what is the best practice for backing up files from a single pc?
the current setup is:
c drive: ssd (os + other softwares)
d drive: hdd (files)
i\'m thinking of buying another hdd where the back up files (of both c and d drive) will be saved using acronis. is this the best way?
or should i consider RAID? if so, what specific RAID fits single pc?
not a techie so pls explain.
tia
Forum Topic
What is the best practice for backing up files?
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^ i\'m not using any apps/tools for backups for years. simply copy then paste lang ako sa files HDDs ko.
and yes you may opt to get another or a couple of HDDs kung sa tingin mo kulang pa space mo sa backups mo.
RAID aren\'t designed for backup purposes, <click here for link>
though my system runs @ RAID 0 -
i don\'t think that\'s the best practice.
any other suggestion?
-- edited by aby on Aug 29 2015, 08:27 PM -
I use dvd to backup my important files.
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Try rollback rx. It creates a snapshot of your pc every first boot of the day.
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I just use Windows native copier program. Robocopy, it uses command line interface, but you can download a GUI programs that can use the said program.
<click here for link> -
Check out Genie Timeline, its a backup system similar to Timemachine for Mac-OSX which is a set and forget backup system. Timeline does incremental backups so it just updates the backup for the files you have changed since last backup. There is a free version available online. Let us know how you like it.
Regards,
Luke -
any feedback on acronis?
how about the windows default backup function (control panel > system and security > backup and restore)? -
Best practice?
Back up your back up! -
It all depends on what kind of work you want backed up and what your parameters/needs are
RAID backs up the entire hard drive continuously within less than a second or so. IMHO this is overkill except in certain situations
A program like freefilesync has AFAIK a continuous backup option. Just designate a set of identical subdirectories on different drives (can be hdd or flash drive or any combination, can be different subdirectories on the same HDD ) setting one as master and copy. Any changed files in the master subdirectory will be replicated in the copy subdirectory within a second or two. But you have to run the program, at least add it to windows startup. If its not running it can\'t sync the 2 subdirectories. There is also manual mode where you run it once then sync then turn it off
however if you want to safeguard against something like your house burning down or your house being burgled then you need offsite backup
-- edited by AmalgamvsAloof on Aug 30 2015, 02:37 PM -
BTW: in my experience a SD card is usually more reliable than a flash drive, except physical damage since a thin SD card is more prone to bending or crushing being thinner than a flash drive
In my experience its usually the flash drive electronics that fail. Since for a SD card its in the reader, the card reader is replacable
-- edited by AmalgamvsAloof on Aug 30 2015, 02:40 PM -
RAID is not a backup solution. Its primary function is to increase redundancy in a live system to minimize downtime, which is critical for server systems.
Create a disk image of the C: drive using Acronis or any disk cloning software, and store it on an external HDD. If ever your SSD fails, you can restore this image onto a different SSD or HDD to immediately get your system up and running.
Create a new image whenever you install a new program, or update your OS, to ensure that it\'s as up-to-date as possible. Keep at least the two most recent images.
As for your D: drive, use a good file backup software that allows you to make incremental and/or differential backups.
There are 3 types of file backups:
1. Full backup --> copies all files
2. Incremental backup --> copies only files that have changed since the previous backup. This uses up the least space, but when restoring, you have to grab the last full backup and all the incremental backups up to the current one:
3. Differential backup --> copies only files that have changed since the last full backup. This uses more space than an incremental backup, but is more convenient because you only need the last full backup and the newest differential backup when restoring the files.
How often you need to backup (and how many backups to keep) depends on how critical your data is. -
backup to different media is a must if its picture or video. What I do in my case is:
- store it to NAS that has some redundancy, although RAID is never to be a guaranteed backup solution, at least ZFS RAID is good at this kind of job, it actually rebuilds the parody of disc, even 1 - 3 of the HDD fails, and replace the damage disc and let it rebuild and your data is not even lost despite that some HDD is damaged or gone bad. Still ZFS RAID is not a guarantee to prevent data loss.
- burn your important files to CD/DVD and make 2 copies of it, 1 for archival and 1 for actual usage, so if in case that the disc you were using gone bad, you can just get the archival disc, clone it and burn the image to disc again, and place back the archival disc to its place. And place the archival disc on a container that is fire proof and tight sealed so water cant get in.