gHacks technology news » windows backup

Comodo Backup

Martin — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 10:23:36 +0000

We have mentioned Comodo Backup before in our backup software overview for the Windows operating system. The backup software has taken a step forward since then with version 2 available for public download. The interface, functionality and compatibility of Comodo Backup has changed in this version. It is now for instance compatible with 32-bit and 64-bit editions of the Windows 7 operating system.

The interface looks well designed and it is obvious that the program has been designed with usability in mind. Users can select one of the quick backup options in the left sidebar (backup entire Registry, backup system partition or backup user settings) or select a backup source from the main pane instead. These include options to backup mail accounts, the system state, disk, partitions and the MBR, full or custom Registry keys or files and directories.

A selection screen will be displayed depending on the choice that the user made. The user can for example select specific Registry keys or desktop email clients when selecting the custom Registry or Mail accounts backup option from the interface.

It is possible to select multiple options of a specific backup source but not multiple backup sources. That’s a bit unfortunate as it potentially means that several backup jobs need to be configured to create all desired backups.

Backups are divided into six steps that can be easily followed.

Backup Source: Selection of backup type
Backup Settings: Include and exclude filters, password protection, compressions and file sizes can be configured in here.
Backup Destination: Options to store the backup locally, on network drives, ftp servers or Comodo online storage.
Other Settings: Configure email notifications, macros and tasks that should be run before or after the backup.
Scheduled Backup: Schedule the backup instead of running it immediately.
Backup Progress: Log that details the progress.

The history pane will detail all backups that have been created with Comodo Backup with options to restore or delete these backups right from within that pane. It is furthermore possible to restore backups using the restore pane. This might be handy if backups need to be restored that have not been created on that computer system.

Comodo Backup is an easy to use backup software for the Windows operating system. It offers a clean interface and most functionality that users would expect from a backup software. It would have been nice if users could define a backup that would include several backup sources at once. Another interesting option would be to be able to add backup shortcuts to the sidebar so that the first few steps of the process can be skipped.

Comodo Backup is available for most 32-bit and 64-bit editions of Microsoft Windows including Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008 and Windows 7.

Portable Backup Software ZBack

Martin — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 18:23:41 +0000

Most backup software programs are either installed on the local system or run from an external source that can be a removable drive, CD or network location. Portable backup software programs on the other hand are not that common. Zback is a portable software backup tool for the Windows operating system that can be run from any location.

Tabs provide access to the backup software’s functionality. The configuration of the backup is handled in the manual backup tab. It might look like backup overload at first glance because of the options the developer has stuffed in the interface. There are basically four sections of importance here. Section one defines the first directory on the local computer system while section three defines the second directory. Section 2 defines the direction of the backup which can either be from directory one to directory two, directory two to directory one or in both directions. It also handles the backup modes which include copying all files, erasing the source, mirroring the directories or updating data.

The last section can be used to create filters. It is possible to define filters by time and date or file size and names. A new batch job can then be created after the configuration has been finished.

Backups can then be created by switching to the batch backup tab and clicking on the Make Backup List button. This will create the file list for the backup. A click on the Execute Backup List will start the backup process. Another option is to click directly on the Batch Run button to create the backup list and start the backup.

The third tab of the backup program provides access to a few global options that include enabling reporting, creating empty directories or copying file attributes.

Zback is a portable backup software program that can create quick data backups. It lacks functionality mainly thanks to its portable nature.

Tags: backup software, portable backup, portable backup software, windows backup, windows backup software, zback

Google Docs Backup Software

Martin — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 12:04:54 +0000

It is essential to have a solid backup strategy in place with cloud storage space becoming more popular. While many users run backup software on their local computer system to backup important data only a few take care that uploaded data is also regularly backed up.

The reason for this is that many users believe that the data is safe on Internet servers. A lot can happen that can put the data on those servers at risk. This ranges from hacking attempts, hardware failures that cause data loss or bankruptcy. It is therefor essential to make sure that data that is stored online is backed up regularly.

We have already mentioned how to backup Gmail before should be essential for every Gmail user. While it is unlikely that Gmail will be discontinued there have been times where the service was not accessible. Having a backup of the data would make it possible to access the emails anyway.

Google Docs Backup is another Windows backup software that can be used to backup one of the popular Google services. Users can use it to backup all documents on their local computer system that they have uploaded to Google Docs. Usage of the backup software has been simplified. All that needs to be done is to enter the username and password of the Google Docs account and to select a directory on the local computer where the data should be downloaded to.

A few optional settings are available. It is for example possible to select the output format for each document type and to route the traffic through a proxy server. A click on the Exec button will initiate the data backup which can take some time depending on the size of the data stored at Google Docs and the connection speed.

Gdoc Backup (via To The PC) is a free software program for the Windows operating system.

Tags: backup, backup software, documents, Google, google docs, google docs backup, software, windows backup, windows software

The 10 Best Windows Backup Software Programs

Martin — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 13:59:01 +0000

Backing up data regularly should be one of the most important tasks of every computer user; Yet only a minority is doing it thoroughly and regularly. The rest is flirting with disaster as there are numerous incidents that can delete data on computer systems. The most common ones are hardware failures, which can mean damaged hard drives but also (partially) unreadable CDs or DVDs, computer virus attacks but also human error. If you have ever met someone who partitioned the wrong hard drive you know that the latter can be cause for great frustration.

Backups are the single most effective method of preventing data loss on computer systems. The following article will list the 10 best Windows backup software programs.

Cobian Backup

Cobian Backup is a free for personal use backup software that supports both local and remote backups. The software is constantly under development by the developer which means that features are included regularly. Some of the key features include full, differential and incremental backups, file compression including the popular 7-zip format plus strong encryption for data security.

DeltaCopy

An Open source backup solution supporting incremental backups, one-click restore options, task scheduling and email notifications. Some advanced options include ssh tunneling and connecting to rsync daemons.

It makes use of a server client system. One or multiple backup servers can be created on computers running Windows by installing the server version on these computer systems. The client will be installed on the any computer system where files should be backed up regularly.

The backup software supports authentication, scheduling and connection by IP or hostname.

Cucku Backup

Cucku Backup calls itself social backup. It provides local backups but also backups on friend?s computers. It supports complete and continuous backups and can automate the remote backup process to take that of the user?s shoulders. All files that are backed up use encryption algorithms to ensure data safety and integrity so that the backup partners cannot see the filenames nor contents of the files that are send over to their computer systems.
It works best in computer networks but can also work over the Internet if enough time or upload bandwidth is provided.

Backup Maker

Backup Maker provides extensive backup capabilities. It comes with a standard and expert mode to suite both the needs of experienced and inexperienced users. The software supports full and partial backups, local and remote backups, selection of a backup execution interval and execution on certain events like USB detection or start and shutdown.

All in all an excellent software program to backup files on the Windows operating system.

Ace Backup

Powerful backup software that supports multi-versioning, backups to local and remote locations, file compression and encryption.

Microsoft SyncToy

SyncToy is offered by Microsoft as a free download for the Windows operating system. It can be used to easily synchronize data between computer systems. The program offers five different synchronization options that the user can choose from including a preview option before starting the process.

Mozy

Mozy is an online backup solution that offers backup clients for Windows NT based systems and Mac OS X. Every registered user receives 2 Gigabytes of free space with the option to sign up for a paid account for currently $4.95 that offers unlimited backup space. Several pre-configured backup sets are populated after installation including bookmarks, documents and multimedia files. These can but do not have to be backed up. Expert mode provides access to the full file system to pick files or folders to backup directly.

Personal Backup

A backup for the advanced user that provides great file filtering options. It comes with the usual set of features including local and remote backup creation (including SFTP), file compression and encryption, status reports and log file generation.

Allways Sync

Another software that has been primarily designed for file synchronization that is also supporting file backups to a local drive, over a local network or the Internet. It works on a per directory basis and can be installed on as many computer systems as the user desires. The software comes as a setup or portable version.

Comodo Backup

Another free backup solution for Windows users. Comodo Backup can backup files and folders on a local computer system to other drives, network locations, ftp servers and removable media. Backups can be scheduled and notifications can be send to inform about completed backup jobs. Other features include compressing backups, data recovery options, support of multi-session backups and incremental backups.

DriveImage XML

DriveImage XML is more a drive imaging software than a backup program. It can however be used to backup a full hard drive or partition to another drive. It uses the Volume Shadow Service to create exact backups during runtime. It is afterwards possible to restore the backup either from within Windows or with the use of a boot disk.

The verdict:

The choice of the correct backup software depends on several factors including the data size, the frequency of backups or the local computer infrastructure.

Tags: backup, backup software, software, windows backup, windows backup software, windows software

Windows Backup Software DeltaCopy

Martin — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 07:05:22 +0000

DeltaCopy is not the usual Windows backup software that you encounter when searching for backup solutions for the Windows plattform. It uses a server client based concept to backup files from a number of clients on a central backup server. This means that the main application for DeltaCopy are home networks and small business network with the need for a central backup system.

DeltaCopy is an Open Source portable Windows backup software that supports incremental backups, email notifications, one-click restore options and a task scheduler in an easy to use interface. It will run on any Windows NT based operating systems. The developers have not listed Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 on their web pages.

Interestingly enough it can connect to rsync daemons running on Linux systems since it basically is a Windows wrapper around rsync. SSH Tunneling is available if the destination server is a Linux / Unix system running rsync.

How does the Windows backup software work?

The administrator installs the server version of Deltacopy on one machine. The backup software installs itself as a Windows Service. Once the server is up and running so called virtual directories can be created. This is a similar procedure to setting up an ftp server. The admin picks a folder on a hard drive on the server with the option to create multiple virtual directories on the server.

The client is then executed on a client machine. Profiles manage the backup jobs on the client machine. This is the place where the user selects the files and folders that should be backed up regularly. The backup server will be entered during that configuration as well. The server can be identified by entering the IP or hostname of the server running the backup software.

Authentication is possible. This has to be enabled during server setup and the client computer has to use the same login credentials that have been created on the server to be able to perform the backup.

Backups can be initiated either manually or by using the Windows Task Scheduler. Files can be restored from the client interface if the need should arise.

DeltaCopy is a sophisticated but not overly complicated Windows backup software that works best for small home and company networks.

Tags: backup, backup server, backup software, deltacopy, windows backup, windows backup software, windows software

Windows Backup Software

Martin — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 19:31:47 +0000

Personal Backup is definitely not the most comfortable Windows backup software but it does have a few aces up its sleeve that might make it interesting enough for users who are looking for a specialized backup software. The software comes in an English and German version and is compatible to all Microsoft Windows operating systems from Windows 98 to Windows Vista.

The interface seems to have received its last lift in the last century which would not be that of a problem if there would not be so many buttons and menus available. It takes a while to get used to the interface but once that has been achieved users will reap the benefits of the backup software.

Personal Backup supports the creation of backups on local and network hard drives as well as ftp servers using ftp and sftp connections. The first ace that is actually a pretty handy feature is the creation of several so called auto backups which can be configured independently of each other. That comes in handy with the excellent filtering options of Personal Backup.

As soon as a folder or partition gets added to the backup list it is scanned and a list of all file types, their count and total sizes are displayed next to the usual information like directories and many options.

The listing of file types makes it pretty comfortable to pick certain file types that should be backed up on all hard drives and schedule those backups next to other backups. One scenario would be to backup all .doc, .xls and other document formats on all drives regularly which is just a few clicks away in Personal Backup.

The filtering options of this Windows backup software are immense. Filters can be set to match filenames, file attributes, file sizes, time and regular expressions. The preview button can be used to check on the files that would be backed up by Personal Backup which can be used for verification.

The options that define the output are as extensive as the filtering options. Some of the backup options include:

To backup single files or one zip.
Preserve, ignore the directory structure, create separate directories for drives.
To compress the files and add file type exceptions.
To encrypt the backup using AES.
To add notes, send emails and run external programs before and after backup.
To synchronize files
To verify files
To chose a backup mode from Copy, Full, Differential and Incremental.
To adjust the time gap for timestamp comparison
Creation of a backup log
Integrated restore function for whole trees or selected files
Automatic decryption on restore
Synchronise backup directories

The Windows backup software contains so many options that it will really take a while before everything has been discovered. Most of the options are not needed to perform a simple backup but Personal Backup is more a software for users who want to make exact backups on their system, who want to point at the exact data and backup that data.

Backups can be scheduled multiple ways which range from daily to weekly backups. It is also possible to combine backup methods during the scheduled backups, for instance to create multiple backups for data safety purposes.

Tags: backup, data backup software, personal backup, server backup software, windows backup, windows backup software

O&O DiskImage 3 Express Edition

Martin — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 09:46:01 +0000

O&O DiskImage 3 Express is a backup software that backs up all hard drives that are connected to the computer with the press of a button. That is by far the main selling point of O&O DiskImage 3 Express Edition. The backup program is basic and intends to be that way, supposedly for the user’s sake but probably also because they need arguments to sell the professional and enterprise version of O&O DiskImage 3.

O&O DiskImage 3 Express Edition comes with three buttons that control the backup and restoration process. Button 1 creates an image of all system partitions on the computer. The user simply selects a drive where he wants the backup to be restored and that’s it. No selection of single partitions, no options whatsoever. Pure and simple but probably to simple for tech savvy users.

The second button restores a partition. One major drawback is that the system partition cannot be restored. So all personal data on that partition is lost unless you buy the pro or enterprise version which can restore the system partition.

The question that arises is why the program does backup the system partition if it cannot be recovered? The answer to that is probably a business decision. Would a user who needs data from his system partition buy a commercial version of DiskImage? I bet he would.

The last button lets a user browse an image that was created. Each additional backup only saves the differences and not the full partition saving disk space on the (external) hard drive where the images will be stored on.

Paragon’s Drive Backup is an alternative which offers more functionality and the option to restore the system partition as well.

Tags: backup, backup drive, backup program, backup software, disk image, drive backup, paragon, windows backup

Drive Backup

Martin — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 11:34:14 +0000

Paragon Drive Backup Express is a free drive backup software for 32-bit and 64-bit editions of Microsoft Windows XP and Windows Vista. Well, almost free because a registration is required to receive the product key for the drive backup software. The Drive Backup Express edition has a reduced functionality compared to the commercial Drive Backup Personal Edition, it is however providing all means to backup drives and restore them to (different or the same) partitions.

So what is the Drive Backup Express offering in detail? It obviously allows the user to backup to hard drive or partition if it is currently accessible in Windows XP or Windows Vista. The Drive Backup version only supports backing the data up on other drives that are connected to the computer but that should be enough for most users anyway.

The archive that is created during backup is compressed, it used roughly 17 Gigabytes to backup my 50-something Gigabyte hard drive. On the other hand that drive had a lot of free space, only 19.2 Gigabyte were filled with data.

The images that get backed up by Drive Backup Express can be restored which means it’s possible to backup partitions or complete drives. Resizing is supported as well.

That’s basically the functionality of Paragon Drive Backup Express. The commercial Drive Backup software supports several interesting additional features like incremental backups, backup encryption, backup on CD / DVD and file restoration.

Tags: backup, backup data, backup to hard drive, drive backup, hard drive backup, pc backup, windows backup

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