We hope it is sunny wherever you are. While working at Files.fm, we have probably heard more cloud-related puns than anyone deserves in a lifetime. “A friend of mine is looking for an aerial water storage system. He’s working on a cloud-based solution.” is probably our current favorite. “Daddy, what are clouds made of? Linux servers, mostly.” is a close second.

In all seriousness, it is useful to be able to distinguish between “a cloud” and “the cloud”. So here are some terms related to our usual line of work and what they actually mean.

Cloud computing — the term from which “the cloud” is derived. It means any computer system resources available on demand through a network connection. Most often, cloud computing is used to offer data storage solutions, such as in Files.fm, but can be used also for shared computing power and other needs. When we speak about something related to ‘the cloud’, we usually mean file storage solutions on remote servers, such as Files.fm, Google Drive or Dropbox.

Decentralized file storage system — currently, most online file storage systems are centralized. This means that all files are kept on a central server. Files.fm and the upcoming community-powered Library uses a hybrid system with both centralized and decentralized elements. Decentralized file storage means that documents are kept on many computers and shared between their users, similarly to torrent technology. Such systems are more stable and more easily scalable than traditional centralized file storage systems.

Cloud backup — if you close your eyes and somebody asks you, I bet you can immediately imagine at least ten files which would make you cry if you lost them. We have tons of files, and most of them are important to us. It is crucial to create backups to not lose the files in case of hardware, human or environmental problems. There are many ways to destroy your files, and the only easy, low-cost method of restoring them is keeping backups. A good way to keep your files safe is to use a cloud backup service: upload your files online and they will be safe in case you need them. Cloud backup services are usually provided automatically — your computer will sync the files for you.

Encryption — to ensure that data are not hijacked during the data transfer through network, network traffic at Files.fm is performed through secure, encrypted data channels. For our Backup app users, files themselves can be encrypted too. When a file is encrypted, it is scrambled to the point where it is not possible to use them unless the person knows a password used for encryption. This means that nobody will be able to access your backed up files on Files.fm platform if you don’t want to share them with anybody. It is a good idea to use encryption on all files you backup, but it is especially important to encrypt sensitive data, such as passwords and documents.

Deduplication — if this service is offered in your file storage system, it means the system is efficient. In computer storage data, deduplication refers to the elimination of redundant data. It is especially important when backups are created: if they are created automatically, many documents will be backed up without any changes from previous versions. If they are backed up each day or each week, there will be tons of identical documents available in storage. To avoid this, special attention is paid to finding and deleting absolutely identical documents — also called deduplication.

We hope now you know more about cloud services. It is not only the future of computing but also the best current solution. Clouds can be used to store anything from small files to large databases, and they offer many advantages over traditional systems: are more easily accessible, flexible, cost-effective and user-friendly.

Read more about our storage solutions here.

Don’t forget: you can now buy 1 TB of storage space for lifetime use for only 99 dollars. According to our calculations, the investment pays off in less than two years. Visit our crowdsale page to find out more.