Backblaze is a cloud backup service that copies a computer, and the external drives attached to it, to servers off site. It suits photographers whose library lives on one Mac or Windows computer plus a few directly connected drives, and who want a copy that survives fire, theft or a failed disk without managing it by hand.
How Backblaze handles a photo archive
You install a small app on the computer and it runs in the background. Backblaze works by exclusion: it starts by backing up nearly everything you created on the computer and its connected drives, and you remove what you do not want. The operating system, application files and some cache and thumbnail folders are skipped by default. The boot drive is always selected. After the first pass, only new and changed files are uploaded.
There is no limit on file size, so large RAW files and exported TIFFs go up like anything else.
External drives
Most photographers keep the archive on external drives, so this is the part that matters. Backblaze can back up drives that connect directly to the computer by USB, Thunderbolt or similar. A drive has to be one the operating system can read and write, and it has to be in working order. You choose the drives in the app, and you can add one later.
The condition people miss: with the default settings, a drive that is unplugged stays in the backup only if you reconnect it regularly. The default window is 30 days. Backblaze sends missing-drive alerts as the gap grows, and if the drive stays away longer, its backed-up data may be removed. If you travel with the laptop and leave the archive drives at home, or keep a drive in a drawer, this applies to you. Backblaze’s documentation says an extended version history setting lifts the reconnect requirement, so read the next section before you decide.
Version history and deleted files
Backblaze keeps earlier versions of changed and deleted files for a set period, which is 30 days by default. You can extend it to a longer fixed period, or to forever. The setting matters for photographers because it is also how long a deleted file stays recoverable.
Backblaze mirrors the computer. It is not an archive you can empty the computer into. If you delete a folder of old shoots from your drive to free space, the copy in the cloud is removed after the history window closes. If you want the cloud copy to outlive the local one, you need a longer history setting, and you should confirm what it costs on Backblaze’s site first, because the longer options cost extra.
Restoring
There are several ways to get files back. You can pick files or folders in the web interface and download them as a ZIP, or restore them straight to the computer from the Backblaze app. You can save a restore to Backblaze’s separate cloud storage product if you want to hold the files there, which can cost extra. Or you can order the data on a USB hard drive that Backblaze ships to you, which is the practical route when a whole library is lost and downloading it would take far too long. Each method has a size ceiling per restore, so a very large archive may come back across more than one request.
For larger downloads, Backblaze recommends its downloader app over the browser. Restore a folder as a test before you need to do it for real.
How long the first upload takes
The first backup of a large library is slow, and it is limited by your internet upload speed, not by Backblaze. The app has an automatic throttle that leaves some of your bandwidth free. You can change this in the performance settings, and raise the number of upload connections, if you want it to go faster.
You can estimate the time yourself. Take the size of the library in gigabytes, convert it to megabits (multiply by 8,000), and divide by your upload speed in megabits per second to get seconds. Divide by 3,600 for hours. A library of 2 TB (2,000 gigabytes) is 16,000,000 megabits. At 20 megabits per second that is 800,000 seconds, about 222 hours or nine days of continuous uploading. Real backups take longer, because the connection is shared and the computer is not always on.
Where it fits in a 3-2-1 backup
The 3-2-1 rule asks for three copies of your files, on two kinds of storage, with one copy off site. Backblaze can be the off-site copy. It does not cover the other two. You still need the working copy and at least one separate local backup, such as a second drive that you update regularly.
That makes cloud backup the answer to one specific question: what happens if the house, the desk and every drive on it are gone at once. How to back up photos lays out the whole rule and the way each copy fails. Photo file management shows how folder structure and naming make backups easier to check, and the workflow page places the backup step right after import, where it belongs.
Away from home for weeks with a laptop and cards? How to back up your photos when travelling covers keeping copies on the road and physically apart.
Limits that catch photographers out
Network storage is not covered
The personal backup plan does not back up network-attached storage (NAS) or other network-mounted volumes. Drives have to be connected directly to the computer. If your archive lives on a NAS, this service will not copy it. Backblaze points people with that setup to its separate cloud storage product, which has its own pricing and is usually used through other backup software.
Removable media is skipped
Memory cards, optical discs and similar removable media are not backed up. Copy the cards to a drive first, which is what you should be doing at import anyway. A flash drive is backed up only if the operating system treats it as a regular hard drive.
A Mac’s Time Machine drive is skipped
Backblaze does not back up any drive that holds Time Machine data. If you keep photos on the same external drive as a Mac’s Time Machine backup, those photos are not in the cloud copy. Give the photo archive its own drive.
Files that are open are skipped
A file in use by another program cannot be copied, so Backblaze skips it and tries again on a later pass. This matters for an editing catalog, which stays open while you work. If you edit all day and shut the program down late, the catalog may be missed for long stretches. Quit the editor at the end of the session, and use the editor’s own catalog backup feature to write a copy into a folder that Backblaze covers.
Not sure what an editing catalog holds, or how it relates to the photo files? How to organize your photos has a section on catalog software.
Skipped files are listed in the app’s report or issues screen, so you can see what has been missed.
Price
Backblaze personal backup is a flat subscription with unlimited storage, billed monthly or for a longer term at once. Each computer you back up needs its own license. The current price is on Backblaze’s own site, and it is the only place worth trusting for it, because plans change.
Alternatives, by kind
- A second drive kept off site. A drive you update regularly and store at another address, such as a relative’s home or an office. It restores fast but depends on you remembering to swap it.
- A sync service. Handy for access from several devices and for sharing, but it copies mistakes and deletions as faithfully as it copies photos. It is not a backup unless it also keeps old versions you can recover.
- Object storage you manage yourself. Pay for the space you use and run your own backup tool against it. It handles network storage, but you set up and test everything.
Unsure how a cloud copy differs from a synced folder? The backup guide compares them and says what each one protects against.
Common mistakes
- Treating it as the only copy. If the account is closed, the subscription lapses or the computer is never reconnected to the drives, the copy is gone. Keep local backups too.
- Leaving archive drives unplugged. On the default settings, a drive that stays away past the reconnect window can lose its backed-up data.
- Deleting local files on the assumption they are safe in the cloud. The cloud copy follows your deletions once the history window ends.
- Never restoring a file. A backup that has not been tested may have been skipping your catalog for months.
- Expecting a fast first backup. A big library can take days or weeks on a home connection. Judge it after it finishes, not on day one.
Set it up properly: a 10 minute checklist
- Install the app on the computer that holds your library, and sign in.
- Open the settings and tick every external drive that holds photos. Confirm each one is listed.
- Check the exclusions list and make sure your photo folders and your editing catalog folder are not excluded.
- Decide on the version history setting. Read Backblaze’s terms for the longer options, since they affect both deletions and drives that are unplugged for a long time.
- Leave the computer on and awake overnight during the first pass.
- Add a repeating reminder to plug in every backed-up drive well inside the reconnect window.
- After the first pass finishes, restore one folder of photos to a different location and open a few files to confirm they are intact.
- Check the report or issues screen once a month for skipped files.
Once that is in place, add the local backup and the habit of copying new work right after import. The family photo archive guide shows the same ideas applied to scans and older folders, and the accessories page has a section on cards and storage for the capture end.
Backblaze questions
Is Backblaze good for photographers?
It suits photographers who keep their library on a Mac or Windows computer and directly connected drives and want an automatic off-site copy. It does not suit a library on a NAS, and it works as one copy within a 3-2-1 plan, not the whole plan.
Does Backblaze back up external hard drives?
Yes, if they connect directly to the computer and you select them in the app. On default settings you need to reconnect each drive regularly, at least once every 30 days by default, or its data may be removed from the backup.
How do I restore a whole photo library from Backblaze?
For a small set, download the files as a ZIP or restore them through the app. For a large library, you can order a USB hard drive that Backblaze ships to you, which avoids a very long download.
How long does the first Backblaze backup take?
It depends on library size and upload speed. Divide the library size in megabits by your upload speed in megabits per second, then expect it to take longer than the sum, because the app throttles itself and the computer has to stay awake.