A lesson on the importance of backups... - Page 4

chookie2 · 12-26-2014, 06:02 PM

I back up all my ebooks to 2 32 gig flashdrives and a 1TB external backup drive- not losing my books- no way. I think Dropbox also backs up to the Cloud but not sure on that one.

DuckieTigger · 12-26-2014, 06:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chookie2

I back up all my ebooks to 2 32 gig flashdrives and a 1TB external backup drive- not losing my books- no way. I think Dropbox also backs up to the Cloud but not sure on that one.

Dropbox is a cloud. Does it have builtin revision control so you can go back to an older version of the same file? That I would call a backup.

BWinmill · 12-26-2014, 07:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Katsunami

The prices I paid for computer-related optical drives were as follows:

1995: 2x CDROM drive, € 136 (back then, fl. 300)

Wow, that's cheap! My first CD-ROM drive was $800 (CAD) around 1992. Granted, it was SCSI and came with the SCSI card.

AlexBell · 12-26-2014, 07:50 PM

I now have an external hard drive for my Windows 7 computer, and it's been set up by the computer store to do a weekly back up of my computer. I have checked that the file date is new after the backup, so I presume it is working properly.

To the best of my knowledge the backup will restore my hard drive if it fails again, but I cannot retrieve individual files or folders from it. For reasons lost in the mist of time I have a drive E on my computer on which I store all my data files. Is there a way of also doing a backup of that drive in such a way that I could go into that data backup and retrieve individual files?

Will SyncToy let me do that?

Will SyncToy work on Windows 7 as well as Windows XP?

Is there a book or source which provides 'Backup for Dummies' level information?

BWinmill · 12-26-2014, 09:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlexBell

For reasons lost in the mist of time I have a drive E on my computer on which I store all my data files. Is there a way of also doing a backup of that drive in such a way that I could go into that data backup and retrieve individual files?

Will SyncToy let me do that?

You have the right idea there, but I can't speak for SyncToy in particular.

I use SyncBackPro under Windows. It is fairly complex to setup, but that's because of the options that it provides for backing up your data. A basic setup will allow you to synchronize files between two disks, so that you can recover your data even if the software itself is not available. You can also compress your data using standard formats, again so that you can recover your data without having the software install. This software is by no means the only solution available, but I trust it far more than backup software that locks up your data in proprietary containers.

Quote:

Is there a book or source which provides 'Backup for Dummies' level information?

There is one thing you have to know about data backup: ensure that you can recover your data from backups. Beyond that, everyone's advice is going to differ because everyone has different needs.

HarryT · 12-27-2014, 03:30 AM

SyncToy is very easy to use. Download it and have a play with it.

AlexBell · 12-27-2014, 06:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

SyncToy is very easy to use. Download it and have a play with it.

Thanks, Harry. Can you confirm that it works in Windows 7? I've looked at several articles on it, and they all state that it is a Windows XP utility.

Terisa de morgan · 12-27-2014, 06:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlexBell

Thanks, Harry. Can you confirm that it works in Windows 7? I've looked at several articles on it, and they all state that it is a Windows XP utility.

I can confirm you that it works perfectly in Windows 7 as I use it almost every day.

JSWolf · 12-27-2014, 08:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

SyncToy is very easy to use. Download it and have a play with it.

FreeFileSync is free and better.

Katsunami · 12-27-2014, 08:12 AM

RSync is free, and much more powerful than both. However, it requires Cygwin on Windows, and it's hard to use if you're not comfortable on the command line.

Just use what works for you. I have had reliability problems with getting all files copied with SyncToy, couldn't figure out why, and finally ended up with a custom rsync / bash script.... on Windows.

HarryT · 12-27-2014, 11:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Terisa de morgan

I can confirm you that it works perfectly in Windows 7 as I use it almost every day.

And on Windows 8, too.

HarryT · 12-27-2014, 11:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Katsunami

I have had reliability problems with getting all files copied with SyncToy, couldn't figure out why, and finally ended up with a custom rsync / bash script.... on Windows.

The early versions of it tended to choke on directory trees with very large numbers of files, but that problem went away a long time ago. I use the 64-bit version of it, and it copes fine with my ebook library, which has well over 100k files in the directory tree.

But I agree: use whatever works for you. Everyone's needs (and preferences) are different.

Fbone · 12-27-2014, 02:47 PM

I tried SyncToy but there were always a number of files it would not copy.

HarryT · 12-27-2014, 02:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fbone

I tried SyncToy but there were always a number of files it would not copy.

Strange. I can't think of any reason it wouldn't copy a file unless some other program had the file open.

Oh well, it works for me, and that's all that matters to me

.

Blossom · 12-27-2014, 05:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fbone

I tried SyncToy but there were always a number of files it would not copy.

I've used for years a very simple plugin into Windows Explorer to Sync folders. For me it works well but the developer now puts in junkware with the setup and if you don't know what your doing it installs with it which is why I don't recommend it anymore.

I've had numerous problems with SyncToy on Vista.

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12-26-2014, 06:02 PM	#46
chookie2 Connoisseur Posts: 91 Karma: 648694 Join Date: Sep 2014 Device: ipad mc7 16gig	I back up all my ebooks to 2 32 gig flashdrives and a 1TB external backup drive- not losing my books- no way. I think Dropbox also backs up to the Cloud but not sure on that one.

12-26-2014, 07:50 PM	#49
AlexBell Wizard Posts: 3,413 Karma: 13369310 Join Date: May 2008 Location: Launceston, Tasmania Device: Sony PRS T3, Kobo Glo, Kindle Touch, iPad, Samsung SB 2 tablet	I now have an external hard drive for my Windows 7 computer, and it's been set up by the computer store to do a weekly back up of my computer. I have checked that the file date is new after the backup, so I presume it is working properly. To the best of my knowledge the backup will restore my hard drive if it fails again, but I cannot retrieve individual files or folders from it. For reasons lost in the mist of time I have a drive E on my computer on which I store all my data files. Is there a way of also doing a backup of that drive in such a way that I could go into that data backup and retrieve individual files? Will SyncToy let me do that? Will SyncToy work on Windows 7 as well as Windows XP? Is there a book or source which provides 'Backup for Dummies' level information?

12-27-2014, 03:30 AM	#51
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383099 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	SyncToy is very easy to use. Download it and have a play with it.

12-27-2014, 08:12 AM	#55
Katsunami Grand Sorcerer Posts: 6,111 Karma: 34000001 Join Date: Mar 2008 Device: KPW1, KA1	RSync is free, and much more powerful than both. However, it requires Cygwin on Windows, and it's hard to use if you're not comfortable on the command line. Just use what works for you. I have had reliability problems with getting all files copied with SyncToy, couldn't figure out why, and finally ended up with a custom rsync / bash script.... on Windows.

12-27-2014, 02:47 PM	#58
Fbone Is that a sandwich? Posts: 8,289 Karma: 101697116 Join Date: Jun 2010 Device: Nook Glowlight Plus	I tried SyncToy but there were always a number of files it would not copy.

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