<p>I work at a small business. We have drawers filled with old files that need to be saved. I have suggested we scan and store them in case of fire.
Any suggestions as to the best way to go about this. We have a scanner. The company owner is concerned about just scanning and storing on our present computers due to the fact that we pay by content amount for daily backup.
One idea was to purchase a desktop or laptop and scan the files into the computer and back it up on a separate hard drive. </p>
<p>How many years are you required to keep the files? Off site storage may be better. It takes employee time to scan and go through the files (which could be significant cost) and the owner may still be reluctant to discard the files even if they are scanned.
I worked at a business where we put old records in bankers boxes, labeled them with dates and stored in a back room. I tried to weed them out once because of the number but I really don’t think it was worth the effort.</p>
<p>The owner is in his 80’s. We do shred some older files but these are paperwork that detail partnerships and such that go back to the 60’s. Some of the documents are leases that aren’t super old but are still in force. </p>
<p>The super easiest thing is to get them scanned, not to do them by hand. Modern copiers scan and create pdf or other digital files - and at high speed. Maybe you can borrow someone’s machine for a few hours. You can certainly have it done. Even a large number of files won’t amount to much digital space and they can be stored in a variety of places, including in gmail accounts (by emailing them).</p>