Common Mistake: Confusing Sync with Backup

Technology is amazing, but it doesn’t always work how people expect. Syncing your digital photos to the cloud seems like a great idea, but when you get messages on your phone or computer that you’ve run out of storage, many people make choices they don’t understand and end up regretting.

For example, many people delete photos from their phone or computer because they think they’re backed up to the cloud. However, most photo management apps function as a Sync service, not a Backup.

Sync and Backup sound similar, so what’s the difference and does it really matter? Services like Apple Photos and Google Photos are Sync services, which means if you delete a photo from your phone, it will also be deleted from the cloud and all other devices that sync to the same account.

By contrast, a local hard drive or a cloud backup service like Backblaze keep a backup of your files, so that if you accidentally delete a photo or experience a technical failure you can still recover all your photos.

There’s a place for both Sync and Backup services, but if you don’t understand the difference you can lose your digital photos forever. If you feel overwhelmed by all the technology, we can help. We’d love to preserve your digital photos and help you setup a reliable backup system so they’ll be available for generations to come.