3-2-1 backup strategy: how to never lose your data

The 3-2-1 rule is a simple and proven principle to protect your data:

3 copies of your important data
2 different media (external drive, cloud, SSD…)
1 copy stored offsite (in a different physical location than your home)

Why is it essential?

Hard drives fail on average after 3 to 5 years
Ransomware attacks have increased by over 70% in one year
Fires, floods, and thefts respect no borders
Smartphone failure is almost inevitable after 2-3 years

How to apply the rule with Archibou?

The 3 copies

Your device (computer, phone) — the active copy
A local medium — external hard drive
Archibou cloud — your files synced and stored in France, under European jurisdiction

The 2 different media

An external hard drive or SSD for the local copy
Archibou cloud for the remote copy

Two different technologies, two distinct failure points.

The 1 offsite copy

Archibou hosts your data in France. In case of a local disaster (fire, theft, water damage), your cloud copy remains intact and accessible from any device.

Security with Archibou

HTTPS encryption for transfers
At-rest encryption (AES-256) for stored data
Redundancy across multiple OVH servers
Automatic daily backups of the PostgreSQL database

Getting started in 3 steps

Install the Archibou Photo app on mobile or Nextcloud on desktop
Connect to https://archibou.cloud
Enable automatic sync — your files are copied in the background

Conclusion

Backup is not glamorous. But losing your family photos, important documents, or work projects is even less so. With Archibou, the offsite copy is already there. You just need to add a local one.