Backup and recovery

  1. In information technology, a backup, or the process of backing up, refers to the copying and archiving of computer data so it may be used to restore the original after a data loss event. 

  2. Backup is the activity of copying files or databases so that they will be preserved in case of equipment failure or other catastrophe. 

  3. Backup is usually a routine part of the operation of large businesses with mainframes as well as the administrators of smaller business computers. For personal computer users, backup is also necessary but often neglected. The retrieval of files you backed up is called restoring them. 

  4. Backup and recovery refers to the process of backing up data in case of a loss and setting up systems that allow that data recovery due to data loss. 

  5. Backing up data requires copying and archiving computer data, so that it is accessible in case of data deletion or corruption. Data from an earlier time may only be recovered if it has been backed up. Data backup is a form of disaster recovery and should be part of any disaster recovery plan. Data backup cannot always restore all of a system's data and settings. For example, computer clusters, active directory servers, or database servers may need additional forms of disaster recovery because a backup and recovery may not be able to reconstitute them fully. 

  6. Today, a great deal of data can be backed up when using cloud storage, which means archiving on a local system's hard drive or using external storage is not necessary. Mobile devices, in particular, can be set up using cloud technologies, allowing data to be recovered automatically.

Motherboard

A motherboard (sometimes alternatively known as the mainboard, system board, planar board or logic board, or colloquially, a mobo) is the main printed circuit board (PCB) found in computers and other expandable systems. It holds many of the crucial electronic components of the system, such as the central processing unit (CPU) and memory, and provides connectors for other peripherals. Unlike a backplane, a motherboard contains significant sub-systems such as the processor and other components. 
Motherboard specifically refers to a PCB with expansion capability and as the name suggests, this board is the "mother" of all components attached to it, which often include sound cards, video cards, network cards, hard drives, or other forms of persistent storage; TV tuner cards, cards providing extra USB or FireWire slots and a variety of other custom components (the term mainboard is applied to devices with a single board and no additional expansions or capability, such as controlling boards in televisions, washing machines and other embedded systems).

Basic Words - Program and Data


A "program" is a set of instructions for the computer. A program tells the computer how to do something. Some examples of programs are a game like Solitaire or Hearts, a "word processing" program for doing typing on, a "spreadsheet" program for doing calculations on, a genealogy program for recording and keeping track of your genealogy information, and a "paint" or "drawing" program for drawing pictures on.

"Data" is your information, your work. Some people think of data as "facts" (either written facts or numbers). This could be a letter you typed in, some addresses, some calculations, your tax information, a short story, genealogy information, a picture or photograph, etc. Data is what you put in the computer.

Everything put in the computer is either a program or data.

Data is distinct pieces of information, usually formatted in a special way. All software is divided into two general categories:data and programs. Programs are collections of instructions for manipulating data.
Data can exist in a variety of forms -- as numbers or text on pieces of paper, as bits and bytes stored in electronic memory, or as facts stored in a person's mind.

The program is your tool. The data is your work. You use the "program" to work on "your data."