Alex Mailer Blog

A small accounting firm serves some 150 clients. Its office technology includes two PCs and a laptop computer, all running various accounting software packages

An external HP Colorado backup drive provides peace of mind and complements the firm’s archives of paper documents. The drive also automatically backs up the system and the CPAs’ data files, a big help in tax season.

Steve Carroll previously was in charge of data backup and storage at another accounting firm. “I came to understand backup procedures and developed some good habits,” he said. “It is like insurance for a business. It sure is good to have when you need it.”

Carroll now heads his own firm. He and two contract CPAs primarily assist with tax returns, and also complete financial statements and other financial-related documents. Clients range from large manufacturing and construction operations to small businesses such as veterinary and dental practices. Carroll’s primary need revolves around the storage of client tax files. The Internal Revenue Service and American Institute of Certified Public Accounting (AICPA) standards require the firm to keep copies of client tax returns for up to ten years. Carroll prefers to archive these files on tape to complement but not replace his hard copy storage. “I’m not comfortable going completely electronic just yet. Plus, I am concerned about retrieving data from an operating system or software applications that I didn’t use to create the work, and that may be obsolete ten years from now,” he said.

Automation is another need. Even though his backup habits are strong, Carroll admits it’s easy to relax about backup in the summer months when business slows. “An automated system will keep my backup in order,” he said. Even more important, backup automation brings Carroll relief and saves time during tax season. “Having to worry about one more thing during the critical time of tax season is really asking a lot, even if it is something I know is good for us,” he said. “Now I come in, replace a tape and let the drive do its job. And any time that I save during tax season is a big help.” Carroll investigated his backup options and found that the HP Colorado 14GB external drive met all his needs. The drive now backs up one of the desktops and will be the primary backup for his laptop soon. With the drive’s portability, he’ll be able to backup his employees’ work to tape as well, leaving one less potential for data loss.

With the HP Colorado 14GB’s automatic scheduler, Carroll just sets the days and times he wants the backup to run. Then he only has to make sure a tape is in the drive. When the backup is complete, a message on the screen tells him that everything worked properly. Carroll has experienced data scares in the past. “I’ve closed out a year on my accounting software too soon and I had to go to my backup to retrieve a previously saved version,” he explained. “I had a hard copy of the correct data, but I would have had to recreate all of the that information, which would have amounted to numerous hours of tedious work. Fortunately I’ve never had a hard drive crash, knock on wood. But I know how long it would take to reinstall the operating system, software and configurations. It would take at least a week to get back to the point you were before.” With the new HP drive, Carroll can back up all of the system files as well as his data files. “The capacity of the drive is a big bonus. I can save everything on just one tape. Plus, I can save a copy of my operating system. Years down the road, I should have no trouble reading data created in old applications.

“One thing I am seeing more and more in the Accounting industry, and similar industries, is the increased use of laptop computers,” noted Carroll. “It is easy and efficient for me to take my laptop to a client’s office and enter data or pull up information as we speak.” The HP Colorado 14GB is a great companion for portable computers, which frequently aren’t backed up as regularly as desktop PCs, especially those connected to networks. “I’ve read statistics about the high theft of laptops, and just jostling it around could cause problems,” continued Carroll. “So it is nice to know that I have the option to backup my files even when I am not in the office. “The thing I like best about the HP Colorado 14GB is that it simplifies the backup process. That is important to small business owners like me, who have seemingly endless other things to worry about. With this drive, there really isn’t any excuse for small businesses to put themselves in jeopardy without proper backup.”