2. DIY Fireproof Safe Backup, Continued

Assuming you like my solution and it matches your own needs, here's how to set up your own fireproof safe backup system.

First, purchase the parts. It usually takes a couple of weeks for the safe to be delivered and installed. You can set up everything else and move the NAS device into the safe when it arrives. Note that you will want some time to get everything configured and tested. Set up your NAS solution first. If you are using an external hard drive, connect it directly to one of your PCs. Follow the instructions included with the external hard drive to verify that it works properly when connected to the PC. NOTE: don't copy any data to the hard drive, because the NSLU2 will need to reformat it to a Linux file system. Have the safe delivered and installed, and connect the power strip in the safe to an electrical outlet. Configure the network inside the safe. Follow the Powerline instructions to connect the first Powerline adapter to the power strip in the safe. I connected an Ethernet switch to the Powerline adapter to test network connectivity using my laptop. Connect the second Powerline adapter to a power outlet near your network router or switch. Then connect a network cable from your router or switch to the Powerline adapter. Configure the Powerline adapter using its software, which creates a private encrypted network over your power lines between Powerline adapters. Go back to the safe. At this point, I verified my network connectivity by plugging in my laptop to the Powerline adapter and making sure I could get a valid IP address Connect the NSLU2 to the network inside the safe. Connect the Maxtor drive to the NSLU2. If you've done everything correctly, you should be able to open the web admin page on the NSLU2 in a browser window.

Follow the NSLU2 instructions to format the drive and create a "backup" share. Create a batch file to xcopy files from your PC's to \\NameofNASDevice\Backup. I used a copy program called Robocopy which ships as part of the Windows 2000 Resource Kit. Use the task scheduler to run this batch file nightly. You can create a new task on Windows XP (and above) by going to the root \\mypc and clicking on Scheduled Tasks.

You should be done!

One of the challenges I faced was how to easily organize access to the information I wanted to back up on my home network. I used the "Shared Folders" feature of Network Magic to set up the Windows file shares. Then, I right-clicked on a folder that I wanted to backup, to share it locally, and I added this shared folder to my batch file. Now the contents of the folder automatically get backed up. I'm currently working with Alex Hopmann, a fellow team member at Pure Networks, to develop a PowerToy to eliminate the need to create the scheduled tasks and batch files.