OT-Way to arrange my computer business

[nestork]

I'm not very computer savvy, but there seems to be lots of people in here who are. I'm wanting their input as to whether or not the way I have things set up is good, or could be improved without making a lot of changes or learning new programs or software.

I have two computers connected to a KVM switch that allows me to operate them both from a single keyboard and mouse.

One computer is used entirely for my business and the other is used mostly for surfing the internet, including posting and reading posts on this site. If I get a virus on my surfing computer, I simply format the hard disk and reload Windows XP, IE6 and my bookmarks. Takes about a half of a Saturday. I rarely go online with my business computer, and I never use it to surf sites that have a high likelihood of putting malware on my computer, like p*rn sites. It's important to me to minimize the possibility of getting any kind of virus or malware on my business computer that may destroy my files or screw up my business until I reformat the hard drive on my business computer and reload all of the software and files I use.

I've downloaded "Dropbox", which is a freeware program that allows users

2 GB of data storage in the "clowd". With Dropbox, I can go to their web site, sign in with my e-mail address and password and I have access to everything I put into storage on their web site.

So, what I intend to do is this:

1. At the end of every month or so, copy all the files on my business computer (which is only about 300 MB in all) onto a USB drive.
2. Plug that USB drive into my surfing computer and upload all those files onto my 2 GB of space on 's web site storage.

That way, if anything happens to the hard drive on my business computer, I have all my files both on the USB drive and on Dropbox's web site.

And, there's still no chance of getting a virus on my business computer unless and until I have to download a file from Dropbox's web site, and I can download those files onto my surfing computer instead of my business computer to check that they work properly and don't make my surfing computer do anything funny. I use MS Works v.4.0 to do all my business because it has a word processor, spread sheet and data base, and I'm pretty familiar with using all of these, and that's pretty much all a small business like mine needs.

I think that's a pretty good way to back up my business files because the Dropbox program checks all the new files being uploaded, and if they haven't changed, it doesn't upload them. It only updates files that are new or have changed since the last time they were uploaded. Also, the data flow is always from the business computer to the surfing computer to the clowd, never the other way (except if my business computer crashes) so there's still no chance of getting a virus on my business computer.

What do the computer gurus in here think of that gameplan?

Also, is anyone in here familiar with the Dropbox program?

[David LaRue]

Hello,

We use Acronis to back up and change systems at work. A DVD/CD and an external drive are all you need. Why use the cloud when it can be local and as simple as plugging in your archive to the usual or replacement computer. I also use a external drive at home to archive the important personal photos and business files.

I'm sure your familiar with backing up to external drives. Acronis can image your entire system. You mentioned taking a half day to get back to normal after a disaster. Acronis can cut that to about 20 minutes.

David

[Vic Smith]

People seem to "enjoy" the reinstall process, Not me. Anymore. Or maybe they don't want to figure out how to image. I can restore my Win 7 machine in about 5 minutes, and did the same with XP. Acronis works, and so does free Macrium. I use Ghost 15. For XP I used Ghost 3, which fits on floppy. The OP can go here.

Just ask. Far as I know it works for XP too, but I left that behind.

[(PeteCresswell)]

Per nestork:

Try TeamViewer. It presents the other PC in a window that can be maximized. Once it's maximized, I am hard pressed to tell the diff between the TeamViewer presentation and the real thing. Very convenient for hopping back-and-forth. Also it would make your PCs available remotely if you want - as in vacation or business trips.

Separate your data from you system by partitioning the drive into "C" and "D"... and spend the time learning to save stuff only to "D".

Then get an imaging utility and make an image of C when you are pretty sure it's good - and keep a little log of programs you have added/changes you have made since taking the image.

Now you're down to about 20 minutes to recover the system.

[Mayayana]

| >I have two computers connected to a KVM switch that allows me to operate | >them both from a single keyboard and mouse. | | Try TeamViewer. It presents the other PC in a window that can be | maximized. Once it's maximized, I am hard pressed to tell the diff | between the TeamViewer presentation and the real thing. Very | convenient for hopping back-and-forth. Also it would make your PCs | available remotely if you want - as in vacation or business trips.

A core part of his strategy is to keep his work PC entirely offline. TeamViewer would be adding both the risk of connecting online as well as the risk of enabling remote access. Personally I don't know a lot about the technical details of that kind of software, but I would never allow such a thing on my machine. It can only work by enabling software online to control your OS.

[trader_4]

It does seem to have features that are opposite to what the OP is looking for. He apparently doesn't want any internet connectivity on the business PC at all.

[(PeteCresswell)]

Per trader_4:

Mea Culpa.... I missed that.

But, FWIW, TeamViewer can be used directly PC-to-PC over a LAN.

OTOH, how to have a meaningfully-useful LAN without internet connectivity is above my pay grade.

[trader_4]

How to have no internet connectivity and have a useful business PC period is questionable. The OS, apps, etc depend on the internet for updates. And usually with a business PC you need internet for sending/receiving emails, bills to customers, etc. And then you typically need an antivirus program which again depends on regular internet updates. I guess if you have no internet connectivity at all and never receive documents, files from anyone that you're going to put on the PC, then you could skip the antivirus. But it's not the typical case.

[(PeteCresswell)]

Per trader_4:

That brings one reason for not having internet connectivity to mind: apps that phone home to verify versions/registrations.

I've got an IP cam server app that I run two instances of - at about fifty bucks per license. If I were to install it on a third PC and apply one of the two existing license codes, it would phone home, determine that I only have 2 licenses, and revert itself or one of other instances to "Demo" version.

OTOH, if I wanted to get around that, I'd install it on a third PC with no internet connectivity...

[trader_4]

Are they that dumb that it will work for ever without verification? Similar things I've seen, if it can't verify that you've paid, licensed, etc after some period it stops working. But you bring up another example of why you need to be connected, which is to install a lot of the stuff you typically need on any PC today. It's not just the updates, a lot of the application software itself gets installed via the internet.

If it were me, I wouldn't have a problem having a business PC on the internet. I'd just make sure I had a good proactive antivirus program and limited what I did on the web with that PC. Use it for business essentials, going to sites for software, whatever that you know are safe. And use the other PC for general internet browsing where you have a greater chance of encountering viruses, malware, etc.

[(PeteCresswell)]

Per trader_4:

Dunno - never pushed the limits, but they do watermark the rendered images in a way that nobody would want to use them for long.

[Mayayana]

| OTOH, if I wanted to get around that, I'd install it on a third PC with | no internet connectivity...

Or with a firewall. I've used a firewall for many years and don't let anything go out unbidden. I generally won't even leave anything installed if it tries to go online without asking. That kind of behavior has become an epidemic.

Software authors have a right to be paid for their work, and they have a reasonable right to try to enforce that, but that doesn't give them a right to sell spyware. That kind of thing has become much worse with phones, with people unaware of what's going online and many phone apps demanding all sorts of private information for no good reason.

[nestork]

Thanks for everyone's input.

I'm convinced that the system I've hobbled together here will both protect my business computer from viruses and keep my surfing computer clean as a whistle.

And, what I like about the Dropbox freeware program is that it only uploads the files that are new or have changed since the last upload. I'm on dial-up, and that means the speed limit between my computer and the clowd is only about 2 to 4 kilobytes per second. That's way too slow to start backing up videos, but it's plenty fast enough for word processing, spread sheet and data base files, each of which is typically only 2 to 4 kilobytes. And, that's typically the kind of business files I'm backing up to the clowd.

Thanks for everyone's input.

[clare]

That's fine until you get the new uefi win7 and win8 machines. -