Computer Backup

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Computer Backup

• Fred Marshall
• Coastal Computers Networks

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Back Up and Backup

• Back Up verb
• e.g. to back up
• Backup noun
• e.g. to create a backup

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Why Back Up Your Computer?

• To preserve your data
• To preserve your computer installation
• To protect your investment in time
• To make reconstruction easier or even possible
  

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Types of Backup

• Data file backup - documents / pictures
• System configuration backup
• Hard drive images
• On-line backup (automatic) e.g. Carbonite

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Backup Strategies

• On-site vs. off-site what if there is fire or
  theft?
• Frequency how often to go off site with backup
  data?
• Frequency how often to back up?

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Everything is Preparation

• Backup prepares for disaster
• Backing up needs preparation too!
• Prepare Implement - Test

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Planning the Media

• What will be the backup medium
• Tape, DVD, another hard drive?
• Tape, DVD and portable hard drives are the best
  candidates for off-site storage.
• Hard drives can be good for on-site storage.
• On-line backup (e.g. Carbonite) is automatic and
  convenient and off-site.

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Preparing the Data

• When you know the medium, you know the size of
  the individual storage units
• - CD 650MB
• - DVD 4.5GB
• - Tape 20GB or greater
• - Portable hard drive up to 1.5TB
• Keep the data
• - all in one place on your hard drive

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Preparing the Data

• Keep the data all in one place
• NOT in Windows directory / NOT in Program Files
  directories
• Example for CD backup
• C\Data
• \My Documents (moved to C\)
• \Excel
• \Word
• \Outlook Express
• \Pictures etc.

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Backup Strategies

• Daily backup to a 2nd hard drive
• (Can run at night)
• New backup for each day (becomes 5 or 7 weekly
  backups)
• Mon, Tues, Weds,Thurs,Fri
• Weekly backup to off-site media
• Friday backup to CD, DVD or Tape

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Data Restoration

• Testing the system is important!
• Make a test file and save it.
• Run a backup
• Delete the test file from the computer
• Restore the test file from the backups

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Backup Strategies

• Full, Differential or Incremental????
• Compressed or not?
• Recommendation
• Remember you have to Restore!
• Full backup, not compressed
• Best if in recognizable format as the original
  files then any computer can read them!
• KEEP IT SIMPLE

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Backup Strategies

• Why do you say Dont Compress?
• Doesnt that save space on the backup media?
• Yes, it would save space.
• Remember, the compression was done by a program
  running on your computer.
• If the computer crashes, will you have that
  program available to decompress the backup?
• KEEP IT SIMPLE

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Backup Tools

• Manually Copy the files. Whew!
• (native file format)
• Built into Windows add to XP Home
• No Hands Backup download 19.95
• (native file format)
• Backup My PC commercial program
• (proprietary format)
• Windows Scheduler for automatic backups.

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Backup Tools

• In every case, you need to tell the backup
  program which files to back up.
• Thats why its better to have the data all in
  one place. Its much easier to point to it
  the list is shorter.

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System Restoration

• Before Windows breaks
• Create emergency boot floppies / emergency
  repair disks / (various names)
• Create a restore point in Windows.
• Create another restore point each time hardware
  or program install changes.
• Create a restore point before adding new
  software (and after).

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System Restoration

• Create emergency boot floppies / emergency
  repair disks / various names
• Create restore points in Windows.
• Do these things even if you dont know how to
  use them!

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Hard Drive Replacement

• Starting from scratch
• Install Windows, all drivers, all programs
• Reconfigure dialup and email
• Restore Data from backup
• Disadvantage you have to have all the drivers
  and programs and data.
• Easier method
• Replace hard drive image from an image backup.
• Disadvantage if Windows was cluttered, this
  doesnt get rid of the clutter.

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Hard Drive Replacement

• Insurance against catastrophic failure
• Run Norton System Doctor S.M.A.R.T. sensor all
  the time.
• or
• Run disk manufacturers test program from
  floppies (download from Seagate, Maxtor, etc.)
• Often gives time to clone the disk

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Hard Drive Replacement

• Run Drive Image or Ghost automatically onto a 2nd
  hard drive.
• Provides a disk image ready to go.
• Dont forget to check S.M.A.R.T. on the 2nd
  drive!

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Fred MarshallCoastal Computers
NetworksIlwaco, WA(360) 642-2073