Technical Requirements and Specifications

Computer Hardware Requirements

In order to use our system your computer needs to possess a minimum of 128 MB RAM and a Pentium III processor or greater. Our system will work on both Microsoft based laptops and workstations and Mac laptops and workstations.

Operating System Requirements

SafeByte's services will work with the following Microsoft operating systems: Windows XP (both Home and Professional Editions), Windows Vista and Mac OS 10.4 and up.

File Types Backed Up

Our system will backup all of your word processing (Word, WordPerfect, and Pages), spreadsheet (Excel, Numbers), presentation (PowerPoint, Keynotes) and .PDF (Adobe Acrobat) files.

The following file extensions are backed up by our service:

.doc, .dot, .dochtml, .dothtml, .docx, .docm, .dotx, .dotm, .dld, .xls, .xlt, .xlm, .xld, .xla, .xlk, .xlc, .csv, .dif, .xlshtml, .xltshtml, .xlthtml, .dqy, .gra, .xlsx, .xlsm, .xltx, .xltm, .xlsb, .xlam, .ppt, .pps, .pot, .pwz, .ppa, .pptx, .potx, .potm, .ppam, .pptm, .ppsx, .ppsm, .one, .onetmp, .onetemp, .pdf, .fdf, .xfdt, .wpt, .qpw, .ws, .wri, .pages, .template, .keynote, .key, .kth, .numbers, .nmbtemplate. .jpg .bmp No other file extensions will be backed up by our system.

Data Storage Capacity Limits

You may backup up to 1GB of files under a single user account. In the event the files being backed up by our system near the limits of your 1GB storage limit, we will notify you via Email so that you may delete or move non-critical files from your default documents folders (You can if you wish for a fee purchase additional storage space.)

The 1GB of capacity represents the amount of storage you will be allotted at our data facilities. Because your files are compressed prior to transmission to our offsite data centre, the actual amount of files on your computer that may be backed up may be significantly greater than 1GB. In a bench test of over 100 college student computers, we found compression ratios of 25% to over 90%, with most experiencing over 50% compression. What this means to you is that you may be able to backup significantly more than 1GB of files, with the possibility of having 9GB of data backed under your account.

Our Backup Schedule

Each evening at a designated time, our software scans your computer's hard drive for new or modified files. Any files that have been created or changed since the last backup the prior evening are encrypted on your computer, compressed and delivered via a secure Internet connection to SafeByte's server array at our data centre. Backing up your new and modified files each day ensures that ALL of your files are backed up, and are current and available in the event of file loss on your computer. In the event your computer is turned off, asleep or not connected to the Internet during a scheduled backup, SafeByte will ask you to run a backup when you turn on your computer and are connected to the Internet.

Data Encryption Level

Using SafeByte's services, your files are protected via military grade encryption, the highest level of encryption security available today. Only YOU will possess the unique serial number and password to access your account and for disaster recovery. Even SafeByte will not have the ability to unlock or access your files.

Internet Connectivity Requirements

In order to backup your files each day, our system requires an Internet connection with speeds of a LAN or greater. Acceptable Internet connections for our service include LAN, cable modem, DSL, T1 and T3. Our services cannot be utilized with a dial-up Internet connection.

Almost all (over 80%) of colleges and universities in Australia provide their students with a high-speed Internet connection suitable for use with Student Backup's services. As such, if you use your school's Internet connection in your dorm, on-campus apartment or college residence, you will be able to use our backup service.