Windows 7 Backup

Dave_Canon

6

20 Dec 2012 - 9:57 AM

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Having just installed a new PC, I need to decide on my backup strategy. I still have the old PC and its backups but will probably turn this into a Windows Home Server eventually. Meanwhile I might buy a 3 T Byte USB drive and I am considering using Windows 7 backup for both system image and data backups. Does anyone have any thoughts on Windows 7 backup; there seems little point in buying backup software if it is built in.

Dave

ikett

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20 Dec 2012 - 10:33 AM

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I have used it, it is slow doing a backup but I run it Sunday evening,
I can vouch it works.

Scutter (e2 Member)

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20 Dec 2012 - 10:37 AM

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It is built-in but as Lobsterboy recalls it is very slow. Or it can be. If you let it manage backups it does some fast ones and then one that takes ages. I do one weekly and sometimes it takes 1/2 hour sometimes two hours. So if you do choose to use it decide when would be a convenient time to set up its scheduled backup. I use an external drive via USB. If I forget to plug it in it reminds me and once plugged in it gets on with it at the later date/time. It is mildly irritating if I have a sudden urge to use the machine (funnily enough on a Sunday evening like ikett!) but not as irritating as losing data!

cameracat (e2 Member)

9

20 Dec 2012 - 11:35 AM

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Todo is OK.....!

But for system image the built in Win 7 version takes some beating, How slow it is may depend on your system though.

For test purposes I tested the system image side of things on 5 separate systems, So that I could at least say it works from first hand experience.

The answer " YES " it works perfectly everytime, Basically you get a Clone of the original system, One thing to keep in mind, Drive size, If as one of my tests you take an image from a 128Mb SSD drive, Then install that to a 256Mb drive, It works fine, But your 256 drive will show as a 128Mb drive, You then have to format the missing 128Mb with something like " Todo " or the Easeus partition software.

No big problem, Just something to be aware of, I have yet to try the same test with a " Preformatted " drive, This might negate that issue, Obviously going from drives that are the same size, Will not produce this aspect.

So as far as a clone job goes Win 7's on-board everytime, The back up works fine to, So why waste money on third part software.

User_Removed

9

20 Dec 2012 - 2:35 PM

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It isn't so much that it's slow but that it slows down the computer when it's running. Okay if you schedule it to run when you're not at the PC and it completes in time. Other than that it's very good.