NWA-PCUG Newsletter Article, July 2011
Windows Lab: Use Windows 7 Backup?
By Barney Babin,
Cajun Clickers Computer Club (LA)
member and instructor for XP, Vista Workshop and Windows 7
April 2010 issue, Cajun Clickers Computer News
http://www.clickers.org
ccnewsletter (at) cox.net (click to email author)

As those of you that have taken my classes know, I am paranoid when it comes to the subject of backup. Windows 7 includes a good backup program that can either take an image of your hard drive or backup selections made by you. I’m assuming here that you understand that you NEVER backup either your image or your individual files and folders to the same hard drive that your Windows operating system is installed upon, which is normally drive of concern during backup. I’m also assuming that all of your programs and data reside in the same partition, normally C Drive.

So, what is an image? An image is an exact copy, think of it as a camera snapshot, of the hard drive, which includes all the programs, the operating system and all your data that you have generated and saved on your hard drive. If your computer ever stops working you can use this system image, which does not allow you to select individual items, to completely restore your system to the state it was in when the image was made, including your programs, operating system, and your created data.

If you're into video tutorials go to the below URLs to view a tutorial on how to create a system image or to view a tutorial on how to backup files and folders of your choice. http://tinyurl.com/4w94999
http://tinyurl.com/4gjlouq

If you want a step-by-step procedure for a system image, go to the below URLs for the files step-by-step procedure.
http://tinyurl.com/ybfgx7o
http://tinyurl.com/yg46n9u

I strongly recommend, that no matter which procedure you choose, try to save more than one backup. This procedure is normally called generational backups. What this means is that you always have the option of retrieving information from more than one backup. There are times that you do not recognize that your “masterpiece” item, be it document, image, graphic, etc., was modified incorrectly and you do not have the original item saved on your hard drive, only the modified version. That is when a generational backup becomes just as precious as gold. You can browse the backup in the backup and restore window to navigate to the item in question, and retrieve it in its original state, provided that you have retained enough generational backups to be able to do so.

By now you should be asking the question, how often and where? The “how often” depends totally upon your usage patterns, the importance of your documents, such as sentimental value, business associated irreplaceable, etc. which may be daily, biweekly, weekly, etc., but don't extend the time too long because if your system “dies” you only have data from your last backup period and anything from that date to the present instant will be lost, thus frequency of backups can become extremely important.

In my case I backup files and folders as they're created, via a mirroring program, to other hard drives at my house and offsite on the web. I also just copy and paste some items onto flash drives for convenience, fast simple transport, etc. I perform a full image of my drive at least once a day, but remember, I do more things on a computer than you do in my volunteer positions, so your pattern will be totally different than mine.

If you're performing full images, I recommend using external drives, additional internal hard drives, network drives, etc. that will have ample room for multiple backups. If you are backing up certain items only, the Documents folder is usually where everything is saved and will normally be able to be conveniently saved to flash drives, DVD, offsite on the web, or if your total backup size is small a CD.

Never keep these backup devices in close proximity to your computer that generated the backup. Remove them from your house, if possible, store them in a bank vault, store them at work, or store them offsite on the web.

If you are going to use one of the procedures described above, I also recommend that you create a system repair disk, as described at http://tinyurl.com/2c4o4qo. As part of the repair procedure your backups will be recognized on external drives, other hard drives in your computer etc., and will illicit questions on whether you want to restore from these items or not.

Want to know more? Do a Google search on Windows 7 backup tutorials or attend any of my classes where I address the subject of backup in week four of my sessions.

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