Windows automatic disc back-up

[Squishman]

So I have an external HD for my weekly auto b/u's. And I always wondered why it was filling to capacity.
Now tonight it couldn't do the b/u unless I delete some old files from previous b/u's. So that was the answer. I was under the impression that each week it wrote over the previous week's b/u. Is there any reason to keep those old files? Seems extremely redundant to me.

[Assassin 11B3P]

the type of backup you're wanting to do is called an incremental backup. an incremental backup only backs-up data that has changed since the last backup.

you didn't mention which version of windows you're using, so i can't go into more specifics. i am running windows 7, but when i installed acronis, it disabled the built-in backup utility so i can't do the research myself.

generally what i like to do is to perform a clean system install (get the OS up and running, all updates installed, go to your favorite websites and do the logins, change game settings, etc), and then do a complete backup. i then keep that separate from my daily and weekly backups because i know it's 'clean'.

and of course, do not store your backup on your system drive (which you don't)! it's also good to have multiple copies of your backup as well.

now the way my system is setup, i use a 3-disk RAID0 for the OS and all applications. personal data (photos, videos, documents, etc), as well as my backups, are stored on a separate hard drive. the hard drive is located in a hot swap bay i installed in one of the 5.25" expansion slots in front of the case. if there's an emergency and i have only moments to get to safety, i can simply remove that one drive and all of the important data will be safe. it's more convenient than having an external drive since i don't have to worry about a separate PS or case. all PC's in the house are setup this way, and soon i will have a server running to add another layer of backup locations for our stuff.

[Squishman]

I have Windows 7. I will look for the incremental back up settings/options.
Thanks.

[Awaz]

I am running windows 7 and never messed with the backup option that comes with it. I just created a .BAT file and just do a x copy of all the important files I got into a third HDD. But I am curious if the backup does an image or just data? I am thinking of doing image backup since I run RAID 0 on my machine (with third HDD as backup).

[Assassin 11B3P]

the backup program in windows 7 is far more powerful than what MS has put out before, and is just fine for anyone who isn't using RAID or has their backup on a network drive (which i dunno if it supports).

if you're just wanting to backup certain folders and data, MS has a nifty program called SyncToy, which can be setup to run on a schedule and to any drive on the system. it's free and super easy to use! as with any software, make sure you get the right version for your OS (32 or 64 bit).

i am tired of using RAID...frankly it isn't worth the heartburn it causes. i'm thinking of just moving over to one large (256GB or bigger) SSD. i've also long ago stopped using one drive for the OS and one for programs and data...too many programs, especially those from MS (like FSX, Office, VS), install vital info to hidden and buried folders on the system drive despite telling the installer to install the program on a different drive. a few years ago, i upgraded my system and backed up only a few folders for certain games i played. later on, i discovered that all of my FSX data was on the drive i had just erased because of what i said earlier! i had completed like 75% of all of the missions and was well into the flight training part and lost EVERYTHING! NOT EFFIN' COOL!

and in case you didn't know, RAIDing SSDs is not really an option at this point since the TRIM command does not work (which is important).

[Awaz]

SSDs are beyond my price point for the moment - at least last time I checked. So I just raided two regular drives for my games and stuff. At some point I might go with one SSD for OS and just a regular HDD  for data and stuff. I will have to check out SyncToy.

[Assassin 11B3P]

i agree with the price being a big issue on these SSDs, but i've decided to bite the bullet and get one...just a matter of which size i need.

getting one for the OS is ok and all, but i could care less about booting into windows in a couple of seconds...it's my apps (especially FSX) that i want to kick butt on.

crap...i just wish technology would take a break every now and then so that i can enjoy what i've got for awhile!

[Assassin 11B3P]

one more thing: hard drive manufactures usually offer FREE backup software if you go to their websites. western digital (WD), for instance, gives owners of its hard drives a free copy of Acronis TrueImage WD Edition. it's full-featured, but does not support RAID (you need the PlusPack for that). just head on over to the WD web site to find out more.

[MrPepsi]

I put a Crucial C300 128 GB in my gaming PC. Had to buy a SATA III PCI-e card though. So far I really like it. I have a normal spinning hard drive for pictures and stuff, plus an external hard drive for music and backups.

[Awaz]

Isn't write speed for SSD still lower than HDD? So if you are writing out to it a lot, I would think it lower the overall performance.

[MrPepsi]

Crucial C300 had the best performance next to an Intel X25 Extreme when I bought it. They are very fast, and not cheap.

[Assassin 11B3P]

since i'm looking around right now, here's a site i'm using to compare the various drives...it's really important to note that these drives can be very different from one another since they use different controllers. some have a very good reliability history, while others have had serious issues.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/ssd-nand-reliability,3021.html

@Awaz:
there are two different types of data access- random and sequential. depending on what you're doing you should research which drives will perform the best for your type of needs. in either case, SSDs generally blow away mechanical hard drives.

@Mr Pepsi:
good point about making sure that your SSD is paired with the right SATA controller. with mechanical hard drives, even the fastest SATA III drives still cannot saturate the SATA II bus, but an SSD definetely can and will. you can still run a SATA III SSD on a SATA II port and still beat down any HDD, but you won't be realizing the SSDs full potential.

@ All:
again, using RAID on an SSD is not recommended since the TRIM command is disabled in RAID...you will be forced to erase your drives, rebuild the array, and then restore from backup, and if you don't, your SSD performance will begin to tank.

[Awaz]

@ All:
again, using RAID on an SSD is not recommended since the TRIM command is disabled in RAID...you will be forced to erase your drives, rebuild the array, and then restore from backup, and if you don't, your SSD performance will begin to tank.

Are you saying this needs to be done as maintenance every so often?

[MrPepsi]

Are you saying this needs to be done as maintenance every so often?

Nope, he's just advising that if you want to use RAID, you can't use SSD drives. RAID is a method of using multiple drives to provide protection if you were to have a hard drive failure.

[Awaz]

I do not think that is what he is saying. I am pretty sure you can RAID SSDs. I am trying to understand if it is not recommended due to maintenance.
I currently run RAID 0 just for the speed of it. It actually have worse protection (twice the chance of loosing all data) than a single HDD.

[Outback_Jon]

I do not think that is what he is saying. I am pretty sure you can RAID SSDs. I am trying to understand if it is not recommended due to maintenance.
I currently run RAID 0 just for the speed of it. It actually have worse protection (twice the chance of loosing all data) than a single HDD.

You can RAID SSD drives.  The problem is there is a command (TRIM) that can't be accessed when you have them in a RAID array.  Performance can be hurt by Windows not being able to access that command.

[Assassin 11B3P]

i had a whole lot written here, but then after reading it, i decided to start over!

1. RAID0 is not really RAID at all, since the R in RAID is for REDUNDANT, meaning it is a backup of something. in RAID0, there is no backup in the array itself. lose a drive and you lose everything.

2. RAID0 is for SPEED, not safety. RAID0 allows slower mechanical hard drives the ability to more fully utilize the bandwidth of the dataport (used to be IDE but now is SATA2/3). a conventional hard drive, even the fastest of them all (usually the Raptors from WD), hardly scratch the surface when it comes to bandwidth usage. SATA3 drives are really nothing more than a marketing gimmick.

3. SSDs CAN be RAIDed, but you don't want or need to:
a. you don't WANT to because of the fact that the important TRIM command used by SSDs to maintain peak performance is disabled. without it, your drive/array will come to a crawl, which will mean you'll have to clean everything up and restore from a backup every so often.

b. you don't NEED to because SSDs are close to maxing out the bandwidth of the dataports. so, putting two of them together (which is expensive in itself), will only give you a slight performance increase (maybe). therefore, not a good way to spend your tech dollars.

c. RAID with SSDs have the same failure points as with a mechanical hard drive, and since SSDs are far more expensive than mechanical hard drives, you'll feel the pain pretty damn fast and hard when one goes out.

4. my opinion is to look at your current storage needs and get a SINGLE SSD big enough for it. for example, if your hard drive with applications and the OS takes up ~200GBs, get an SSD that's about 256GB-300GB+. DO NOT use the SSD to store your personal data (pics, vids, documents, backups, etc)...use a large conventional hard drive for that. also factor in future software purchases that could eat up drive space. be prepared to lose a few apps if needed to make space.

5. dealing with RAID PERIOD can be a royal PITA...either with SSDs or HDDs.

6. a SINGLE drive is preferable, i have found, than using one for the OS and one for apps. frequently, apps like office, visual studio, and flight simulator X, put crucial data on the OS drive and in hidden, nearly non-accessible folders. i found out the hard way that my FSX files were not backed up because of that, and i lost several months of work and training! plus it's so much easier to complete backups from a single drive than having to backup multiple drives.

7. if going SSD, make sure you research its performance and ensure that it matches with your intended usage. running games requires a different set of benchmarks than running a server or database.

8. with SSDs, ALWAYS check its reliability history and stability! these controllers are not all the same and you would be surprised at how SSDs from some big names can be real POS.

whew...i hope that helps!