It’s been a few weeks since the WannaCry ransomware attack plagued countries across the world but thousands are still reeling from the effects. The attack was a wake-up call to many that they needed to backup their personal computers to an external device. Soon, people will find an easy way to do it thanks to Google, which just announced that an upcoming Backup and Sync tool will give everyday users the chance to save all the files and photos on their PCs to Google Drive.
“On June 28th, 2017, we will launch Backup and Sync from Google, a tool intended to help everyday users back up files and photos from their computers, so they’re safe and accessible from anywhere. Backup and Sync is the latest version of Google Drive for Mac/PC, which is now integrated with the Google Photos desktop uploader. As such, it will respect any current Drive for Mac/PC settings in the Admin console.”
Backup and Sync from Google lets you select folders on your computer to be backed up on Google Drive. However, if you don’t pay for extra storage then you will probably go over the 15 GB limit.
Backup and Sync is targeted for consumers, not for enterprise users. Google is instead recommending G Suite customers to continue using Drive for Mac/PC until our new enterprise-focused solution, Drive File Stream (currently in EAP), is made generally available to all G Suite Basic, Business, Enterprise, Education, and Nonprofit domains later this year. Drive File Stream will allow users to access huge corporate data sets without taking up the equivalent space on their hard drives.
Furthermore, Google will not upgrade G Suite users from Drive for Mac/PC to Backup and Sync at this time. If you currently install Drive for Mac/PC on their own computers, they will be able to download and upgrade to Backup and Sync starting on Wednesday, June 28th. However, if you don’t currently allow Google Drive for Mac/PC in your organisation, your users won’t be able to use Backup and Sync with their G Suite accounts.
Source: Google Blog
