Creating an account is currently free during the beta testing. While no official costs are given by BackupMyBlog, Mark Allen of Moustache reports that the service will eventually cost $20 for three months of service.

There are just a few requirements for a blog to be able to use BackupMyBlog:

• The blog needs to be hosted on a public server.
  
• MySQL must be used for database backend.
  
• The blog’s server needs to support PHP version 4.3.0 or later.
  
• The blogger needs to have rights to install a PHP script on his blog server.

Hosted blogs, such as LiveJournal or those offered by MySpace, can’t be backed up the service.

Brian Benzinger of Solution Watch posted his thoughts on BackupMyBlog today after signing up a blog of his own for a trial run. Benzinger said, “Overall, I found BackupMyBlog to be a great service that can definitely help many bloggers out there.”

We asked Steve Moazami, Chief IT guy here, if he, as a blog administrator, would have concerns about using BackupMyBlog. He said:

1. Data is sent clear text: This would be of concern if you have private data in your blog. Do you have some content restricted? Do you often post things ahead of time but not publish them until later? This data will be sent clear text across the Internet when you back up.

2. False sense of security: The database is backed up, but don't forget the files aren't. Should the server your blog is on crash, you'll need both file assets and your database backup to get your blog back up and running. If the database itself crashes, or if you make database changes that you wish to roll back, then just the database backup will suffice.

3. Data rentention policy: This is more for corporate blogs. Does your company have a data rentention policy? Better check BackupMyBlog's retention policy to see if they're compatible.