The primary purpose of performing regular file backups is to create copies of data so that it can be recovered in the event of primary data failure. This can happen due to various reasons, such as hardware failure, corruption, or accidental deletion. Regular backups ensure that there's always a recent version of the data available for restoration. While virus protection is essential for maintaining system health, it does not replace the need for backups. Regular updates are important for security, but they don't protect against data loss. System defragmentation may improve performance but does not create data backups.