# Backup Software



## kuroseishin (Jul 4, 2011)

I'm looking for a software to create and update a copy of my data on an external hard drive. 

I am a 2D/3D animator so I have massive amounts of data, so I can only really have one copy of my data per external hard drive. I'd like to be able to easily update that single copy. I don't want to leave my external plugged in all the time because I use a laptop and work in different rooms, at all strange hours of the day and night. So I'd need a software that I can manually hit "sync" and it will update the external drive with the contents of my laptop's hard drive. It also needs to back up to a specific folder so I can use the rest of the drive for storage. 

Folder exclusion would also be nice because I don't want my "downloads" folder backed up, since I download and delete tv shows from there all the time. 

Bonus points if it can also synchronize my stored data between two external drives, as my internal drive is not big enough for all my data. 

Oh, and it'd be nice if it was free. XD

I have 32 bit Windows Vista


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## Andy Nonimose (Jul 4, 2011)

Not gonna happen. You want something that advanced you're gonna hafta pay for it. Personally, I use Rebit SaveMe. It doesn't require that you keep your laptop chained to an external, and auto-syncs when you do plug it in. You can also choose what drives you want backed up, and I think folders too, but I haven't poked around in the advanced options yet. 

As for limiting space for your backups to give your external some storage space, you could just partition your external and assign the backup software to the larger of the two. (That's what I do. >.>)


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## Runefox (Jul 4, 2011)

Personally, I would use a complicated series of batch files or shell scripts. <3


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## LizardKing (Jul 4, 2011)

Runefox said:


> Personally, I would use a complicated series of batch files or shell scripts. <3


 
This. Batch files + xcopy, job done.


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## Andy Nonimose (Jul 4, 2011)

Runefox said:


> Personally, I would use a complicated series of batch files or shell scripts. <3


 
Remember, if they're looking for advice from us, they usually have no clue how to do that kinda thing.  ^_^


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## Runefox (Jul 4, 2011)

Andy Nonimose said:


> Remember, if they're looking for advice from us, they usually have no clue how to do that kinda thing.  ^_^


 Oh I know. I was just saying. There really isn't a whole lot out there that can help, for free, unfortunately.


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## Draconas (Jul 4, 2011)

Crashplan is nice, takes some setting up though


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## SnowFox (Jul 4, 2011)

LizardKing said:


> This. Batch files + xcopy, job done.


 
Robocopy is better, It doesn't seem to hang on really big files. And then there's the mirror option.


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## kuroseishin (Jul 4, 2011)

If there's no free option, what are the cheaper pay options?


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## Andy Nonimose (Jul 5, 2011)

kuroseishin said:


> If there's no free option, what are the cheaper pay options?


 
Google is your friend.


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## Draconas (Jul 5, 2011)

Crashplan's free :/


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## kuroseishin (Jul 5, 2011)

Draconas said:


> Crashplan's free :/


 
... It is? Is it separate from their online backup service, which it looks like they're charging for?



Andy Nonimose said:


> Google is your friend.


 
Actually this was my first stop. However, there are many options and their features are often not thoroughly explained, so I was hoping to find some more in-depth information from people who had used them.

I also tried looking up reviews and comparisons but most people are not in my situation and do not have nearly as much data as I do, which is why I posted about my specific needs.


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## CatoTiger (Jul 5, 2011)

Cobian 10 is free and it does some of the things that you want.

Like everything, it does take some setting up, but it is quite simple to use. It will backup to multiple locations at the same time and you can do folder, file or filetype exlusions.

It uses VSS (Volume Shadow Copy) to do the backup, so no worries when it come to large files. Though I'm not sure if Vista home supports VSS.

It's worth a look even if you decide it's not what you are looking for.


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## Draconas (Jul 5, 2011)

kuroseishin said:


> ... It is? Is it separate from their online backup service, which it looks like they're charging for?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
Backing up to their servers, yes there's a subscription fee, but to backup to a friends computer or, hell even to an external hard drive, it's free.


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## brandondmorris1 (Jul 9, 2011)

To backup important files I am using zenok online backup, Is an encrypted, setup-and-forget and off-site backup software, so I am  protected not only against hardware failure, but also against fire, etc.  If you want to try, you can get 2. GB for free


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## yiffytimesnews (Jul 10, 2011)

I keep it simple anything huge I use my external hard drive and for everyday files I use a thumb drive


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