How do you make a backup of your hard disk?

Answer 1

Acronis True Image!



Main program window

Meet a brand new Acronis consumer product, more flexible than ever! This tour will guide you through many amazing features, some of which are unavailable by now not only in other software of other brands, but even in most powerful Acronis corporate products. Using various backup methods, you can create your own backup policy, in accordance with your specific tasks and conditions. Acronis True Image is flexible enough to meet any real-life demands. And you can continue working during backup — the program copies a live system disk in the background, without reboots or other interfering actions.
New file/folder backup in addition to disk/partition image backup types

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File/folder or disk/partition backup

To meet various demands of users, Acronis True Image 9.0 combines our original disk imaging backup with a new file-based backup option. The difference between these two methods is not like "select files" or "select all". Two different technologies — file-based and sector-based backup — are now at your disposal. Saving only the selected files, you will save disk space, used for storing backups. Having backed up your system disk, you will be able to restore the system in minutes in case of grave damage of data or a hardware failure. If you do not need to recover the system, but only want to repair damaged files, you can select and restore files from the disk backup as well.
Incremental backup vs. differential backup - choose better for your purposes

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Full, incremental and differential backup

In addition to full and incremental back up, you can create differential backups now. Unlike incremental backup, when every backup procedure saves data changes against the previous backup file in a "chain", a differential backup creates an independent file, containing all changes against the initial full archive. Therefore, to recover data, you need only two files: the differential backup itself and the base full backup. Generally, a differential backup will be restored faster than an incremental one, as it does not have to process through a long chain of previous backups. Take it into consideration if you do not want to back up your data too often or store a lot of data states, yet lack time to regular full back up.
Bootable media builder helps you use True Image without installing - from backup cd or cd-rw

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Bootable media builder

You can run Acronis True Image on bare metal or on a crashed computer that cannot boot. You can even back up and restore disks on a non-Windows computer, copying all its data sector-by-sector into the backup archive. To do so, you will need bootable media with the standalone Acronis True Image version. Create bootable media during Acronis True Image installation or later on. It may be a CD-R/RW, diskettes or any other media your PC can boot from, such as a Zip drive.
Using Secure Zone you can restore operating system without bootable disk

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Acronis Secure Zone

A unique Acronis feature — Acronis Secure Zone — is a hidden partition, not seen to any operating system or application, except for Acronis True Image and some special disk managing tools. It allows storing a disk backup file on the same disk without any risk of that file to be corrupted by software. You can create, resize, or delete the Zone, using Acronis Secure Zone manager. Moreover, if your operating system has failed, you can boot Acronis True Image from the Zone simply by pressing F11 and then restore your system and user data from previously created backups. Thus, travelling laptop users can leave the bootable CD at home. But the most amazing feature, associated with Acronis Secure Zone, is the unique Acronis Snap Restore.
Snap Restore allows you to start your system in seconds and process rest of disk recovery image in background

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Acronis Snap Restore

When recovering your system hard disk from Acronis Secure Zone, you can start working in seconds while your system is still being restored! Using the new proprietary Acronis Snap Restore algorithm, Acronis True Image will find sectors, allowing the operating system to boot, and restore them in seconds. After the system boots up, you can start any application or open any file. Acronis True Image will feel what files you need and restore them immediately — you would never guess that they have been restored but not read directly from the hard disk. At the same time, the complete sector-by-sector disk restoration will proceed in the background. Finally, the disk will be fully restored even if you perform no actions at all. But if you choose to start working as soon as possible after a system failure, you will gain at least several minutes. The more the disk size is, the more time you save. In addition, you do not have to set any options, using Acronis Snap Restore — in fact, it performs the so-called one-click restoration.
Scheduling disk image backups with Task Wizard

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Scheduling backups

Acronis True Image allows you to schedule periodic backup tasks. Doing so will give you peace of mind, you will be sure that your data are safe.
You can create more than one independently scheduled task. For example, you can back up your current project daily and back up an application disk once a week.
All scheduled tasks appear in the Active Tasks area of the main window. You can start, stop, edit, delete, and rename scheduled tasks.
Default backup options and settings window

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User-editable default backup settings

You may want to:

* protect your backup with a password;
* disable backing up certain files;
* specify commands or batch files to be automatically executed before and after the backup procedure;
* select an appropriate data compression level;
* set the backup process priority;
* split the backup to several files;
* check the backup data integrity immediately after the archive is created;
* allow unattended scheduled backup to removable media by disabling the program request for inserting removable media.

However, if your backup task is quite simple or you are not likely to puzzle over numerous choices, use default backup options. You can also edit any of these options and save them as user's default.

Filtering out files will reduce snapshot backup image and decrease time of incremental backups

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Filtering out files

When backing up folders, it makes sense not to store hidden and system files and folders, as well as files with .~, .tmp and .bak extensions, in the archive.
You can also apply custom filters, using the common Windows masking rules. For example, to exclude all files with extension .exe, add *.exe mask. My???.exe mask will reject all .exe files with names, consisting of five symbols and starting with "my".
You can specify temporary filters, applied to the current backup task, or set the default filters, that will be called each time you create a file backup task.
Improve disk image backup power managing operating system features

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Managing System Restore tool

Microsoft Windows System Restore tool is used to undo harmful changes to the system without losing recently changed or created user data (to find out more about it, select Start -> Programs -> Accessories -> System Tools -> System Restore).
If you run Acronis True Image regularly, this feature in your operating system is redundant. You can turn it off, freeing up to 12% of your hard disk's space, directly from Acronis True Image.
Hard disk drive clone software with useful disk management tools

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Useful disk management tools

Run out of your hard disk space? Use Clone Disk utility to transfer your system to a hard disk of higher capacity. There will be only one difference between these disks — partitions on the new disk will be larger. Alternatively, you may choose to manually resize and relocate partitions on the new disk. Operating systems installed, data, disk labels, settings, software, and everything else on the disk will remain unchanged.

If you are going to sell or give away your old disk, use the destroy old disk data option. It will make impossible to recover data afterwards, even with special equipment.

You can add a new disk only to store data, leaving the system on the old disk. Add Disk utility makes creating file systems and partitions on the connected drive as easy as one, two, three.
Disk image software with user-friendly interface

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An attractive user-friendly interface

The user-friendly Wizards will help you configure any Acronis True Image operation. If you have any doubts, refer to context Help or comprehensive User Guide.
You can watch progress of any Acronis True Image operation or hide the program window, leaving the operation in the background.

Answer 2

Use a program like Symantic's Ghost or PC Angel. These generally take a 'mirror' (i.e., copy) of your hard drive to CD or DVD which can be loaded back at some point - including all your data at the time of back up

Alternatively, if you have an external or secondary hard drive you could just use XP to schedule regular backups of your data. There are also innumerable software packages available to do this for you - try a search on http://www.tucows.com

Answer 3

Try the following link. It's actually a full version copy of a commercial product (Paragon Drive Copy 8 Personal SE), though I'm not sure how long that will last for. On this particular site, they tend to have a time limit before you have to start paying for the products again ... and the chances are it's an older version. No doubt, you'll be able to purchase a more up-to-date version should you wish.

Answer 4

there are lots of software's available for backing up your hard disk. if u already have a dvd burning software like nero, Roxie,alcohol120% etc. then they provide this facility of backing up your entire hard disk to DVDs/cd's. if not try backing up them manually on another hard drive. if u r using nero then go to nero backup and burn section. this is the most recommended software for backing up your data. also some branded computer or laptop provides this facility when u purchase from them.

Answer 5

www.mozy.com

This is the best free backup (2GB) service I had ever tried. All you have to do is to download a small program and then configure one time, Mozy will backup ALL your data automatically. One great advantage is, Mozy will scan and backup all new and modified data, without you selecting which to backup.

Retriving the data is also very very simple. If you are retriving one or two files, you get it almost immediately - this feature can be particularly useful if you realized you had forgotten to bring your thumbdrive out.

If you decided to sign-up, you can enter '[e-mail]' as your referrer. By keying in my email address as your referrer, you get another 256MB of storage space. Thus, you have 2.2GB to store your documents.

I strongly recommend you to use this free service.
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Answer 6

I find it best to save all the files and information onto a pen drive and then move them to another computer. This was suggested by Dell when I asked them about this. They suggested that you should do it around once a month.

Answer 7

hmm.... instead copying all files to another HD, it's better you use Norton Ghost (don't use old norton ghost for SATA HD ).
or you can use RAID from your motherboard if your motherboard support it. it's mean, your HD have an exact copy from another HD, it's cool isn't it? Just plug backup HD into your motherboard RAID and set the BIOS.

Answer 8

Back it up? I can't even find reverse gear on mine!

Answer 9

i copy alla my HD's content to one of external HD i have.

Answer 10

There should be an option on XP that allows you to do so?