System Backup

[Anonymous]

Over Christmas I got somewhat slack and didnt back up for 3 weeks (usually once a week). My computer crashed and I went through some anxiety about whether my 3 weeks work would be retrievable from my hard disk. Fortunately it was retrieved.

I use an external hard drive which I remove to a different location. Currently I drag and drop file folders from my C drive onto my G drive (external HDD). Once I went the other way and dropped an old file on a new file!!! There must be a better way.

Microsoft backup only permits 4GB files to be placed in its backup system. My AC folders for each year are much bigger than this size and so this doesnt work for me.

Does anybody have any suggestions on suitable reliable systems for backup. I would ideally like to backup each day and take the backup away with me but this is cumbersome. It seems once a day for the office and once a week take away to a different location would be best.

WiFi to another computer is too slow IMO even though I have a 105MPS WiFi system.

Has anybody used Nortons Ghost for this or a similar program?

Thanks in advance.

[Gorazd]

We have small office with two PC and two Mac. For PC backup I use SyncBack software (the freeware version, you can also buy more sophisticated SE version) found on http://www.2brightsparks.com/. It is very simple to schedule many backups to external HD or, as in my case, to second PC. It has no limits in size of backups and it runs nicely in the background, so I just notice slight slower computer speed. For Mac we use Silverkeeper from Lacie ( http://www.lacie.com ).

I know it is not a fancy super space technology, but it has saved as a few times already. And in the end, that's what matters.

[Dwight]

After many years of complex backup strategies using Retrospect and removable media, I find a simpler scheme best.

Now using the LaCie Silverkeeper - free with their products - I have specified certain folders to be copied to a remote drive each day. With hard drives growing, and in my case, the number of new files every day through photography becoming enormous, a universal backup isn't practical.

For these files, those that must be ABSOLUTELY PROTECTED, I use a RAID 1 system - the photo collection, especially. RAID 1 is a mirrored pair of drives that are identical. If one goes down, the other remains.

The optimal pricing is on 250Gb and 600Gb drives right now.... and the scheme works well with Firewire. We backup the entire network over the standard ethernet thru the main machine that is connected directly to the Firewire....

For $200-$400, all an extra drive needs to do is save you once, paid for by even one hour's billing saved for a small firm....

The LaCie drives are fanless, and live in a large gun safe. In Canada, we don't have much personal ordnance, so there's lots of room for computer and camera stuff. Thinking about cooking oil immersion as a supplemental cooling system.

[Anonymous]

Firstly I would like to thank you both for your quick and helpfull replies. This is a very good forum IMO.

Gorazd,

Thankyou for the link to SyncBack which I now have installed and working away pleasantly in the background. I find it easy to use and I will synch my hard drive with my external HDD. I have been experimenting with the different settings.

Dwight,

I have a LaCie ext HDD (the Porche one) but unfortunatley they dont have a backup program to suit the Win XP version.

The RAID 1 double HD looks an excellent grunty unit but it appears that it is an internal HD which would only work in a PC and not a lap top. I could get one for my PC but I tend to use my laptop at the moment. Having 2 HD constantly mirroring would be the ultimate solution for day to day stuff. I suppose I should set up ethernet cables but the cables would add to the confusion.

Not many gun cabinets in our part of the world thankfully. However there is plenty of cooking oil. A nice bit of select olive oil would spice things up and one could then have a hot lunch going while working However it could make the handling of the HD a bit difficult.

Thanks again,

[Dwight]

http://www.lacie.com/caen/products/product.htm?pid=10490




http://www.lacie.com/caen/products/product.htm?pid=10731


see these

[Anonymous]

Nice looking units and they come with back up programs.

[Anonymous]

I have taken the plunge and got a new system with 2 identical 200GB hard disks. I now want to set up my RAID 1 system but I am not sure which units to specify in the BIOS as master and slave (I feel a bit of both at different times).

I already have inofrmation on my C drive and I dont want to make a mistake as the manual says that if a drive has been used in a RAID system then it has to be wiped to be reused. Will my C drive already be the master and the D drive already the slave? Is it the IDE or SATA drives that I should be selecting?

From the BIOS

" RAID Enable Item Help
IDE Primary Master
IDE Primary Slave
IDE Secondary Master
IDE Secondary Slave
SATA Primary Master
SATA Secondary Master"

The manual says the IDE SEcondary Master and IDE secondary Slave drives but the drives I bought are SATA11 HDD?

Any assistance gratefully accepted.

[Anonymous]

I couldnt work out the RAID I system so I went back to using SyncBack. It has advantages as the mirroring of the drives isnt happening continually and there is less drain on the system.

It is easier for people like myself with limited ability to change the basic setup of the computer as SyncBack is a software program.

So I have SyncBack running at the end of every day and that backs up my C drive to my D drive and then an external backup weekly.

[Rick Thompson]

One additional comment that might be helpful. I use Sliverkeeper also and I like it fine. I use 2 external firewire portable drives fit which fit easily in a pocket/bag. Every month or so when we go to the bank we switch them. I always worry about fire destroying everything, and my business is based on reusing files, so I would probably loose more than most loosing old files. This works very easily and cost very little. Off site online storage isn't an option for me due to the large accumulated size.

I went through loosing a HD once... but recovered most files (orphans they were), and learned the hard way