Backup Software

Discussion in 'backup, imaging & disk mgmt' started by whitedragon551, Jan 31, 2010.

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  1. whitedragon551

    whitedragon551 Registered Member

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    Alright Im looking for a backup software that allows backups be made to external hard drives and allows me to specify the folder to which they are backed up.
     
  2. AKAJohnDoe

    AKAJohnDoe Registered Member

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    I believe you may be hard pressed to find one that won't permit the backup location to be specified.

    Personally, I am using Paragon Drive Backup.
     
  3. whitedragon551

    whitedragon551 Registered Member

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    Awesome. Now do most allow recovery from external HD if the laptop HD fails to boot?
     
  4. n8chavez

    n8chavez Registered Member

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    I've had trouble with most PE recovery discs recognizing my external drive. I do know that Active @ works wonderfully.
     
  5. whitedragon551

    whitedragon551 Registered Member

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    Anyone have any experience with GFI's free backup software or Comodo Backup v2.2?
     
  6. zfactor

    zfactor Registered Member

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    almost any of them should read a external drive. the only issue i have seen is if that drive is a esata drive and not usb. i have never had a issue with any program i have used including shadow protect, macrium, ifw, acronis, o&o, paragon etc they have all been fine
     
  7. whitedragon551

    whitedragon551 Registered Member

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    GFI doesnt do what I need. It only backs up files. Im not paying for Shadow Protect. What other free ones offer what Im looking for?
     
  8. sded

    sded Registered Member

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    Macrium Reflect Free http://www.macrium.com/reflectfree.asp is the one I have been recommending lately. Supports XP, Vista, Windows 7 in x32 and x64. Only makes full backups, but produces a bootable Linux disk for recovery if your disk is trashed or you can't get to Windows, and even does scheduled backups. Usual browsing capability for retrieving folders and files by attaching archives as virtual hard drives. I also use Acronis, and the others seem to have plenty of supporters too.
     
  9. wtsinnc

    wtsinnc Registered Member

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    Doesn't the included backup program included in Windows 7 suit your needs ?

    If not, I recommend Macrium Reflect for partition imaging. It's free and provides for creation of a system rescue CD which allows for restoring an image without an active operating system.
     
  10. whitedragon551

    whitedragon551 Registered Member

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    The built in one doesnt create an entire system backup. It just backs up files, folders, pictures, etc. I really liked the layout and speed of GFI, sad thing is it doesnt do what I need.

    Macrium sounds good, but Id like to just create the initial full image and just do incremental backups from there on out to save disc space and recovery time.
     
  11. sded

    sded Registered Member

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    Macrium paid and some of the others do incremental backups, but I find them a mixed bag. As you get increments, takes longer to verify the image chain than a single full backup. Also longer to restore. With a 500GB USB drive (<$100), and these imaging programs that work in the background, and let me keep working, I didn't even update Acronis for Windows 7x64 and am using Macrium instead. Takes about 25 minutes for the image and another 25 to verify (25GB compressed image), all working in the background. Incrementals work very quickly with Acronis, but verifying can take quite a bit more time, so totals are not that different.
     
  12. Karen76

    Karen76 Registered Member

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    Windows 7 certainly creates (and restores) an entire system backup image on my PC, not just files, folders, pictures, etc. Control Panel > System and Security > Backup and Restore > Create a system image.
     
  13. whitedragon551

    whitedragon551 Registered Member

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    In the event that my HD fails Windows 7 backup utility does me no good.
     
  14. wat0114

    wat0114 Guest

    Why not backup to a second separate h/hdrive? Then even if the main drive fails you can still boot off the Win7 disk to restore your backup off the second drive.
     
  15. whitedragon551

    whitedragon551 Registered Member

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    I am backing up to an external HD. Id rather not deal with Windows software. Im looking for something thats 3rd party and more reliable than Windows stuff.
     
  16. YeOldeStonecat

    YeOldeStonecat Registered Member

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    http://www.cmsproducts.com/

    Check out their new Bounceback. Emergency boot from external USB backup drive if needed.
     
  17. Karen76

    Karen76 Registered Member

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    Wrong. Windows 7 can create and restore entire system backup images, not just files, etc.

    Wrong. Windows 7 allows you to create a repair disk which functions the same as the recovery CD used by third-party imaging programs in case of a hard drive failure or other problems.

    Now, you want something "more reliable than Windows stuff" (despite the fact you use a Windows OS) yet you haven't cited a scintilla of evidence suggesting the Windows 7 backup utility isn't reliable. On my new PC, the Windows 7 backup utility (while not as versatile as some third-party imaging software) has been completely reliable ... which is more than I can say for True Image 2010 and Macrium Reflect.
     
  18. Sully

    Sully Registered Member

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    @Karen76

    You might or might not be suprised to discover that many just don't want to use an M$ product, no matter if it works or not.

    For me Macrium has been flawless. Not one hiccup, ever. And I have used it a lot.

    For me, usually anthing that has M$ stamped on its side is guilty before being proved innocent. There are always exceptions to the rules ;)

    I get what you say, but I hardly think I will trust M$ with something like my image backup, although it may well be a fine method.

    As they say, different strokes for different folks.

    Sul.
     
  19. Peter2150

    Peter2150 Global Moderator

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    Sully, I agree with you. On a slightly different tack, I'll never understand why when it comes to backup, price is such an issue, unless the system/data isn't truly vital.
     
  20. Karen76

    Karen76 Registered Member

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    Irrational behavior rarely surprises me, it merely disappoints me.

    The OP has repeatedly made factually incorrect statements in this and other threads. When I see a remark I know to be incorrect, I often refute it; I'm just funny like that. Disliking Microsoft is one thing. Falsely asserting Windows 7 can't perform backup system imaging which it definitely can is an entirely different matter.

    I've used the full version of Macrium Reflect on my Vista 32-bit PC for two years and it's worked fine so long as I use the recovery CD for restorations. Both the full and free versions of MR have been problematic on my new Windows 7 64-bit PC. Every MR image I create and store on a 1 TB Seagate external drive is corrupt. That same drive works fine with True Image, Paragon, and Windows 7 backup images and with MR images created on my Vista PC. I've tested three external drives and a second internal drive with MR and my Windows 7 PC; MR invariably creates corrupt images on two of them. I'm not knocking MR. It's simply not working 100% on my Windows 7 PC except with certain hard drives. That's not acceptable for me.

    You won't trust Windows to create and restore backup images (without disclosing whether you've tried it) yet you'll use Windows for an operating system? o_O

    Windows 7 backup utility has been "flawless" for me, it's just not as versatile or as fast as some third-party imaging programs. For my part, I consider backup imaging so essential I use redundant multiple software to accomplish this task as I've had failures with imaging programs I once thought were very reliable. I won't rest easy until a Windows 7 compatible version of FirstDefense-ISR is hopefully released.
     
  21. sded

    sded Registered Member

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    Maybe Microsoft has changed things, but last I looked you needed a W7 system installation disk to do the boot recovery. The unwashed masses, with Windows Home Premium on a laptop, had to restore the original configuration first (a fairly tedious job) to be able to use their rescue media. Has that changed?
    I have about 7 years in with various versions of True Image and have never had a failure-but am not using the current version either on my Vista Machine.
    So far backing up both a Vista and a Windows 7 machine with Macrium Free to a 500GB USB2 drive has been flawless, but don't have that much experience with it. If W7 Home Premium preinstalled can make standalone rescue disks on its own, probably another good solution. Assuming it also supports image mounting and browsing. :)
     
  22. Karen76

    Karen76 Registered Member

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    "unwashed masses"? That's me. :) Windows always came preinstalled on my PCs with no Windows installation disks. Windows 7's backup imaging utility allows you to create what MS calls a "system repair disc" which functions the same as the recovery CD created by third-party imaging programs. I've only had my Windows 7 PC for four weeks but backup image creations and restorations using Window 7's utility have been "flawless" for me. That doesn't mean I recommend anyone not also use additional backup software. Any program can fail.

    I've used True Image v9, v10 and 2009 on multiple PCs without any problem. In order to minimize potential trouble, I only create full manual and scheduled backups, never create a Secure Zone, use Recovery Manager or Try&Decide. I purchased True Image Home 2010 to be compatible with my Windows 7 PC and have experienced several glitches so far. My difficulties with TIH 2010, however, are trivial compared to many reported in the Acronis support forum. After releasing TIH 2010, Acronis came out with a new build for TIH 2009 which is Windows 7-compatible and apparently more reliable than the 2010 "upgrade" I purchased.
     
  23. whitedragon551

    whitedragon551 Registered Member

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    The only reason I use Windows is for gaming.

    Windows is reliable, but not as reliable as a 3rd party that specializes in backups and incremental backups. As it is Im having issues with the Windows Services for Volume Shadow Copys. How ironic.

    Im not willing to use Windows built in backup program. Any other suggestions? Right now Im experimenting with Paragons Backup and Recovery v10 Free.
     
  24. YeOldeStonecat

    YeOldeStonecat Registered Member

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    Yes...scroll up for another suggestion which matched your need to recover/boot from external USB.
     
  25. whitedragon551

    whitedragon551 Registered Member

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    The program you suggested looked like a 3rd grader coding experiment.
     
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