Start with the two-copy rule

If your only copy of a document, photograph or piece of coursework lives on your laptop, you don't have a backup. You have a single point of failure. Laptops get dropped, drinks get spilled, drives fail, and occasionally they are stolen. The fix is simple: keep at least two separate copies of anything you cannot recreate, using two different storage methods. That way, if one method fails, the other is still there.

Think of it as a safety net with two ropes. One rope can be a physical drive you own. The other can be an offsite service that stores your files on remote servers. Using both means a house fire, a burglary or a simple hardware failure won't wipe out your digital life.

Pick storage that suits your life

For the local copy, an external hard drive or solid-state drive is ideal. A 2TB external drive costs around £50–£80 and holds years of documents and photos. Solid-state drives are faster and more shock-resistant, which makes them great for students carrying a drive between home and university. Traditional hard drives offer more capacity for the money, but they dislike being knocked whilst running.

For the offsite copy, a cloud storage subscription is the easiest option. Most services charge a few pounds a month for 1TB or 2TB. UK broadband upload speeds can be slow, so choose a service that syncs in the background rather than making you wait. If you prefer to avoid subscriptions, keep a second external drive at a trusted friend's or relative's house and swap it every few months.

• External SSD: fast, rugged, good for weekly backups.
• External HDD: cheaper per terabyte, best kept on a desk.
• Cloud storage: automatic, offsite, accessible from anywhere.
• USB flash drive: fine for a few important files, not for full backups.

What actually needs saving

You don't need to back up everything. Your operating system, installed programs and streaming downloads can all be replaced. Focus on files that would cause real pain if they vanished. That means documents, spreadsheets, presentations, photographs, videos, music you've created, coursework, dissertations, research notes, and saved game files if you care about them.

Also remember the odd corners: browser bookmarks, password manager exports, email archives if you use a local client, and phone photos that haven't synced anywhere. A good habit is to keep a single folder called "Backup" or "Important" and move anything irreplaceable into it. Then your backup tool only needs to watch that one folder, plus your usual documents and pictures libraries.

Set a schedule you'll actually keep

Backups fail for one reason: people forget. So make it automatic wherever possible. Your computer's built-in backup utility can run a full system backup every week without you lifting a finger. Set it to run overnight, plug in the external drive, and let it work. For cloud storage, install the sync client and point it at your important folders. It will upload changes as you work.

For the parts that aren't automatic, use calendar reminders. A weekly reminder on a Friday afternoon takes ten minutes: plug in the drive, start the backup, check that the cloud sync icon shows everything is up to date. A monthly reminder can be for swapping an offsite drive or checking that your cloud storage isn't full. Before any major deadline, exam or laptop repair, do a manual backup as well. It's cheap insurance.

Test your backups (yes, really)

An untested backup is a hope, not a plan. Every few months, restore one file from your backup to a different folder and open it. Check that photographs actually display, that documents aren't corrupted, and that you remember how to navigate the backup tool. If you use cloud storage, try downloading a file from the web interface rather than your synced folder. This proves the offsite copy works independently.

Also look after your hardware. External drives have moving parts and eventually wear out. Replace any drive that is more than four or five years old, or that starts making clicking noises. Label drives with the date you started using them. Keep one copy in a different room from your laptop, and ideally one copy in a different building. That's the difference between a minor annoyance and a disaster.

Make it a habit, not a chore

The best backup system is the one you barely notice. Create a small routine: every Friday, plug in your drive and let it run whilst you make a cup of tea. Every month, check your cloud storage and swap your offsite drive. Every term, before deadlines pile up, do a full manual backup. Keep your backup drive, cable and a note with any passwords in a single bag or drawer so you're never hunting for them.

If you do this, a failed hard drive becomes a shrug instead of a crisis. Your photographs, coursework and documents will survive drops, spills, theft and simple old age. Start today, even if it's just copying your most important folder to a USB drive. Then add the second method next week. Two copies, regular schedule, occasional test. That's all it takes.