HostGator Cloud Backup Review

The worst possible thing that can happen to any website or project is to have a server malfunction and lose all of your data. This could cost a person or a business thousands of dollars and months of work trying to recover and rebuild their old project. The simple solution is to back up all of your data on another server so that it can be accessed at another time. This also gives you the ability to revert so older copies of your program, as most professional businesses will hold onto these to look back at their alterations.

HostGator has introduced a new backup service that is hosted on the cloud, which is designed to allow you to store all of your data in case something were to happen with your current server. They are currently offering four different plans of service, each at various quality levels and prices. This gives a wide range of options for either the casual hobbyist, or the large corporation.

Basic Plan

The basic plan is the cheapest of the four. It only allows for an individual to store up to one gigabyte of memory. This is typically enough room for the average person, and they won’t need to upgrade to one of the more professional level plans. This service comes with a daily backup feature that creates a backup of your data each day. This plan does not allow you to manually backup your data. You will be alerted of all changes to your site or project that occur when a new backup is stored. These notifications can be filtered so that you don’t get spammed when backing up a website with consistent changes. This plan costs $19.95 a year.

Professional Plan

The next level up is the professional plan, which is targeted more for small businesses. It allows the user to store up to 5 gigabytes of data with an unlimited amount of databases. Like the previous service an all others, daily backups are created of your project. The main difference is that you can now do manual backups whenever you want should you desire to do an immediate backup of your files. You can also run tests to determine how efficient a restore would be with your current backup files. This plan does run a significantly higher price at $49.95 a year.

Premium

This plan is targeted more for a large project or several projects that a business may be using. It doubles the amount of memory available, now reaching up to 10 gigabytes of data. This plan comes with the same features as the previous services and it’s only main change has to do with the amount of space that is available. However, with double the space comes double the price, so be prepared to pay $99.95 a year for this premium service.

Enterprise

This is the largest plan available and is meant to be used by enormous corporations. It allows for a user to store up to 25 gigabytes of data, which is 25 times the amount of data that the original plan allowed for. This massive amount of storage comes with all of the other features that come available with the other plans. This is not only the best plan, but the most expensive as well. You’ll have to pay out $239.95 each year to keep your backup saved.

How Reliable Is This Service?

It’s understandable that you may be a bit skeptical about using an outside source to store all of your backup data, because if something happens to it there will be no reserve copies left. HostGator is one of the most trusted website hosting services out there and they keep their servers maintained and updated. Also, if you’re paying for a professional or above service, you can run tests at any time to check that your data is still present. This gives you peace of mind and ensures that you won’t lose your project.

Backup Tip

HostGator recommends that you go with a service that is at least a little bigger than what you need now. Most websites will find that as they grow, their demand for larger amounts of data storage increases. While it is possible to transfer your project to another server that allows for more data, this is a hassle and costs more money.