Dell is shutting its online backup and storage service, and DellData Safe customers have a year to move their stuff or lose it, according to the DataSafe web site. The company will continue to offer Dell Backup and Recovery and is steering customers in that direction. DataSafe was more of a consumer-focused service, offered with Dell consumer PCs and laptops while Dell Backup and Recovery is more business oriented.
This move has precedent: A few years ago, Dell hardware rival HP dropped its Upline online backup service as well, said Raghu Kulkarni, CEO of iDrive, an online backup company that competes with DellDataSafe.
Dell could not be reached for comment, but the realm of online backup is hotly contested. And Dell, now privately held, has indicated it will focus on core businesses.
Other online backup options include Carbonite and EMC’s Mozy. Many people also use Microsoft OneDrive and Google Drive as their defacto backup sites.
This story was updated at 12:03 p.m. PST with iDrive CEO comment.
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