Neal Walker Computer Services - Computer And Data Backups

Something that is often overlooked (usually until it is too late) is backing up your computer and data regularly. We take it for granted that when we switch the computer on, everything will be there, just as it was when we switched it off. It isn’t until you have a problem, and discover that you have lost all of your stuff, that you seriously think about backups. It’s surprising how a disaster can focus them mind. As you add music files, digital photographs and your documents to your computer, it becomes more important than ever to make regular backups.

Most brand name computers come supplied with system recovery discs, or have a system utility which will allow you to create factory install / system recovery discs. You should check right now that you either have the recovery discs supplied by the manufacturer, or have created your own set using the supplied system utility. If you don’t, then create them as soon as possible. Simply follow the instructions that came with your computer. If you don’t have the discs and don’t know how to create them then please ask me for help. These discs will allow you to restore your computer to exactly how it was the day it left the factory, if you ever need to. When would you need to do this? Well, if you cannot boot your computer up because the operating system is corrupt. If your computer has been completely trashed by a virus. If your hard disk dies and you have to have it replaced. When you want to sell your computer and make sure none of your private data is left on the computer for the new owner to discover. Just a few examples of when you might want to use the factory restore discs, so make sure you have got your set.

So, you now know it is possible to recover your computer to exactly how it was the day it came out of the factory. Unfortunately that may have been in 2005, so it will need to have 5 years of Windows Updates and Service Packs installed to bring it up-to-date. Also, all the programs you added to your computer will need to be installed. All your internet explorer favourites, all the customisation's you made to your computer, not to mention all of your data has gone. You will need to restore all of these things from the backups you regularly made. You are making regular backups aren’t you?

All versions of Microsoft Windows come with a Microsoft supplied backup program, which will allow you to make some sort of backup of your data. To find out more for your particular version of Windows, click on START, go into ‘Help and Support’ and search for backup. Make sure that you do your backups to an external device, whether that be a CD or DVD disc, a USB memory stick or an external hard drive. If you save your backups to the internal disk drive, how do you recover your data if the hard disk has gone bang, or somebody has pinched your laptop? So, be smart and always backup to an external device!!

It will probably come as no surprise to you that there are actually much better/easier ways to backup your computer than using the Microsoft backup utilities and system restore disks. I am a fan of free software and recommend free alternatives to paid-for software whenever I can. However, where my computer data is concerned, I would absolutely prefer to spend money using programs that I trust and know work! So, I am not offering any suggestions for free backup software, rather programs that you need to buy, that I use and which actually work very well. Norton offer Ghost v15 and also have a program called Norton Save & Restore v2.0. Please be aware that Norton Save & Restore does NOT work with Windows 7, so if are using Windows 7, or are likely to be upgrading to it, then it’s probably best not to buy this product. Another good option is Acronis True Image. All of these programs allow you to create complete system images, plus perform data backups. You can even schedule the backups to run automatically, so you don’t even need to remember to run the backups.

When you create a system image backup, you can restore your computer to the exact date and time the backup was created. It includes everything on the system disk at that time, including all the programs you have installed, all your Windows Updates, everything. You can completely restore your computer in probably less than an hour. Compare this to using factory restore disks, downloading all the windows updates, installing all your programs and data - well, really that just takes forever! You can run a system image backup whenever you want. Normally you would do this perhaps once a month, or every three months or so, just to keep it reasonably up-to-date, but you don’t need to run a system image backup all the time.

These programs also allow you to make backups of your data, rather than backing up the complete system every time. Depending on how much your data changes on your computer, how many files you add etc, you can probably do a data backup once a week, however you could run one every day or even every hour if you wanted to. These backups can be automatically scheduled to run whenever you want, so you don’t even need to remember to run a backup once you have set it up.

At the end of the day, your data is the most important and valuable thing on your computer. If you loose all your photos and music files, will you be able to replace them and how long will it take? If you have spreadsheets and documents on your computer, can you re-create them? Please don’t leave it to chance, do some sort of backup of your files and data, and do it regularly. You only need to loose everything once, to realise just how important it is to back things up, believe me.

The Golden Rule is backup to an external device such as a CD/DVD drive, USB memory stick or external hard drive, and do it regularly! It honestly doesn’t take very long to do and is actually very easy.

If you need any advice or help on backups, please give me a call. I regularly run computer lessons covering backing up your computer and data, and will be very happy to help you.