When you’re thinking about cloud backup, chances are you’ve heard of Backblaze. It’s a name that frequently pops up in discussions about reliable, affordable, and straightforward online data protection. But here’s a question that often trips people up: does Backblaze actually back up external drives? And if so, how well does it do it? This isn’t just a technicality; for many of us, our most cherished photos, critical work documents, and extensive media libraries live not on our internal hard drives, but on those trusty external companions. Ignoring them in your backup strategy is like locking your front door but leaving the back wide open.

The good news, right off the bat, is a resounding yes: Backblaze Personal Backup absolutely supports external drives. This isn’t a premium add-on or a hidden feature; it’s a core part of their service designed to give you a comprehensive safety net. However, like any powerful tool, there are nuances, specific requirements, and best practices you’ll want to understand to make sure your Backblaze external drive backup is truly robust. We’re going to dive deep into exactly what that means, covering everything from initial setup to troubleshooting, and why this particular feature is so vital in today’s data-heavy world.

The Fundamental “Yes”: Backblaze and External Drives

Let’s clear the air immediately: Backblaze Personal Backup is designed to include your external drives in its continuous backup process. This isn’t a new development; it’s been a foundational element of their offering for years. When you install the Backblaze client on your Windows PC or Mac, it doesn’t just scan your main C: or Macintosh HD. It intelligently looks for all connected storage devices, including those external USB drives, Thunderbolt arrays, or even firewire disks you’ve got plugged in. This inclusivity is a huge advantage, especially when you compare it to some other backup solutions that might charge extra or make it more complicated to protect data not residing on your primary internal drive.

The philosophy here is simple: if it’s connected and contains data you care about, Backblaze aims to back it up. This seamless integration means less fuss for you. You don’t have to manually select each external drive every time you plug it in, nor do you need to configure separate backup jobs. Once it’s set up, Backblaze handles the heavy lifting in the background, continuously monitoring for changes and uploading new or modified files to their cloud servers. This ‘set it and forget it’ approach is a big part of Backblaze’s appeal, and it extends directly to your external storage.

Understanding the Connection Requirement for Backblaze External Drive Backup

While Backblaze does back up external drives, there’s a crucial caveat: the drive must be connected to your computer at least once every 30 days. This isn’t an arbitrary rule; it’s a practical measure to ensure data integrity and prevent the accumulation of stale, unnecessary backups. Think about it: if Backblaze kept backing up data from a drive you last connected five years ago, that would be a lot of wasted storage and bandwidth for potentially irrelevant files. This 30-day window helps keep your backup current and efficient.

What happens if you miss that 30-day window? If an external drive isn’t connected for more than 30 consecutive days, Backblaze will temporarily remove its data from your backup. The software assumes that if a drive hasn’t been seen in a month, it’s either permanently disconnected, lost, or no longer relevant for continuous backup. However, this isn’t a permanent deletion. As soon as you reconnect that drive, Backblaze will recognize it, rescan its contents, and resume the backup process. Any files on that drive that were backed up previously and still exist will be re-verified, and new or changed files will be uploaded. It’s a smart system designed to balance comprehensive protection with resource efficiency.

Tips for Managing the 30-Day Rule

• Set a Reminder: If you have drives you don’t use frequently, set a calendar reminder to plug them in for an hour or so every 2-3 weeks.
• Consolidate: If possible, consolidate data from rarely used drives onto one or two larger, frequently connected drives.
• Dedicated Backup Drive: Consider having a dedicated external drive specifically for files that you know need consistent backup, keeping it connected most of the time.

Which External Drives Are Supported?

Backblaze is remarkably flexible when it comes to the types of external drives it supports. Generally speaking, if your operating system (Windows or macOS) can see and access the drive, Backblaze can back it up. This includes a wide array of storage devices:

• USB Drives: The most common type, including portable USB sticks and larger desktop USB hard drives.
• Thunderbolt Drives: High-speed external SSDs and HDDs often used by creative professionals.
• Firewire Drives: Older, but still supported, external storage.
• eSATA Drives: Another interface for external storage.
• Network Attached Storage (NAS) Drives: This is where it gets a little more nuanced. Backblaze Personal Backup does not directly back up network drives or NAS devices. However, if your NAS device is configured to mount as a local drive on your computer (e.g., via iSCSI or a similar protocol that makes it appear as a directly connected volume), then Backblaze might be able to back it up. But this is not officially supported and can be unreliable. For true NAS backup, Backblaze offers their B2 Cloud Storage service, which is designed for server and NAS backups, but that’s a different product and pricing model than the Personal Backup we’re discussing here.
• Internal Drives (Non-Boot): If you have additional internal hard drives besides your primary boot drive, Backblaze will back those up as well.

The key takeaway is direct physical connection or a very convincing emulation of one. Backblaze is designed for consumer-grade workstations, not complex network environments. If you’re a professional with terabytes on a NAS, you’ll likely need to look at Backblaze B2 or another enterprise-grade solution.

Setting Up Backblaze External Drive Backup: A Walkthrough

One of Backblaze’s biggest selling points is its simplicity, and that extends to external drives. You generally don’t need to do anything special to enable Backblaze external drive backup; it’s enabled by default. Here’s a quick rundown of the process: (See: New York Times review of Backblaze.)

1. Install Backblaze Personal Backup

First things first, download and install the Backblaze client on your Windows or macOS computer. The installation process is straightforward, requiring just a few clicks and your account credentials. Once installed, it will typically begin its initial scan and upload immediately.

2. Connect Your External Drives

Ensure all the external drives you want to back up are connected to your computer. For the initial scan, it’s a good idea to have as many of them connected as possible. Backblaze will automatically detect them.

3. Verify Backup Selection

Open the Backblaze preferences (or control panel on Windows). On the ‘Settings’ tab, you’ll see a list of drives that Backblaze is configured to back up. Your internal drives will be listed, and any connected external drives should appear there as well, usually marked with an ‘External’ tag. You can selectively deselect drives if you don’t want them backed up, but by default, all detected drives will be included.

4. Let Backblaze Do Its Thing

Once verified, Backblaze will start scanning and uploading your files. The initial backup can take a considerable amount of time, depending on the total volume of data and your internet upload speed. It’s often best to let this run overnight or during periods when you’re not heavily using your internet connection. After the initial backup, Backblaze operates continuously, backing up new and changed files incrementally, which uses far less bandwidth.

That’s really it. There’s no complex drive mapping, no special configuration files to edit. Backblaze aims to be as hands-off as possible, making sure your Backblaze external drive backup is always running in the background, protecting your precious data.

Restoring Data from an External Drive Backup

A backup is only as good as its restore process, right? What happens when you need to get your files back from an external drive that’s been backed up by Backblaze? The good news is that restoring data is just as straightforward as backing it up, and Backblaze offers several flexible options.

1. Web Restore

The most common and easiest method is to use the Backblaze website. Log in to your account, navigate to the ‘View/Restore Files’ section, and you’ll see a list of all your backed-up drives, including externals. You can browse through your files and folders, select what you need, and then choose how you want to restore it:

• Download as Zip: For smaller selections of files (up to 500GB), Backblaze will create a zip archive that you can download directly to your computer.
• Restore to Computer: For larger amounts of data, or if you prefer a more automated process, you can select ‘Restore to Computer.’ This uses the Backblaze client on your machine to download the files directly, often resuming if your connection drops.

2. USB Hard Drive or Flash Drive Restore (Paid Service)

For truly massive amounts of data (think multiple terabytes), downloading over the internet can be painfully slow. Backblaze offers a unique physical restore service. They will ship you a USB hard drive (up to 8TB) or a USB flash drive (up to 256GB) containing all your selected data. You pay a deposit for the drive, and if you return it within 30 days, you get a full refund. This is an incredibly useful option for disaster recovery or if you’ve lost an entire drive and need to restore everything quickly without monopolizing your internet connection for days on end.

The flexibility in restore options means you’re never truly stuck. Whether it’s a single accidentally deleted photo or an entire external drive that’s corrupted, Backblaze has a path to get your data back, even for your Backblaze external drive backup.

Best Practices for a Solid Backblaze External Drive Backup Strategy

Just having the feature isn’t enough; you need to use it smartly. Here are some best practices to ensure your Backblaze external drive backup is as robust as possible: (See: CDC on computer work safety.)

1. Connect Drives Regularly

This is paramount. As we discussed, the 30-day rule is real. Make it a habit to connect all your external drives at least once every three weeks. Even if you just plug them in for an hour, it’s usually enough for Backblaze to scan and register their presence, resetting the timer.

2. Keep Drives Healthy

Backblaze can’t back up a drive it can’t read. Regularly check the health of your external drives. Listen for unusual noises, run disk utility checks (Disk Utility on macOS, Chkdsk on Windows), and generally treat your drives with care. A failing drive, even if connected, might not be fully backed up if it’s exhibiting read/write errors.

3. Monitor Your Backup Status

Don’t just assume everything is working. Periodically check the Backblaze client on your computer or log into the web interface. Look for any warnings or errors. Ensure that all your expected drives are listed as being backed up and that the ‘Last Backup’ timestamp is recent. Backblaze also sends email reports, which are invaluable for staying informed.

4. Understand Your Retention Policy

Backblaze offers different retention options. By default, it keeps unlimited versions of your files for 30 days. You can extend this to 1 year or even ‘Forever’ for an additional fee. Understand what this means for your external drives. If you delete a file from an external drive, how long will Backblaze keep a copy in the cloud? This is critical for recovering older versions or accidentally deleted items.

5. Don’t Rely Solely on Cloud Backup

While Backblaze is excellent, the “3-2-1 backup rule” is still the gold standard: 3 copies of your data, on 2 different types of media, with 1 copy offsite. Backblaze covers the offsite copy beautifully. But you should still have local backups (e.g., using Time Machine, Windows File History, or another local cloning tool) of your most critical data. This provides faster recovery for common issues and protects against internet outages or even cloud service disruptions (however rare).

Addressing Common Concerns and Scenarios

Despite Backblaze’s simplicity, users often have specific questions or run into unique situations. Let’s tackle a few of them.

What if I connect an external drive to a different computer?

If you have Backblaze Personal Backup installed on two different computers, and you connect the same external drive to both at different times, Backblaze will treat it as part of each computer’s backup. This means the data from that external drive will be associated with both backup sets. While this isn’t necessarily problematic, it can lead to redundant storage and potentially consume more bandwidth. Ideally, an external drive should primarily be backed up by a single Backblaze installation to keep things tidy.

What about encrypted external drives?

If your external drive is encrypted (e.g., with BitLocker on Windows or FileVault on macOS, or a third-party encryption tool), Backblaze can still back it up, provided the drive is unlocked and mounted when Backblaze runs its scan. Backblaze backs up the files themselves, not the encryption container. When you restore, the files will be unencrypted, so you’ll want to restore them to a secure location or re-encrypt them if necessary.

Can I exclude specific folders or file types from external drives?

Yes, absolutely. Backblaze offers robust exclusion options. In the preferences, you can go to the ‘Exclusions’ tab and specify folders or file types you don’t want to back up, regardless of whether they are on an internal or external drive. This is useful for temporary files, operating system caches, or very large media files you might not need in the cloud. Remember, careful use of exclusions can speed up your backup and reduce the amount of data stored.

My external drive is full, and I’m adding a new one. How does that affect Backblaze?

No problem at all! Backblaze will simply detect the new external drive the next time it’s connected and add it to your backup set. It will then begin the initial backup of that new drive’s contents, while continuing to monitor and back up your existing drives. There are no limits on the number of external drives you can back up with a single Backblaze Personal Backup license, provided they are connected to that licensed computer.

The Value Proposition: Why Backblaze External Drive Backup Matters

In an age where data loss can range from a minor inconvenience to a catastrophic event, having a reliable cloud backup for all your storage, including external drives, isn’t just a luxury—it’s a necessity. Think about the scenarios:

• Accidental Deletion: We’ve all done it. That moment of panic when you realize you’ve trashed a critical folder. With Backblaze, you can easily restore it.
• Hardware Failure: Hard drives die. It’s a fact of life. When your external drive inevitably gives up the ghost, your data lives on in the cloud.
• Theft or Fire: Local backups are great, but if your house burns down or your computer and external drives are stolen, those local copies are gone too. Backblaze provides the crucial offsite copy.
• Ransomware: Increasingly prevalent, ransomware can encrypt all accessible drives. Having a clean, offsite backup is often the only way to recover without paying the ransom.
• Upgrade/Migration: Getting a new computer? A Backblaze backup makes migrating your data, especially from external drives, far simpler.

The cost-effectiveness of Backblaze, combined with its ease of use and the fact that it includes external drives without extra hassle, makes it a compelling choice for anyone serious about data protection. For a relatively small monthly or annual fee, you get peace of mind that virtually all your personal data, wherever it resides on your connected drives, is safe in the cloud.

Final Thoughts on Backblaze External Drive Backup

Backblaze has carved out a strong niche in the cloud backup market by keeping things simple, unlimited, and affordable. The fact that it seamlessly integrates external drives into its core offering is a significant advantage, especially for users who manage large amounts of data across multiple physical storage devices. While the 30-day connection rule requires a little attention, it’s a minor trade-off for the comprehensive protection you receive.

Ultimately, a Backblaze external drive backup is a powerful tool in your data protection arsenal. It takes the worry out of losing those precious photos, important projects, or extensive media collections that live outside your main computer. Set it up, connect your drives regularly, and let Backblaze handle the rest. Your future self, free from the agony of data loss, will thank you for it.