Syncing vs Backing up - same thing?

[tiger_handheld]

Here is a question to all the tech guru's on here....

If i'm syncing my info on say an external drive with 2TB of space which offers a "dropbox" like feature, do I still need to backup my laptop to the same external drive? Aren't I effectively doing the same thing?

Sorry if this sounds like a stupid question.

[Alby]

you are effectively doing the same thing, however, there is one minor difference to my knowledge. when you sync, it basically mirrors folders from one device to another. so if one folder has any changes, the other mirrored device will change as well. where as when you backup, you copy the files. you may do all the changes you want, but would not affect the back up copy, therefore, if you mess up you can use your backup to restore to that point.

[Reeyal]

Originally Posted by Alby

you are effectively doing the same thing, however, there is one minor difference to my knowledge. when you sync, it basically mirrors folders from one device to another. so if one folder has any changes, the other mirrored device will change as well. where as when you backup, you copy the files. you may do all the changes you want, but would not affect the back up copy, therefore, if you mess up you can use your backup to restore to that point.

Yes, this is correct.

[Soundy]

Backing up isn't necessarily just copying files. There are all kinds of different backup methods, some of which only keep the latest version of a file, some that keep multiple versions. Some sync methods keep multiple versions as well, so you can always back-level on files that get messed up.

Some backup systems also "glob" all the designated files together into one or more large archive files, while others just make individual copies of the selected files.

Other than that, Alby's answer is correct: sync generally keeps a real-time running clone of the files going, whereas backup only updates or replaces the files when it's told to (either manually, or on a schedule).

Note, sync is also usually bi-directional: if you edit the version of the external drive (say, with another computer), that should change the version on your local drive as well. Sync systems like Dropbox, Google Drive, etc. let you access and edit the same files from multiple devices, and the changes will be reflected on all those devices.