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search A portable hard drive This computer was used to store
files, before the fire hit  In the context of computers and
computer systems, a backup is a copy of some data. This copy can
be used when the original data is changed, or lost. Losing data
is common: A 2008 survey found that two thirds of respondents
had lost files on their home PC.[1] Another purpose of backing
up data is to have a copy that represents an earlier state of
the data, before it was changed. Organisations may have rules
which state how long data should be kept, and what kinds of data
these rules apply to. In many countries there are rules that
specify that certain kinds of data need to be kept for a given
time. An example of this is the data used for accounting.
Backups are a simple form of disaster recovery. Even though they
are commonly seen as disaster recovery, they should be part of a
disaster recovery plan. A disaster recovery plan is a documented
set of procedures and t