Data backup in simple terms. Disk Copy: A program to create a backup copy of your hard drive

Regularity. Creating backups should be as regular as brushing your teeth in the morning.
Examination. Check the backup you just made. It will be very disappointing if, at a particularly tense moment, your lifesaver turns out to be a dummy. Open several files from the archive and make sure they work.
Separateness. It is better to store backups not in one place, but in at least two. For example, on an external hard drive and in the cloud. After all, disks sometimes fail, and cloud storage may not be available at the right time.
Demarcation. Divide what you plan to store into several clear categories. Data of varying importance require different approaches to archiving.

System solutions

Windows

Windows has a standard backup and recovery tool that allows you to save both individual files and an entire image from which you can restore the system in the event of a failure.

Windows 7

Go to the “Control Panel” by left-clicking on the “Start” button and selecting the appropriate item. In “Control Panel” select “System and Security” → “Backup computer data” → “Set up backup”.

Next, the system will ask you to specify a location to save the archive. Please note: if you want to backup data from drive C, you will not be able to save it there. To do this, you will have to select another medium, for example a second physical disk, flash drive, DVD or a folder on the local network. If we recall the principles of creating a backup, the archive must be stored on a separate medium, and not on the very computer from which the copy was made.

Next, the system will prompt you to automatically or manually select folders for archiving. Click on “Give me a choice” and in the window that opens, check the boxes for the folders you want to save. Click Next → Save settings and exit.

Now the “Archive” button appears in the “Backup or restore files” window. Clicking on it will start the process of archiving your data.

Recovery follows the same principle. To do this, click on the item “Select another backup to restore files” and indicate the one into which the backup was made.

Windows 8 and above

The built-in File History tool allows for real-time archiving. For it to work, only initial setup is required.

Go to "Control Panel". To do this, click on the “Start” button with the right mouse button and find the desired line in the context menu.

As a storage location, select a disk other than the system one, a flash drive, or a network folder. Click Enable.

“File History” will automatically copy the following libraries: “Documents”, “Music”, “Images”, “Videos” - and standard user folders: Windows, “Desktop”, “Favorites”.

By default, backups are made every hour, but you can change this time, for example, to 10 minutes. However, this will require more disk space. The retention time for each copy can be configured in the Advanced Options menu.

macOS

Time Machine is a standard Apple solution designed for creating backup copies of applications, files and folders, documents, videos, and music.

To use Time Machine, you will need third-party storage, such as a flash drive, external hard drive, or network solution.

When you connect your external drive to your Mac, you should be asked: Should I use it as backup storage? Select "Use as backup drive."

If the window does not appear, you must select the backup disk manually:

go to the menu and open Time Machine settings;
click on “Select backup disk”;
select the one you need and click on “Use disk”.

Backups will be automatically created once per hour, copies for the past month - every day, and backups for the entire time - every week. Do not be afraid that the capacity of your hard drive will be small. Time Machine will only save changed information, and old copies will be automatically deleted as disk space becomes full.

Android

Android Backup Service

Designed to create backup copies of Google account data. With its help you can save:

data about Wi-Fi networks;
desktop wallpaper;
Gmail settings;
Google Play apps;
language and input settings;
date and time;
settings for a number of third-party applications.

To create a backup you need:

open device settings;
go to “Personal data” → “Restore and reset”;
enable "Data backup".

To restore data on another device, just log in with your account. To restore the settings of saved applications, go to “Personal data” → “Recovery and reset” → “Auto recovery”.

Synchronization

Android has a standard synchronization tool that allows you to save user contacts, applications installed from Google Play, calendar, display settings, languages and input methods, Google Drive data and settings of some third-party applications. The tool requires a Google account.

Synchronization in Android is enabled by default. If you want to get the latest backup copy, do the following:

open your phone settings;
in the “Accounts and Synchronization” section, select Google;
Check the required boxes and click “Synchronize”.

The data will automatically be sent to Google cloud storage. To restore them on another Android device, just connect your account to it.

You can also synchronize most popular accounts: Skype, Telegram, Viber and VKontakte. To sync photos and images, Android has a built-in Google Photo solution.

iOS

iTunes

Apple's universal application for receiving and playing content. Allows you to locally save data from a device connected to a computer running Windows or macOS. This is especially convenient when you do not have Internet access.

To create a copy using iTunes, do the following:

connect the device to the computer;
go to the “Devices” tab;
click "Sync".

photos;
notes;
contact list;
calendar;
SMS/MMS messages;
Safari browser;
access point settings;
application data;
main screen view.

iCloud

Cloud service for storing user data. Like any cloud, it has two limitations: the need for Internet access and a relatively small (5 GB) amount of free allocated space.

To save data using iCloud on your device, open Settings → iCloud → Backup and start the process of creating a copy.

Saved in iCloud:

purchase history in the App Store;
photos;
Phone settings;
application data;
main screen view;
ringtones;
voice mail.

Software

Windows

License: commercial software.

Russian language support: There is.

A simple solution for creating backups. Allows you to save both individual files (photos, music or movies) and mail files, for example from Microsoft Outlook or TheBat.

In the main program window, click “Create a new task” → “Create a backup copy”. From the directory tree, select the data you want to save. In our case, this will be the “Music” folder on the desktop.

Finally, give the task a name and click Finish. Archiving is complete.

Data recovery is performed using the same principle. Select the saved backup copy, and then select the location where you want to restore it.

The trial period for using the program is 30 days. The developers offer to purchase the full basic version for 800 rubles. There are other versions of Handy Backup - Professional and Expert. Their capabilities are much wider and tailored to professional needs; for our purposes, the Standard version is quite sufficient.

License: shareware.

Russian language support: No.

Another solution for creating backups and recovering lost files. The interface is so simple and clear that even the lack of Russian language will not be an obstacle.

First of all, choose where to save your data. Let it be a removable drive E.

The next step is to specify the data to be saved. The program offers both a smart selection, where you can mark desktop files, system folders “Pictures” or “Videos”, and a directory tree at once. Go to it and save the already familiar “Music” folder.

After clicking on the checkbox, the archiving window will open. On the selected drive, the program automatically creates a Genie TineLine folder, where it places the saved files.

Save and restore functions are available in the basic version of Genie Timeline Free. The advanced paid versions of Genie Timeline Home and Genie Timeline Pro have much greater capabilities: sending notifications by email, highly secure data encryption, and setting up a schedule. But for saving home files, the Free version is quite enough.

Genie TineLine has an iOS app that allows you to check the status of your backups on your computer.

License: commercial software.

Russian language support: There is.

A powerful tool for creating backups and restoring data. You can store backups not only on physical disks, but also on Acronis’s own cloud service. However, to do this you will have to subscribe for a year, and the amount of space provided will depend on the tariff plan. With a standard subscription, 50 GB are allocated, when purchasing a premium version - from 1 TB.

Immediately after installation, the program prompts you to choose what data to send to the copy: from the entire computer, from disks and partitions, or individual folders.

Select "Files and folders" and select the ones you need. Let this again be the “Music” folder on the desktop. Click "OK" and proceed to select storage.

Select flash drive E, click “OK” → “Create a copy” again. A copy of the “Music” folder has been created on a flash drive.

Acronis also has other useful features. For example, “Archive” allows you to free up disk space by packing large files, and the “Disk Cloning” tool will create a complete copy of local disks, which will allow you to restore the system to its original state in the event of a failure.

The cost of the program is 2,700 rubles. A standard subscription for a year will cost users 2,400 rubles, an extended one - 5,100 rubles. Mobile applications work in conjunction with the desktop version and are downloaded for free.

macOS

Carbon Cope Cloner

License: commercial software.

Russian language support: No.

A utility for creating a duplicate disk. Russian language support is not provided, but understanding the interface will not be difficult.

In Source Disk, select the drive you want to copy. In Target Disk, specify the location to store the copy. Start the process with the Clone button.

The free period of using the program is 30 days. After Carbon Cope Cloner will cost 2,405.65 rubles.

Android

License: shareware.

Russian language support: There is.

A convenient solution for creating backups and synchronizing applications on Android that does not require root rights. However, for full operation you will have to install Helium on a computer running Windows, Linux or macOS.

After installing the application on your smartphone, you will immediately receive a notification about the need for the desktop version. To make installation easier and save time, the program offers to send a link to a user-friendly messenger or email. From there follow the link to the program website, download and run. Installation in the “Next” → “Next” → “OK” style does not cause any difficulties.

While the program is installing, the mobile application asks you to connect the phone to the computer and enable USB debugging.

After receiving a notification about successful synchronization, you can disconnect your smartphone from the computer.

Open the mobile application. From the list of installed programs, select the ones you need and click on the “Backup” button. Specify where the backup will be stored and wait for the process to complete.

To restore from a backup, go to the “Restore and Sync” tab, select the storage location with the copy, select the desired applications and click “Restore”.

The basic version of the program is free, the cost of the extended version is 149.86 rubles.

The extended version allows:

disable advertising;
set up scheduled backups;
enable synchronization between Android devices;
save data in the cloud.

Owners of Motorola devices and some Sony models will not be able to install the application.

License: shareware.

Russian language support: There is.

The most popular application backup tool among Android users. Requires root access to the device.

To create a backup copy of one or more applications, open the “Backups” tab, which provides a complete list of installed software. An exclamation mark next to an application indicates that a copy has not yet been created for it. The phone icon means that the program is stored on the device's internal memory. The SD card icon indicates applications stored on the memory card.

Select the application and click “Save” in the menu that opens.

The backup has been created. Now, if you enter the application again, you can see the “Restore” button.

Titanum Backup supports group work with applications and backups. To do this, go to “Menu” → “Batch actions”.

This function allows you to:

check backups - both recently created and entire ones - for errors;
make backup copies of all installed applications;
make backup copies of all system data;
delete old backups;
restore all backups;
restore all system data;
clear application cache;
remove system or user applications.

The functionality of Titanium Backup is much broader, but for our purposes the listed capabilities are quite sufficient.

The extended version of Titanium Backup costs 349 rubles. Its main features:

creating multiple backups for the application;
encryption of reserved data;
checking all archives;
batch freezing and unfreezing of applications;
synchronization of backups with the cloud.

iOS

iMazing

License: commercial software.

Russian language support: There is.

Compatibility: Microsoft Windows, macOS.

In fact, it is a file manager with backup capabilities. In many ways it is similar to iTunes, but working in it is much easier and more enjoyable. You can transfer data both via cable and via Wi-Fi, and in iMazing there is no limit on the number of connected devices.

When you connect your device to your computer, iMazing automatically makes a backup of it. The function of changing data directly in a saved copy is very useful: the next time you connect, the changed data is instantly synchronized.

The free period is 30 days, after which you will have to pay $39.99 for use on one computer.

License: commercial software.

Russian language support: No.

Compatibility: iOS.

A tool for backing up devices with . Allows you to save notes, contacts, photos, messages, call history and much more.

To create a backup, just select what you want to save and click on the corresponding icon. A copy can be stored on your smartphone, computer, in the cloud, or sent by email.

To restore data, click on the Restore button in the menu on the left side of the screen.

BackupAZ costs $2.99.

iLex

License: free software.

Russian language support: There is.

Compatibility: iOS.

And this software product will require you to have a jailbreak. The free iLex application allows you to save absolutely any data from your device, and it doesn’t require a computer to work.

Having created a backup copy, save it where it is convenient for you, and after flashing the device or in case of loss, copy the archive to your phone and restore the necessary information.

Cydia

License: free software.

Russian language support: There is.

To do this, just go to Manage Accounts, enter your account and select Installable Purchases. But this can only be done for purchased applications. Cydia does not save information about free ones.

Cloud solutions

Google Drive

License: shareware.

Russian language support: There is.

Compatibility:

Allows you to store user data on Google servers, differentiate access rights to files and folders, open access and share them with other Internet users.

Storage includes:

Google Drive - used to store files;
Gmail - stores the user's contacts and is a powerful email client;
Google Photo - automatically finds images on devices and saves them to the cloud.

15 GB is provided for free. For larger volumes you will have to pay from $2.99 to $299. The maximum storage capacity is 30 TB, and the maximum uploaded file is 5 TB.

2 GB of storage is available for free use. The cost of 1 TB will be 9.99 euros. Unlimited space can be purchased for 10 euros per month.

Yandex.Disk

License: shareware.

Russian language support: There is.

Compatibility: browsers, Microsoft Windows, macOS, Android, iOS.

Cloud service of Russian origin, former Yandex.People. Like previous solutions, it allows you to save data in the cloud and share it with other Internet users. Supports synchronization between different devices.

Users are provided with 10 GB free of charge. For an additional 10 GB, Yandex asks to pay an additional 30 rubles, for 100 GB - 80 rubles, and the cost of 1 TB will be only 200 rubles.

At the moment, people are divided into two types: those who initially create backups, and those who began to do them. You should pay attention to the word steel. If a person has never experienced the loss of important documents due to any error, his own or a system one, then he will not understand humor. If you have encountered this, then such a user will be far from laughing.

Such an incident can be easily prevented by knowing what a backup is. This is a backup of certain files. More details below.

General information

Backup is a backup of system or any other files. This is done so that in the event of any failure or infection of the operating system by a virus, the necessary documents can be restored.

Backup is performed manually and automatically using special programs. In the second case, you should download a utility that will do everything for the user. In the first case, you can copy certain files that are valuable to any storage. It should be noted that the utility can even save an entire operating system.

What is backup, if translated from English? This term is translated as stock. The word is borrowed from this language. In addition, among other meanings of the word, you can notice that it can also be translated as reserve or repeating. That is, this term can be used to describe an action in which information is rewritten to another medium.

It should be noted that even our ancestors knew what it was - a backup. However, at that time it was not called that. All manuscripts that were of value were rewritten several times. In ancient times, libraries were often burned, so it was very important to store chronicles in several copies. In addition, moneylenders have mastered backups. They kept lists detailing who owed them money in multiple copies.

When to Backup

It is necessary to provide such an example for comparison. When any human organ is no longer working, it will be useless to take pills or any mineral supplements in order to improve its functioning. Accordingly, the same can be applied to the backup process. You need to save documents constantly. Even if a person does not store the most important information on his computer, the operating system works smoothly and without any glitches, it is still necessary to make copies of his documents.

If a person wants to download the program and try it out, but he has not used it before, then he needs to make a backup of the operating system. It happens that utilities damage system files or other important documents that affect the performance of the system.

At the same time, you need to understand that before reinstalling the operating system, you should definitely transfer your music and movies to a spare hard drive. As a rule, the installation program now works as perfectly as possible, not allowing a person to delete information that is important to him, but sometimes there are still incidents. Moreover, it never hurts to be on the safe side.

Where can I save a backup?

What is a backup, we already understand, then we should figure out where to make a backup save? As a rule, there are two most reliable methods that will allow you to save as much data as possible.

They must be transferred either to the cloud or recorded on a flash drive, disk or other physical media. Let's consider both methods, taking into account all their pros and cons. Every person should know where backups are stored.

Recording to an external drive

As a rule, the capacity of any external drive is several terabytes; accordingly, a large number of important files and huge archives can be written to it. The advantage of this method is not only the large capacity, but also ease of use and transportation.

It should be noted that the only drawback of this method of creating backups is its instability to mechanical damage. That is why you should buy more expensive devices that are not only able to withstand any shock, but are also impervious to moisture.

Flash drive

If you need to save system files, then an ordinary flash drive will be enough for this. It is quite cheap, every year more and more options with maximum capacity appear on the market, and you do not need to install drivers to use it. The reliability of such a device will be at its best. In addition, modern models are now able to withstand the effects of humidity.

Among the disadvantages, it should be noted that the flash drive may fail. At the same time, utilities that could recognize that a flash drive is no longer usable simply do not exist. The storage time on the device is not infinite, and the recording speed is low. If you put a flash drive and safely forget about it, then, unfortunately, after about six months the user, turning it on, will notice that there is no data on this device. This problem is especially relevant for devices with large volumes, where manufacturers have not learned how to properly protect the device from information leakage.

CDs

Despite the fact that these devices have already gone out of fashion, they are still indispensable in some cases. There is no need to use the 700 MB options. A disk with almost 9 GB of memory may well be a good storage medium. However, it should be noted that these devices must be protected from temperature extremes, defects, and sunlight. If we talk about reliability and capacity, then you should choose DVDs. Such blanks are quite reliable.

CDs also work well, but their maximum capacity is 700 MB. At the moment this is a ridiculous indicator. Blu-ray discs are very spacious. They can hold more than 30 GB of information. However, drives to read and write to them are not installed in every device. Moreover, they are extremely sensitive to mechanical stress.

Cloud

The cloud has become very popular over the past few years. How to make a backup to this system? You just need to upload the necessary files to the cloud, and autosaving will allow you not to worry about the security of the downloaded information. It should be noted that a cloud is a server from a third-party company that provides a certain volume or free space for a nominal fee or free of charge.

The most popular clouds now are Dropbox, Google and Yandex services. It should be noted that the second option gives the user 15 GB of space for free, which will be enough for home use.

How to Backup Windows

If a person has worked with Windows 98 before, then he remembers the system failures very well. The operating system was, in principle, not bad, but if any utilities were incompatible, it was always 100% clear that a system error would lead to reinstallation of the operating system. However, in new versions the manufacturer still provides Windows backup. In Vista, as well as versions 7 and 8, this feature was brought to almost excellent condition.

Using an example, let's look at creating a backup of the Windows 7 operating system. It can be done very simply. You should go to the control panel, there you will find the “Backup and Restore” item. You should click on the menu with the left mouse button and go to the “Image creation” sub-item. A pop-up window will open again, in which you need to select any of three options for creating a backup copy. You can do this on a blank, upload it to the network, or use a hard drive. You should check the box next to the item where the person intends to make a backup. After this, you should save the settings. It should be noted that if the Internet connection is poor and unstable, then an attempt to save the operating system to the network will fail.

All this can also be done using special utilities. The most famous backup programs are those created by Norton and Acronis. Users often use utilities from Nero. It should be noted that although their functionality is excellent, not everyone is willing to pay for it. But if a person needs increased reliability and security, then he will still have to pay attention to paid services. For ordinary users, the internal system tools for creating backup copies will be quite sufficient.

Mobile devices

We have already described how to make a backup on a computer. However, what about mobile devices? These units now store a large amount of important information, and we are talking not only about phones, but also about tablets. At the moment, the most common system is Android, so we’ll talk about it. How to make a backup of such a device?

It should be noted that we will not copy ordinary photos and videos, but programs and their settings. It should be noted that if you lose all this, then not only will it take a lot of time to restore, but there is also no likelihood that they will be completely restored. First, we need to mention the excellent Titanium Backup utility.

What you need for backup

To get started, you need to do two things to make a backup. Get root rights, that is, administrator rights. At the moment, you can hardly find phones that already have such rights when sold. Therefore, the user will have to suffer a little to get administrator options. The second thing you need is the Titanium Backup utility. It works great and is of high quality. To create a copy, be sure to use this one.

Recently, my friend asked me to explain to her how to backup data. She's a humanitarian, so she wanted options that didn't require any customization. Since she is not a stupid person who likes to understand the problem herself and make decisions, I decided to collect the basic principles for her and describe the pros and cons of certain options (as I see them). I decided to publish it here in case some of you find it useful - to help a friend or relative. I would be very glad to receive comments on how the text could be made simpler and clearer.

Basic principles

1. Regularity and frequency

Data backup should be as regular as taking pills. It is for this discipline that you can thank yourself if some kind of collapse suddenly occurs. Sometimes losing even just a few working days due to a failure to backup can be very painful. It’s possible to answer the question of how often you can make backups by understanding the data for what period of time would be least painful for you to lose. One of the best options is to backup data once a week on weekends.

Separateness

It is advisable that the data be saved to a separate external hard drive (or other storage medium) and stored in a separate place from the main data. The principle is quite obvious - if a problem occurs, it will be localized in one place. For example, if the hard drive on your computer fails, the backup disk will function perfectly. However, there is a balance to be struck between ease of access and security. Having a hard drive next to your computer significantly increases your motivation to use it for its intended purpose. And at the same time, this is not the safest option for very important data that should not be lost under any circumstances. This is why there is a distinction between data backup and data archiving.

Double check

As soon as the first backup copy of your data is made, you must immediately check that this data can be restored from it! This means not only that the files become visible. You need to open several files to choose from and check that they are not corrupted. It is advisable to repeat such a check once every certain period (say, once a year).

Discrimination

The best practice is to differentiate data into categories. The category could be their importance to you, the frequency of updates, or simply the topic.

Often backup programs create so-called “images”. They look like one single file. So, it is better to save various data in each such image.

What is it for. Data of different importance requires different handling, this is obvious. You will probably want to store your important documents more carefully than, say, a collection of films. By dividing the data by update frequency, you can, for example, save time spent on backups. Topic - what data is desirable to recover together in one step? A striking example of two types of backups that should be done separately:

Data backup

These are Word documents, photographs, films, etc. The same applies but is often forgotten - bookmarks in the browser, letters in the mailbox, address book, calendar with meetings, configuration file of the banking application, etc.

System backup

We are talking about the operating system with all its settings. Such a backup eliminates the need to reinstall the operating system, make all the settings, and install programs. However, this is not the most necessary type of backup.

Where to make a backup

1. External hard drive. You can often buy it straight out of the box. There are laptop ones - such disks are small in size, but more expensive. Regular hard drives can be purchased relatively cheaply with a capacity of 2 TB - then you won’t have to worry about disk space for a long time.

Fairly reliable (as long as you don't drop or shake excessively)
+ Relatively inexpensive

You must remember to connect the backup disk yourself.
-Not very convenient to carry (does not apply to laptop drives)

2. USB stick - suitable as an additional tool when you would like to transfer data from one computer to another and/or have it at hand. Also, if you don’t want to store the data itself on your computer.
There is one big but - a flash drive has a limited number of records, so if you store data from an application on it that will write intensively, then the flash drive (usb stick) will quickly die out. In addition, in my personal impression, they break quite often. A friend of mine, buying the most expensive flash drives, which were positioned as “unbreakable”, received a broken flash drive within a month or two. To be fair, I must say that I still haven’t had a single flash drive break; some have been working for 5 years already. However, I wouldn’t store data on a USB stick alone.

Mobile storage
+Takes up little space
+Very cheap

Unpredictable reliability

3. Data storage on a remote server (or in the cloud).

There are pros and cons:

The data will be available not only at home, but also at work and while traveling.
+Local separation of main data and backup copies (for example, if, God forbid, a fire happens, the data survives)
+There is no need to connect a hard drive for backup; as a rule, everything is done completely automatically.

It is advisable to encrypt the data, since it is unknown who can access it
-A large amount of traffic is wasted (if it is limited, problems arise)
-Often you can only store data up to 2 GB for free. So, such a backup is an additional expense item

A list with a good description of services can be found

How to make a backup

Here is a list of applications that are worth paying attention to (in my opinion) when backing up to your hard drive.

Popular among the free ones

1. Genie Backup Manager is a very convenient program, but it is a little slow when working
2. Handy Backup - simple interface, works quickly.

Additionally

Often in the settings of backup programs there is an option to make an incremental or differential backup. The practical difference is quite simple. With differential backup, you can save on the space it takes up. But there are only two recovery options: data in the state when a full backup was made + data at the time when a differential backup was made.

Incremental backup allows you to roll back to any point in the past when the backup was made. However, especially if changes in data occur frequently, the space will be consumed quickly.

Basic principles

1. Regularity and frequency

Separateness

Double check

Discrimination

The best practice is to differentiate data into categories. The category could be their importance to you, the frequency of updates, or simply the topic.

Often backup programs create so-called “images”. They look like one single file. So, it is better to save various data in each such image.

Data backup

System backup

Where to make a backup

Fairly reliable (as long as you don't drop or shake excessively)
+ Relatively inexpensive

You must remember to connect the backup disk yourself.
-Not very convenient to carry (does not apply to laptop drives)

Mobile storage
+Takes up little space
+Very cheap

Unpredictable reliability

3. Data storage on a remote server (or in the cloud).

There are pros and cons:

A list with a good description of services can be found

How to make a backup

Here is a list of applications that are worth paying attention to (in my opinion) when backing up to your hard drive.

Popular among the free ones

1. Genie Backup Manager is a very convenient program, but it is a little slow when working
2. Handy Backup - simple interface, works quickly.

Additionally

Incremental backup allows you to roll back to any point in the past when the backup was made. However, especially if changes in data occur frequently, the space will be consumed quickly.

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 the 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. This 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 bulky 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).

So whether you save files online, or locally, then this program is for you.