Overall Rating
MozyHome Unlimited is the hands down favorite among most reviewers. Mozy Online Backup is one of the most simple and one of the best online backup utility services for individuals and businesses. They do have a free account that comes with 2 GB of online backup the basic plan will run you $4.95 per month for unlimited backup (MozyHome). They also offer business (MozyPro: Desktop Licenses; $3.95 + $0.50/GB per month, Server Licenses; $6.95 + $0.50/GB per month) and enterprise (MozyEnterprise) level plans. Mozy’s services include outstanding security and encryption measures (448-bit Blowfish, 128-bit SSL) and desktop clients for both Macs and PCs. Mozy has comprehensive support features including FAQs, email, blogs, live chat, and phone.
The 2GB free plan does come with all the bells and whistles of MozyPro plan, but of course they are giving it to you to get you to try there serivces. 2GB may last you a while, but likely you will have to upgrade at some point. MozyPro introduces additional services/features that are useful for businesses, such as the ability to manage backups across multiple machines from one central account. With Mozy Pro you also get phone support, which is unavailable with either of the MozyHome accounts. Us like others who reviewed Mozy Pro’s pricing don’t feel that Mozy Pro pricing is a great value like the MozyHome Unlimited account. Current pricing for Mozi Pro:
Desktop Licenses: $3.95 + $0.50/GB per month
Server Licenses: $6.95 + $0.50/GB per month
So if your average user has 25GB of data on their workstation, you are looking at $15.00 plus per workstation, and $20 plus for servers. Not the cheapest guy in town, but of course may be a small price to pay for Mozy’s reputation.
To get started you must download and install client software from Mozy. Most users we have talked to say Mozy’s client has many nice features and is fairly easy to navigate. You have options to adjust when and how your files are backed up such as CPU usage, and number of times a day it will pull your data. Another factor that makes Mozy simple to use, as well as benefits you greatly, is their automatic backup feature which assures you will be backing up the most recent changes to your data/files. The Mozy client compresses your files, keeps track of your changes and stores file versions for 30 days. One thing to be aware of is that if you delete a file, Mozy deletes it from its archive as well in 30 days. The Mozy client works with Windows7, Vista, Windows XP as well as Mac OS. Backup is as simple as it gets, choose your files/folders and away you go.
Users can restore data via the Mozy software client, through the web, or by ordering a DVD restore from Mozy direct. Windows users can also restore data via right click or through the Mozy Virtual Drive. As far as online restore Mozy shows a standard tree view that gives you the option to choose the folders and files you want to recover. Some say Mozy’s restore function is a bit clunky. If you select the files you want to restore through the web interface, Mozy will do it’s magic, and notify you via an e-mail when it’s ready. At least they notify you, some other services you have no idea when your restore is complete and ready for download.
One of the most important features any online backup provider can offer is security of your data. With Mozy your data is stored in a securely and encrypted way, so it’s well protected when stored as well as when being transferred to and from your computer.
Mozy Online Backup delivers with the following security features:
– Blowfish: At the beginning of the backup process, all files are locally encrypted with 448-bit Blowfish encryption.
– AES: MozyPro users have the option of supplying a personal key utilizing military–grade 256–bit AES encryption en lieu of 448–bit Blowfish encryption.
– SSL: These encrypted files are then sent via 128–bit SSL–the same encryption used in online banking–to a Decho–managed data center where they remain in their encrypted state (Not every company trusts you with your own encryption key. Mozy will offer to keep it for you if you want, but in the end it’s your choice whether the key will be stored with Mozy or stay with you)
- All data centers employ state-of-the-art security and are SAS70 certified.
- Near Continuous Data Protection: Mozy automatically detects and backs up new and changed files.
- Alerts: Administrators may create customized email alerts regarding the backup health of their account to be sent to their email address on a daily, weekly, or, monthly basis.
In order to view your files, you have to use Mozy’s decrypt utility or your personal encryption key, depending on what your choice was when it was setup. Keep in mind to view and/or restore large amounts of gigabytes of data it can take a very significant amount of time to transfer, as we have heard from some Mozy users, but the price we pay for Mozy’s top notch security we suppose. With Mozy you also have the option of copying the files onto a DVD. This option can be a bit pricey because you pay a handling fee of around $30, plus 50 cents per gigabyte, and for overnight shipping. We still say a small price to pay for getting all your data back, and likely a much quicker restore overall for large amounts of data (which is the objective remember).
However, we feel ease of use, which Mozy Online Backup also delivers, is pretty much equally as important as security when looking at data online backup service providers. A highly secure service that’s difficult to use isn’t really much help to anyone. Mozy’s procedure for backing up your data is simple, setup is quick and easy, fast upload speeds on backup, and the automatic encryption of your files upload or download. Mozy is definitely one of our favorite online backup services; reasonably priced for the security, ease of use, and piece of mind that your data is being securely backed up and can be restored when needed.
How Mozy Online Backup Works Videos:
