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External Hard Drive Software

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bigdog

Retired many years ago
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19 July 2006
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Just purchased Seagate External Hard Drive 320 GB to backup my computer files to.

Many years ago, I would have created a .bat DOS file to copy the data to the Seagate external drive f:

I would appreciate your suggestions for what software I should use to copy or automate the backup of my drive C: data to the Seagate external drive f:
 

Usually they connect via USB and are picked up automatically by your operating system which then adds just another drive letter that you can copy files to.
 

How much did it cost...just curious...they're really cheap here but i was wondering how cheap compared to Oz?

Cheers,
 
Nothing stopping you using that old batch file...
 



Hi bigdog,

As always, there's several ways to copy your backup material:

Simplest is simply to open Windows Explorer and copy whatever files you need to backup to F:

Assuming you are using XP O/S, you may wish to use the Transfer Wizard,
found in "Acessories ..... System Tools ... File Transfer Wizard"

If you are really keen to use software to backup your whole drive, the
"Ghost" by Norton is well known and reliable software for that purpose.

Some versions of Norton security software, include backup software, too.

If you choose to backup your work files only, be sure to set "Restore points"
regularly (also under System Tools). This enables your o/s to be restored to
to a previous point in time , where everything was functioning properly.

happy days

paul

 
xxcopy. it's just an updated xcopy. make a batch file with the /clone switch, schedule it as a task and you have an incremental backup.
 
For basic file and folder backup, you can still use batch files with xcopy.

If you also want some compression, use a command line archiver first - also in the batch file (I use arj32).

If you want to do a complete drive image, including of your operating system, one of the best programs is TrueImage by Acronis. It's what I use a lot (I have a 500GB external USB hard drive and store images of all my computers on there).

Cheers,
GP
 
I find Microsoft SyncToy quite useful and it's free. I use it to backup selected data to an external harddrive, a USB stick or even an MP3 player. You could also look at Backup Utility that comes with Windows.

Stevo
 
Another vote here for Microsoft Synctoy - fast, simple and it works. Its not going to image your complete system like Acronis or Ghost but for a simple file backup to external media it works well.
 
My goodness, I'd forgotten just how poor the standard tools are with windows. Guess I'm just spoilt using a Mac with Time Machine

m.
 
Dick smith had 250 gig 1 button back ups for $99 bucks last week.

1 button is the go.
 
you could just zip file the ones you want to backup, saves on space as well.
 
Ive used True Image for years. It works on external drives, DVD media, network drives etc.

Can create simple back ups to being able to completely clone your hard drive. It will even clone different sized drives, so if you wanted to put a larger hard drive in your computer - just run True Image, clone to the larger drive, swap the drives and bingo - a bigger hard drive and all your programs and stuff are ready to rock and roll without re-installing anything.

Some details are here: http://www.bits.com.au/index.php/featured-products/acronis-true-image-backup
 
Give me Microsoft's robocopy and stick it in a batch file - a very powerful tool is robocopy. My 2c (and first post)
 
I use ViceVersa Pro 2 which is great because my laptop had Vista (which is not nice)!
-- daily backups and very easy to use
-- forces you to use passwords in Vista (not complaining)!
-- I used xcopy for XP

http://www.tgrmn.com/

ViceVersa is the Award-Winning Windows XP, 2003, 2000, Vista software designed for File Synchronization, File Replication, File Backup and File Comparison

ViceVersa lets you synchronize files, replicate folders, perform backups and do file and folder comparisons like never before: innovative, fast and time-saving.

ViceVersa works between computers, e.g. Laptop, Desktop, Workstation, Server, over network LAN, WAN, VPN, USB, and with any type of storage media including external Hard Disk, Zip disk, USB flash drive, CD-RW, DVD, NAS Network Attached Storage.

ViceVersa unique side-by-side view quickly shows you the latest status of your files and gives you complete control over your data.

You get easy file backup software with flexible file archiving, bi-directional file sync software, automatic file and folder replication (=file mirroring), CRC file comparison and file verification to make sure your replica is still the same.

ViceVersa can copy open files without closing the program you are working on. This includes Outlook PST files, Outlook Express, QuickBooks databases, Word and Excel documents, SQL databases.

With compression and encryption, time synchronization, file archiving, file revision and versioning, ViceVersa delivers the flexibility you need to keep your data safe and protected.

No matter whether you manage a large server with hundreds of gigabytes or want a tool to secure data stored on workstations: ViceVersa is the solution you have been looking for.
 
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