I have only spent a few months on UHH but a constant has been the warnings to everyone about making sure you have sufficient backup copies of your work that you won't be brassed off when your only copy of your work bites the dust.
In the case of the comment above about the teacher who lost her Masters thesis I can only point out that she must be reasonably intelligent to get to that point so really I have no sympathy if she lost her work. I bet she had insurance on her car. In fact it is so bad that I always assume now that if you haven't backed up your work there are only three reasons (none of which I have any sympathy for) - one is that you didn't really want the work/photographs/documents/whatever as you had made no effort to protect it, secondly you are so lazy or procrastinated major in doing anything about it, or thirdly you wander through life with your head buried so far in the sand that you ignore everything about you other than what affects you directly - like a car crash or eating. I am sorry but that is the bottom line.
Wise up - back up !