First let’s go through a few basics.
All data in our computers is stored on the hard drive.
When we copy a file from our computer to the internet, we are “uploading” it.
When we copy a file from the internet to our computer, we are “downloading” it.
The Cloud or Cloud Storage is rented hard drive space on the internet where we can upload and download our files.
Companies offer a few GB of space free of cost and also have paid plans which offer more space.
All files stored in the cloud are private and we can access them with a username and password.
Do we need Cloud Storage?
We need it!
What happens if our computer hard drive crashes?
Some may argue that they take regular backups onto external hard drives. What happens if they forget to take a backup for a month?
What happens if their external hard drive crashes or gets lost?
There are endless scenarios where things can go wrong!
Do we really want to risk all our data?
No!
The most important advantage of cloud storage is that our data is always safe. We are no longer linked to our computer or an external hard drive to access data. We can access our data on any computer, tablet and phone with a username and password.
How do we get Cloud Storage?
Many companies offer cloud storage. The most popular ones are listed below.
Google Drive 
Microsoft OneDrive 
Dropbox 
If you have a Gmail account, you already have Google Drive! Access it here.
If you have an outlook.com / hotmail.com account you already have Microsoft OneDrive! Access it here.
To get Dropbox, you will need to create an account on dropbox.com
Each of these services offers a desktop app as well as a mobile/tablet app.
Once you have installed the desktop app, a folder (Google Drive / OneDrive / Dropbox) will be created. Any files copied into this folder will automatically upload to the cloud!
Wait! I have an iPhone. What is iCloud?
I’m covering that next!
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