Interestingly, Many people who have a computer do not own a a href=http://www.iomagic.com target=’_blank’new portable hard drive/a, which is a very useful device for backing up your summer vacation picture way for backing up your important files and storing them in one place . Some people still go through the daunting time consuming task of backing up their files multiple CDs. Some individuals simply do not realize that a is the simplist way to make sure you do not lose any of your files in the event your main hard drive dies. Backing up your computer files on another drive is a fairly simple process. brbrbWhat Files do You Want to Back Up on Your Portable Hard Drive?/bbrbrLook through your computer files and determine which ones you would like to back up to your portable hard drive. This is an important step, as you need to make sure that you have the proper amount of storage space to complete the back up. This is generally figured in megabytes (MB) or, gigabytes (GB) depending upon the capacity of the device. Once you have done this, you will have a basic idea of the portable hard drive size you will need. It is always good to add extra storage so that you can add more files later if you choose.brbrbPurchase a Portable Hard Drive if You Donrsquo;t Already Have One/bbrbrThe next step is actually purchase a a href=http://www.iomagic.com/Products/show_all_results.asp?ProdID=IUSB4HD target=’_blank’small USB drive/a. While there are multiple steps to the purchase, there are a few easy steps you can follow. Find a good brand that has a good reputation (research this online) and find the size closest to the size that you need. You may want to do some price comparisons but portable hard drive will come with a power cord and a USB cable. Using the power cord, plug it into your power supply (either directly into the wall or a power strip), while one end of the cable will simply plug into your portable hard drive and the other, flatter looking end plugs into one of your USB ports located on your desktop . It is important to note, however, that many newer drives have a simple extending USB port that, attached directly to the drive that simply plugs directly into your USB port. Make sure you read up on any special features the drive may have come with like a href=http://www.iomagic.com/Products/show_all_results.asp?ProdID=I120HD25G2 target=’_blank’fingerprint id capability/a or push button backup.brbrbMoving or Copying Your Files/bbrbrYou have already identified the files you want to move onto your portable hard drive, so now itrsquo;s time to move them. Simply ldquo;drag and droprdquo; the files you want to move onto the folder that designates the portable hard drive in your ldquo;My Computerrdquo; window. You may notice it may take a few moments for larger files to move over to the portable hard drive. If you feel like moving (and not simply copying), just delete the files on your computer from their original location once you have completed transferring them.brbrWhen you have completed the steps, you have officially backed up your files on your iportable hard drive/i. You can store files on both hard drives, but you can also keep files on only the portable hard drive itself, allowing you to essentially double or triple your hard drive space for any new files you would like to transfer or back up.brbr