Review of backup systems for windows. Back up files and data

From viruses and software bugs, hardware failure or human error, there are many potential dangers infecting your files.

Or even worse could happen - for example, losing personal photographs, a music library, important business documents - something that could be truly valuable. That is why it is necessary to create a backup copy of your computer automatically.

Doing this yourself is very difficult, but with the right software it will be much easier than you think. Without any monetary expenses, because there are some free backup and disk cloning programs.

If you want to, copy the contents of your documents somewhere , clone one disk to another, or create a backup of your entire system, I found many programs that can help.

Action Backup

Action Backup is perhaps the best scheduled file backup for home and work computers. The program is very convenient, as it combines ease of use, as well as wide functionality for performing backups. With Action Backup you get: support for full, differential, incremental backups, automated* saving of backups to FTP servers, CD/DVD, remote network resources, zip64 format support, support for the shadow copy function, work in windows service mode *, automated deletion of previous (outdated) archives*, sending a report by e-mail and much more (a detailed description of the functionality is available on the official website of the developer).

Action Backup is perfect for both beginners and experienced users, making it an excellent tool for backing up files on home computers, workstations and servers.

* - available only in the paid version. There is a comparison of versions on the official website.

Aomei Backupper

If you like backup programs, Aomei has a simple interface. Select the drive or partition to back up, the destination drive, and click Backupper there will be an image creation.

The program has pretty good tools if you need it. There are options to encrypt or compress backups. You can create incremental or differential backups for increased speed. You can recover individual files and folders, or the entire image, and there are even disk and partition cloning tools.

What you can't do unfortunately Scheduled backups- they must be launched manually. But otherwise Aomei Backupper is an excellent tool, with a huge number of functions, but also easy to use.

EASEUS Todo Backup Free

Like most free (personal use) commercial software programs, EASEUS Todo Backup Free has a few limitations - but the package still has more than enough features for most people.

The program can work on both a file and backup file basis, for example, manually or on a schedule. Are you able to work with full or incremental backups.

The ability to limit write speed reduces the impact of backups on system performance. This is possible in individual files or folders, or the entire image using a disk recovery program. And there are tools to clone and format drives too.

On the negative side, you get no encryption, no differential backup, and you only get disk-based Linux (not Windows PE). But EASEUS Todo Backup Free still looks like a great program to us.

Redo Backup and Recovery

Redo Backup and Recovery — is a visualization backup tool with a difference. Instead of installing the program, you need to download a large (249MB) ISO file and burn it to a CD or USB drive. Then just boot from it to launch a simple tool that can backup your hard drive and restore them later.

There's also a recovery tool, and even a web browser if you need to seek help for a PC problem.

The program is not entirely convenient. You can't schedule backups, they all have to be started manually and there are very few options.

But it's also easy to use and free for everyone, so if you want to run an occasional backup that you can use on any computer without installing software, this is the product for you.

Cobian Backup

Cobian Backup is an excellent backup software with a lot of features. You get full, differential and incremental backups, for example; ZIP or 7zip compression; AES 256-bit encryption; include and exclude filters; scheduler, backup or FTP servers, and the list goes on. Every aspect of the program is extremely customizable (there are over 100 parameters you can customize).

PC or backup, beginners will most likely find it very difficult. If you are more experienced you will love the number of tools Cobian Backup gives you control over every aspect of the backup process.

Macrium Reflect Free

One of the most popular free (for home use) disk imaging programs, Macrium Reflect Free The basic set of functions through the interface is easy to use.

The program does not have incremental or differential backups. And you won't get encryption or password protection. It makes creating backups very easy though (select source drive and set compression ratio, done).

There is a planner; You can mount the images in Windows Explorer or restore them completely from both Linux and Windows PE recovery disks. And in general Macrium Reflect Free An excellent choice for those who want a simple but reliable image backup tool.

DriveImage XML

Free for personal use, DriveImage XM is an easy alternative to more advanced competitors. Backup is as easy as selecting a source drive, destination and (optional) setting the compression level.

Recovery is just as simple, and the only significant extra is the ability to copy directly from one drive to another.

There are some complications elsewhere. Click the "Task Scheduler" button and you will receive instructions on how to manually configure Windows Task Scheduler to start the backup. But if you only need a basic rendering tool then give DriveImage XML handle.

FBackup

FBackup is a good file backup tool, free for personal and commercial use. The interface is simple and clear, and there are a number of features.

Plugins allow you to back up individual programs with one click; there is support for including and excluding filters; and you can run "Mirror" backups, which simply copy everything without compressing it (which makes file recovery very easy).

Compression isn't as good, though (it's weak Zip2), and the scheduler is also more basic than you'll see in other programs. But if your needs are simple then FBackup should suit you.

Backup Maker

Free for personal use at first BackupMaker It seems like any other file backup tool, with optional or full backups available, scheduling, compression, encryption, include and exclude filters, and so on.

But interesting additional services include support for online backup on FTP servers, and when performing backup automatically when a USB device is connected.

The program data is stored in Zip files, too, which makes them very easy to access. AND BackUp Maker comes in a small 6.5Mb installation package, much more manageable than some of the bulkier competitors.

If you are a home user looking for way to backup files, then backup Maker could be perfect.

Clonezilla

Just like repeating backup and restore, Clonezilla not the installer: it's dos boot environment, which can be run from a CD or USB flash drive.

And it's a seriously powerful program, too: you'll be able to create a disk image; restore an image (on one disk, or on several at the same time); clone a disk (copy one disk to another), with more control.

While Repeat Backup and Restore focuses on ease of use, however, Clonezilla more about providing additional options like "unattended" Clonezilla via PXE boot." It's not difficult, probably the best free disk cloning program - but the program is aimed at experienced backup users, for beginners it is better to find a more suitable option.

Paragon Backup & Recovery 2014 Free

Another free program for personal use, Paragon Backup & Recovery 2014 Free
is a good tool, with some limitations.

Strong support for the foundation: you can create an image backup(full or differential), compress and encrypt their use exclusion filters to help determine what is included, do scheduled backups, and then restore individual files and folders or all of them.

Additionally includes a separate section to help keep your backups safe. And a good set of basic tools section are included.

Problems? You won't get incremental backups; You can't clone disks or partitions, and the interface sometimes doesn't feel very good. Nevertheless Paragon Backup & Recovery 20134 Free A quality tool and worth your attention.

Duplicate

If you need online backups, then Duplicate is one of the most versatile tools, with support for saving files SkyDrive, Google Docs, FTP servers, Amazon S3, Rackspace Cloudfiles and WebDAV.

The program can also save to local and network drives, although it does include a lot of useful options (AES-256 encryption, password protection, scheduler, full and incremental backups, regular expression support to include/exclude filters, even upload and download speed limits to reduce the impact on your system).

Whether you save files online or locally, this program is for you.

Special project with Acronis

We all sooner or later face the need for backup. And believe me: better early than late. Once upon a time, in 2009, I lost all my data. Back then I made backups on DVD-R/RW, which was not very convenient, so they were rarely made. Some of the data was sent by colleagues (it’s good that they kept it), but a lot of it was lost. It was from that time that I regularly make backups, and today we will talk about finding the ideal product for the family budget.

Where will we store backups?

Before choosing software, we need to decide where we will store the backup. You understand that DVD-R is of little use for backup. Firstly, it is small, secondly, it is slow, and thirdly, it is noisy. And since I switched to laptops a long time ago and don’t recognize stationary devices at all (although I have them on the farm), I had to buy several external drives. First 250 GB, then larger.

I did not consider the cloud for one simple reason - there is not enough space:

You understand that even 15 GB is not enough, especially if the minimum size of the external screw available on the farm is 250 GB. Extra space? You could, of course, pay $2 a month for 100 GB on Google Drive or $10 for an additional 1 TB, but 100 GB won’t save me, and 1 TB is a little expensive. Ideally, 500 GB would be suitable for 2-3 dollars per month :)

Later, the family acquired two Android smartphones and one tablet, from which they also made backups to an external screw from time to time, the old fashioned way (after all, I was used to just such a process). Here one could safely use the cloud, but habit is a strong thing.

Search for backup software

Now we come to the most interesting part. How to make a backup?

In principle, you can use the free Clonezilla. The capabilities of this program, if not impressive, are at least quite good. Here are some of them that I consider the most important:

support for Linux/macOS/Windows file systems: from ext2 to ext4, xfs, jfs, FAT16, FAT32, NTFS, HFS (macOS);
MBR and GPT support;
support for data encryption (AES 256);
the ability to deploy one image to several local devices;
support for SSH, Samba, WebDAV and NFS.

If you need to make a backup of a server in a corporate environment, and even on a shared server, there is no better option. For cloning systems in the case of deploying one operating system on many machines with the same configuration, that’s it: they brought in a fleet of computers, installed an axis on one of them, configured everything, made an image of it and deployed it to other computers. An admin's dream!

I have also been familiar with Acronis products for a long time, but mainly with server versions. I won’t compare them with Clonezilla now, since we are talking about home backup: after all, you have one or two computers and several Android devices at home, and you don’t need to constantly create images of all these devices. In general, CloneZilla is not suitable for home use. Once, I remember, I made a backup at home with it, when I changed the system disk to a larger disk and was too lazy to reinstall all the systems. Then this program, of course, saved me.

CloneZilla is a good program, but it’s 2016 and I want something more modern, but it’s stuck in the past. I want some kind of automation, management of backups from all devices, including mobile ones, I want to copy photos from my profile on social networks, I want to search inside the backup copy in order to find the file I need. I want a lot of things. Sometimes I even think about buying a NAS specifically for storing backups.

Actually, I started searching for the ideal software for myself. I came across the “File History” function in Windows 8/10. I somehow missed “Eight”, and “Ten” is installed on only one computer. Although “File History” was created in the image and likeness of Apple Time Machine and should be convenient, in practice it turned out to be not very convenient to use, moreover, it is not compatible with computers running the “Seven” and Android smartphones.

If anyone is interested, while I was looking for the necessary software, all this time I was making backups using Total Commander by simply copying files. But this is very inconvenient. Firstly, no automation: you need to go to each computer with an external screw and make a backup. Secondly, irrational use of space. I didn't use compression. Why? Yes, because I periodically need to search for information on a backup. Have you tried searching for something in an archive of several GB in size?

Quite by accident, I remembered Acronis True Image and discovered that version 2017 had been released. Let's see what it can do now:

It looks like the perfect backup software exists! However, it’s not very ideal, but I’ll talk about the shortcomings later, but for now I’ll brag about the capabilities: Acronis True Image 2017 is a completely modern backup program, and unlike ancient software like CloneZilla, it has everything a modern person might need. This is what I personally really liked...

Firstly, saving space on the screws that are used for backup. The backup is made in compressed form, but Acronis allows you to search inside the backup.

Secondly, now I don't have to worry about data on mobile devices. Over the past two years, two microSD cards have failed: one on my wife’s phone, the other on her tablet. One photograph was at least partially saved, but the second was not, it “died” completely. Acronis True Image 2017 allows you to backup an unlimited number of Android/iOS mobile devices to your local computer.

Thirdly, you can (as I already noted) remotely control the backup on all home devices. Using the web panel, you can check the status of backups and configure data protection in real time.

Fourthly, there is support for copying Facebook profile content. A lot of information is now published on social networks: photos, videos, comments. A backup of this data will protect against page hacking or accidental deletion.

Finally, cloud orientation. I couldn’t even imagine that Acronis now has such powerful cloud support: by purchasing a subscription, you get 500 GB of cloud space! This volume is quite enough for me for home purposes (unless, of course, I upload entire hard drive images to the cloud, although Acronis allows this too).

About the disadvantages

Everything has its drawbacks. I hope the Acronis developers will listen to the criticism. Personally, I didn’t like two things about the program.

The first is the lack of Linux support. Data stored in Linux will have to be done the old fashioned way: either by copying, or using Clonezilla by creating an image of the partition with the data (fortunately, I have /home on a separate partition, out of habit).

The second is the lack of support for other social networks other than Facebook. I think, however, that over time it will appear. But whether Linux support will appear is a question. Of course, Acronis has a Linux Server product, but I don’t want to use it for several reasons: firstly, using the server version for home use is tantamount to shooting sparrows with a cannon, and secondly, I don’t want to pay for another product (and this is the minimum 792 rubles per month), and thirdly, I want everything to be managed from one product.

About the price

We all know that Acronis has never been free. However, the prices also pleasantly surprised me: on the official website there is a calculator that allows you to find out how much Acronis will cost you.

A one-time license for 1 computer (the number of mobile devices is unlimited) will cost 1,700 rubles (approximately $27 at the current exchange rate). But it’s more profitable to buy a subscription: in this case, you will get both the program itself and 500 GB of cloud storage. The cost of a subscription for a year will cost 1400 rubles. (~22$), for two years - only 2000 rubles (~32$), which is approximately 1.83$ or 1.33$ per month. For that kind of money you can only buy 100 GB of Google Drive! And here I got an excellent backup tool + 500 GB in the cloud.

If we calculate a more realistic configuration: 3 computers and 1 TB in the cloud, then a subscription for a year will cost 2400 rubles, and for 2 years - 3600 rubles. Only 150 rubles per month compared to 600 rubles for 1 TB on Google Drive! To me, the conclusion was obvious. 150 rubles is an amount quite affordable for a home user and will not put a strain on the family budget.

Most users store on their computer the maximum amount of useful and necessary information, which is often presented in a single copy, that is, available only on this PC.

Therefore, as a result of a technical failure, human factor or unpredictable actions of any programs, such information may be lost forever.

To avoid this, backup programs are used to help copy information for later restoration if necessary.

Features of choice

What is the basic principle of operation of such programs?

They create a backup recovery file - this is a file that contains all the information necessary after a technical failure (for example, when the operating system crashes) or accidental manual deletion.

It is not the information itself that is copied into this file, but only the data for restoring it and searching for remains on the PC, therefore such a file weighs relatively little.

The operating principles of such programs are different.– some of them create files on their own automatically with a configured or set frequency. Others generate them forcibly or on request, while others implement both of these methods.

Some programs work only with a certain type of file, while others work with all data on the PC.

Thus, among all this diversity It is quite important to choose the optimal program for yourself.

Such a program will not slow down your work at the computer, take up a lot of memory, put a significant load on the processor and generate excessively large backup recovery files with information you don't need.

Specifications

For the easiest and fastest way to navigate among the variety of programs described in this TOP, below is a table with the main features of each of them.

These features may influence the final choice.

Technical characteristics of software for copying information from a PC

Name	License type	Scheduled launch	Forced launch (manual activation of backup)	Functional
Aomei Backupper	Free	No	Yes	narrowed
EASEUS Todo Backup Free	Free/Paid	Yes	Yes	narrowed in non-commercial version
Redo Backup and Recovery	Free	No	Yes	wide
Cobian Backup	Free	Yes	Yes	very wide, customizable
Macrium Reflect Free	Free/Paid	No	Yes	sufficient
DriveImage XML	Free	Yes	customizable	narrowed
FBackup	Free	Yes	Yes	narrowed
Backup Maker	Free	Yes	Yes	wide
Clonezilla	Free	No	Yes	very wide
Paragon Backup & Recovery 2014 Free	Free/Paid	Yes	Yes	wide

This TOP includes non-commercial software with various characteristics and intended for various purposes.

Among it, each user will find the most optimal one for himself.

Aomei Backupper

An easy-to-use, free backup program that doesn't take up much space on your PC.

It is characterized by high efficiency, stable operation and functionality with minimal weight and high ease of operation.

Allows you not only to copy, but also to save, encrypt data, etc.

Simply select a disk and start creating a backup copy.

Simple interface;
Minimum weight;
Several types of working with files.

Inability to automatically start copying;
Slightly narrowed functionality compared to other programs in this TOP;
Too simplistic design is not aesthetically attractive.

User reviews of this program are as follows: “Wonderful program”, “Wonderful utility! No worse than Acronix, not complicated and works quickly. Files are recovered easily and creates archives with adequate compression. I had to test it “in battle” - I was satisfied.”

EASEUS Todo Backup Free

This is a free version of a commercial, distributed for a fee, EASEUS Todo Backup.

It can be described as a fairly good budget option for copying software with high stability.

Works in automatic or forced mode.

Creates copies of all information or only specific files, or information from specific locations, directories, sources.

Availability of a paid, expanded version with extended functionality;
The ability to both launch manual and configure automatic copy creation;
Generation of a total or selective copy, that is, indicating materials for preservation;
The ability to limit the rate of copy generation to reduce the load on the hardware.

The functionality of the free version of the software is slightly narrowed compared to the paid version;
Lack of data encryption;
Quite a significant load on the system at high copy writing speeds.

Here's what users say about this utility: “The utility is super - for generating copies for dummies! Creates backup files in two clicks. It doesn’t work as fast as Acronis, but it’s free and easy to understand. Almost anyone can figure it out, even despite the lack of Russian.”

Redo Backup and Recovery

This is an application that needs to be written to a virtual or real disk.

To create a copy, you need to run from this disk, which is inconvenient.

Very functional software, with minimal load on the device hardware.

It even has its own browser, which allows you to launch it, for example, immediately after reinstalling the operating system.

Doesn't take up space on your computer;
Quite functional;
Suitable for PC technicians and customizers, as it can be launched without installation from any computer;
It works quickly and minimally slows down the system.

The need to write the image to disk, and the image size is quite large (249 MB);
There is no automatic start of copying, it works exclusively by force;
Quite inconvenient to use.

And here’s what people who already use this software say: “Many thanks to the developers. She saved me from so many troubles.”

Cobian Backup

A very multifunctional and convenient copying tool that allows you to carry out a wide range of work.

Manual and automatic start of the process, differential or general copying of information is possible.

Has over 100 different customizable copy options.

Ability to fine-tune absolutely any component;
Possibility of copying servers;
Availability of filters for copying.

The program has very complex controls due to its wide functionality and may be inconvenient for beginners;
The installation file itself is quite heavy;
When actively running, such software places a significant load on the system's hardware resources.

What are users' opinions about the program? “I used it for two years. I was very pleased: good functionality, ease of use.”

Macrium Reflect Free

This is another non-commercial version of a paid utility, which has significantly narrowed functionality than that implemented in the paid version.

Allows you to back up from.

Well suited for novice users and those who do not want to spend a lot of time understanding the program settings.

Almost all of the program’s functionality is accessible from the main interface, which is quite simple and visually pleasing;
Very simple interface;
Minimum load on hardware resources, both when stored on a PC and when running the program.

You must have a burned disk image to get started;
The software is not capable of performing both differential and general copying;
Cannot carry out encryption, password protection of copies, etc.

Backing up the operating system will allow you to quickly restore the functionality of your computer and all installed programs in the event of a Windows malfunction or a virus infection of your computer.

1. What you need for backup

In order to create a reliable copy of the system, you need to set up your computer from scratch, make a complete image of the “C” drive and the boot partition (if any). This can be done using a special backup program. In this article we will look at the Acronis True Image program.

To successfully back up your system and then quickly restore it, you need to follow a few simple conditions.

User files should not be stored on the C drive, otherwise they will be lost when the system is restored. Please note that files on the “Desktop” and in user folders such as “My Documents”, etc. physically located on drive "C". Therefore, store all your files on another partition, such as the “D” drive.

Do not install games on the “C” drive, as they take up a very large amount of space, which will make backing up and restoring the system difficult. Install games on another partition, for example on drive “D”.

Hard drive A-Data Ultimate SU650 120GB

2. Where to download Acronis True Image

Acronis True Image is one of the best backup programs. Its only drawback is that it is paid. But you can download a free trial version. With its help, you can make system backups and bootable media for restoring backups within 30 days. After 30 days, only restoring the system from previously created backups and creating bootable media will be available.

3. Acronis True Image system requirements

For Acronis True Image to work successfully, it is desirable that the computer meets the following requirements:

Processor with a frequency of 1 GHz or more
RAM capacity from 1 GB
Free disk space from 1.5 GB
Screen resolution from 1152×720
Availability of a CD/DVD drive or flash drive (for creating bootable media)
Keyboard and mouse with PS/2 connector (for older PCs)
Administrator rights (for working under Windows)

You can try to use the program even if your computer does not meet one or more of the requirements.

4. Supported operating systems

Acronis True Image supports the following versions of Windows:

Windows XP SP3
Windows 7 SP1 (all editions)
Windows 8 (all editions)
Windows 8.1 (all editions)
Windows 10
Windows Home Server 2011

To work from Windows, all 32/64-bit versions are supported, except Windows XP x64. When working from bootable media, you can create and restore backup copies of partitions with any version of Windows and Linux.

5. Supported storage media

Acronis True Image can back up partitions located on the following media:

Hard drives (HDD)
Flash drives (USB)
Memory cards (SD, MicroSD, etc.)

Supports backup of partitions in FAT16, FAT32, NTFS (for Windows), Ext2, Ext3, Ext4, ReiserFS, SWAP (for Linux). To back up partitions of other formats and data from damaged or deleted partitions, you can use copying the entire disk in sector-by-sector mode.

6. Supported backup media

Backups can be created on the following media:

Hard drives (HDD)
Solid State Drives (SSD)
External drives (USB, eSATA, FireWire, PC Card)
Flash drives (USB)
Optical discs (CD, DVD, Blu-ray)
External network drives
Disks on other PCs
FTP servers
Cloud storage Acronis Cloud (paid service)

You can store a backup copy of the operating system on another partition of the hard drive (for example, on drive “D”). For greater reliability, it is also advisable to copy it to the disk of another computer. But the best option is an external drive on which you can also store .

Bootable media is a CD/DVD or flash drive from which you can run Acronis True Image if Windows does not boot. You can create a bootable CD/DVD or flash drive using the Bootable Media Builder.

Insert a blank CD/DVD or flash drive and select "Acronis Bootable Media".

Select your CD/DVD drive or flash drive.

The flash drive must have a FAT32 or FAT16 file system. The files on the flash drive are not deleted and you can use it as usual, so this is a pretty convenient option.
Transcend JetFlash 790 8Gb

It’s better to play it safe and copy all the files from the flash drive to your computer.

Click the "Proceed" button and the bootable media will be created.

8. Startup Recovery

If your computer (laptop) does not have a CD/DVD drive or it does not work well, you for some reason cannot use a flash drive, or you just want to be on the safe side, then you can enable the “Startup Recovery” option.

To do this, select the “More tools” section.

Then “Activate Acronis Startup Recovery Manager”.

And confirm activation.

After this, the following message will appear when you boot your computer.

Pressing the F11 key will launch the Acronis True Image program, with which you can restore your system from a backup.

Please note that if your hard drive fails severely, Startup Repair may stop working. Also, “Startup Repair” is deactivated when Acronis True Image is removed from the computer. Therefore, it is recommended to create a bootable disk or flash drive.

9. Create a system backup

A backup copy of the operating system must necessarily include a partition with Windows (drive “C”) and a boot partition “Reserved by the system” (if any) of 100-350 MB in size (depending on the version of Windows).

If you plan to use Startup Repair, it must be activated before creating a backup.

9.1. Selecting a backup source

To create a backup, open the top "Backup" tab and select the backup source.

Then "Disks and partitions".

Select the checkboxes for the boot partition “Reserved by the system” (if any) and “Local disk (C:)”.

There is no need to select the data partition where all your files will be located (drive “D”). There may be other partitions on your computer's disk.

If your computer supports the UEFI interface, then you may see an “Encrypted (EFI) system partition” of 200-450 MB in size, which contains the files necessary to boot the system. It is also advisable to include it in the backup copy.

If you bought a laptop with a pre-installed operating system, then its disk may have additional partitions for system recovery. Then, in addition to drive “C”, I recommend checking off all small partitions (somewhere up to 1 GB).

9.2. Selecting a backup location

Now you need to select the location where the backup will be located.

Click Browse.

It is best to make a separate folder on another partition of your hard drive and save the backup copy there, and then copy the backup file somewhere else. I made a "Backup" folder on drive "D".

If your computer or laptop does not have a separate partition for data (drive “D”), then to create a backup copy you will need an external drive, a large flash drive (from 16 GB), blank DVDs (from 4 pcs), a network folder on another PC or access to Acronis Cloud (paid).

I recommend using an external drive to store a system backup, which is also useful for . Not only will you be able to quickly restore the system in the event of a failure, but you will also save your valuable documents, photos and videos.

9.3. Starting a backup

Once you have selected the partitions to back up and the backup location, click “Create a copy.”

The process of backing up an operating system with installed office programs on a modern computer takes 10-20 minutes and should end with a new backup copy being added to the directory and the file appearing in the selected folder.

A Windows 7-10 x64 backup file with installed drivers and basic office programs takes on average about 15 GB.

10. Restoring a backup

If your computer starts to slow down, malfunctions, is infected with a virus, or stops booting altogether, all you need to do is restore the system from a backup copy.

Please note that all files located on the “C” drive, on the “Desktop” and in user folders such as “My Documents”, etc. will be deleted. Therefore, place all your files on another partition (D drive) and back them up regularly.

10.1. Recovery from Windows

If the computer boots, then system recovery can be launched from Windows. To do this, select the backup copy and click the “Restore Disks” button.

Select all partitions from the backup by checking the boxes and click “Restore now”.

To successfully restore the system, you must restart your computer.

The process of restoring an operating system with installed office programs on a modern computer takes 5-10 minutes.

10.2. Recovery from bootable media

If Windows does not boot, then system recovery can be performed using a bootable CD/DVD, flash drive, or Startup Repair.

If you have activated Startup Repair, then when the following message appears, quickly press F11.

To start Acronis from media, insert a boot disk or flash drive, turn on the computer and hold down the “Boot Menu” key.

To call the boot menu, the “F8”, “F10”, “F11”, “F12” or “Esc” keys can be used. They can often be seen in prompts on the initial boot screen of your computer. You can also find out this information from the instructions, on the website of the motherboard or laptop manufacturer, by searching on the Internet, or at random.

Immediately after turning on the computer, press and hold the “Boot Menu” key until the boot device selection menu appears.

Use the down and up arrows to navigate to the DVD drive or flash drive and press Enter.

Wait for the menu to appear on the blue screen and use the mouse to launch “Acronis True Image”.

If the mouse does not work, then all actions in the program can be performed using the keyboard. The transition between items is carried out using arrows or the “Tab” key, checking boxes with the “Space” key, and confirming actions and pressing buttons with the “Enter” key. The transition between buttons is carried out using the “Tab” key.

Click the Browse button.

Find your backup, select it and click OK.

In this and the following windows, the drive letters may differ from those assigned in Windows. Be guided by the size of the partitions and the folders on them.

Make sure "Recover disks or partitions" is selected.

Select all sections and click “Next”.

Next, depending on the number of partitions being restored, several identical windows will appear to allow you to manually compare the partitions from the backup with the partitions on the disk where the restoration is taking place.

Here, the drive letters usually don't match those assigned in Windows, but the partitions are mapped correctly and you just need to click "Next" a few times.

If you have several hard drives, then to restore the master boot record (MBR), select the drive on which Windows is installed.

The last window will display a summary of all operations performed.

Carefully check that the partitions are restored to their original location, otherwise you may wipe the partition with your files (drive “D”). For comparison, it is easy to navigate by the sizes of the sections. The partitions to be deleted must be identical in size to those being restored.

If everything is normal in the summary, then click the “Proceed” button and partition recovery will begin. If a partition does not match in size, select it in the left column and indicate where it needs to be restored manually.

The process of restoring an operating system with installed office programs on a modern computer takes 5-10 minutes and should end with a message indicating a successful restoration.

Remove the bootable media, close the program window using the red cross and the computer will reboot.

Before starting the backup or restore procedure, you can configure some settings.

Usually this is not necessary, but I will tell you a little about some of them. The most interesting settings are located on the “Advanced” tab.

I will describe the most useful of them that may be useful to you.

Splitting a backup– allows you to divide a backup into files of a given size to write them to disks of different sizes.

Examination– checking the integrity of the backup after it is created or before restoring it to ensure that it is in good working order.

Removable media settings– allows you to make backup media simultaneously with Acronis bootable media. The recovery program is written to the first backup disk.

Turning off the computer– allows you to configure automatic shutdown of the computer at the end of the backup.

The remaining settings relate mainly to periodic backups and scheduled backups. You can download a detailed description of all parameters of the Acronis True Image program in the "" section.

12. Additional features

Acronis True Image has a number of additional features, which I will briefly describe, but we will not consider them in detail in this article.

Disk cloning– creating a copy of all or some partitions from one hard drive to another. This is useful when replacing an old hard drive with a new one. If the new disk is larger or smaller, the partitions are increased or decreased proportionally or the new sizes are set manually, which is very convenient.

TransferWindowsonSSD– performed using a cloning operation or the usual backup and restore method as described in this article, changing the partition sizes if necessary.

Universal Restore– allows you to restore a backup copy of the operating system to another computer. This is useful if you bought a new computer or significantly upgraded your old one. In this case, it may not be possible to restore the system to it in the usual way; Windows simply will not boot.

Backing up files and folders– allows you to make backup copies of individual folders and files to a selected media or network storage. It’s convenient because the files are compressed into an archive that can be password protected. The disadvantage is that the archive with files can only be accessed using the program itself and it is inappropriate to store large incompressible files such as videos, disk images, etc. in such an archive.

Acronis Cloud– cloud storage into which you can back up system partitions and folders with user files. May be useful for owners of small disks (SSD) if they have stable, fast Internet. You can access your files through a browser from any other computer. But this is a paid service with an annual subscription.

Data synchronization– allows you to synchronize selected folders with the Acronis Cloud. This is mainly used to sync files between multiple computers and mobile devices.

Data archiving– designed for transferring old files that take up a lot of space and are used very rarely to the Acronis Cloud. The downside is that space in Acronis Cloud is limited and operations with large files require a stable, fast Internet connection.

Scheduled backups– allows you to set up a flexible schedule for regularly creating backup copies of the system and folders with files in automatic mode. This may be convenient on computers that are actively used for demanding tasks, but it is of no use to ordinary users.

Continuous protection– constantly monitors changes on the computer disk and makes backup copies of system and user-important files and their versions. Constantly consumes computer resources and disk space.

Try& Decide(Try and Decide)– a very useful addition for safe experiments. After enabling this feature, all changes on the computer are recorded in a special storage. For example, you can explore various programs and Internet sites without fear of harming your computer. When you disable Try&Decide mode, you will be prompted to save or cancel changes made to the system.

Security zone– a special hidden partition on your hard drive where you can save backups. I do not recommend using this method, as it has a number of disadvantages. It is not known in advance how much volume of the partition is needed and access to backup copies is difficult.

Adding a drive– allows you to create partitions on new disks connected to the computer.

Disk Cleanup– securely delete files from disk without the possibility of recovery.

Cleaning the system disk– freeing up disk space by deleting temporary files.

Dashboard– allows you to manage backups on all your devices through a single control panel using a browser.

Parallels Access– allows you to gain remote access via the Internet to any of your computer or mobile devices and manage backups on it.

13. Links

Below you can download the Acronis True Image program and a complete manual for it with a detailed description of all functions and answers to frequently asked questions.

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