical. One machine backs up the entire file, while the other machine only backs up the differences.
Sync
Much like SugarSync, SpiderOak can be used to sync files across multiple computers, on multiple platforms (Windows, Mac and Linux). So you can work on a file in the office on your Windows PC, save it to SpiderOak, and have it on your Mac when you get home. Do some work on the file that night at home, and when you go into the office the next morning, your changes will be on your office PC.
Share
Share Rooms
are secure, password-protected locations where you can share your data with colleagues, friends and family. Make a change from any computer running SpiderOak, and the changes are automatically published to the share room, with notification of the change sent to an RSS feed.
When sharing photos, an online photo album is created, which is rough at best. It's OK for sharing mock-ups with a client, but I'll stick to Picasa for my online photo galleries.
The sharing features of SpiderOak are useful, but it seems SugarSync does a superior job at this.
Access
Should your computer crash and you need to access your files, you can do so through SpiderOak's web interface (much like Mozy, Carbonite, and others). You can also access the data from the "View" tab in the SpiderOak software. When you download a file, the file is saved in your Downloads folder, along with a datestamp in the filename.
Conclusion
SpiderOak is a strong contender for online backups and more. Though there are a few faults, the company seems to work quickly to resolve them. Installing the software is easy, but with no default backup set, users must know where on their computer the data resides. If you're a novice user, simply looking for backups, Mozy or Carbonite may be a better solution. But if you're even an intermediate user, SpiderOak's added features and customization, while keeping at a reasonable rate of $10 / 100 GB / month, make it a serious product to consider.
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