Difference between Backup and Archive

Backup and Archive are prominently used interchangeably and are considered the same, but that’s far from the case. The terms are entirely different and are best illustrated by the following definitions:

A data backup is a copy of a data set currently in use that is made for the purpose of recovering from the loss of the original data. Backup data normally becomes less useful as it gets older.

A data archive is a copy of a data set that is no longer in use, but is kept in case it is needed at some future point. When data is archived, it is usually removed from its original location so that the storage space is available for data in use.

In case, you missed the subtle difference from the above, the backup data is a copy of the data currently in use; however, the archive data is of no use at a given moment but stored if it’s required in the future.