Business contacts, PowerPoint presentations, contracts, emails, client databases and text documents are all vital information for individuals who perform business using their computers.

Bad thing do happen!

Are you sure you can restore your data from your computer backup correctly and can you be back in business fast?

Do you have a working backup strategy which is adapted to your business?

Let’s look at what can happen!

There are three different scenarios to consider here.

1. Specific files or folders you are working with are deleted by accident or failure.

2. Your hard disk stops working. You have a hard disk failure. Or you get a virus infection on your computer which destroys your data.

3. You find that your computer is no more. This can be caused be a natural disaster, a house fire or by someone stealing you computer.

Due to the very nature of the data loss. The action and preparation is different in each different case. It also depends on your specific circumstance. For example how valuable are your different types of data?

1. In this case you are dealing with files which you are working with on a daily basis. These are files that you need to include in a pc backup on a regular basis. These are also likely to be data vital to your business. Identify which these files are in advance. Most likely they are found in folders like MyDocument, your outlook emails or the database file you are using. Identify good data backup software products from which you can make backup of your vital data on a regular basis. Make sure you store these vital data in a safe place. For extra security, one option is to store your computer business data on a web server or to a computer online backup company. You have to make sure the data is decrypted if you use one of these options.
2. In this case you have to buy a new hard disk if you have a hard disk failure. And you have to format or reformat the disk, maybe with the help of a technician from your local computer store. The work involved reconfiguring the computer by installing Windows or an operating system can be extensive. Then you have to restore the data from your data backup. To avoid this you may consider using a hard disk image computer backup solution. Then you will be able to restore from your computer backup of your hard disk directly to your new disk.

3.  This is of cause the most serious situation. But, because you already have computer backup of your vital data that you are working with on a daily basis, you are now able to restore your business data to any configuration on a new computer. The problem you are facing is that in order to restore all your computer hard disk data you need to have the same or similar configuration for everything to work as before. Maybe the type or operating system you were working on is not available to buy. In any case you probably want the latest version. This is where you may have problems!

You can install the old operating system if you have the installation CDs available.

If you install the computer storage program and install the data from the backup you can run into problems.
If you move to new operating system then you will run into problem. This is because, in the case of Windows, specific setting stored in registration files becomes entangled. It is often not enough to use the same operating system as in the installation. This is because the backup from your computer can be stored with a different version than is used in your computer because you or someone installed an upgrade fix. Microsoft calls these upgrades Service Packs and the deep level data such as the registry and the operating routines are different.

You face the risk of losing the software you have installed from the Internet. You may therefore have to purchase new version of your application programs. There are two actions to take depending on the values of the products you use in your business.

One: You find that the products you have downloaded or the application products you have bought, either is not of high enough value to you or you can always try to purchase them again.

Two: You keep record of all you products you have downloaded and purchased on the Internet so that you can contact the vendor for a replacement. You store all installation product and documentation so that you are able to install the products from the saved installation CD you have purchased.

Conclusion:
1. Make regular security data backups of the data you are working with on a daily basis and have the backup stored on a safe place. Preferably at a remote place.

2. Do make a backup of your hard disk when you have installed new software. This ensures that you can be back in business in the case of a corrupted hard disk or hard disk failure.

3. Document all your purchases and passwords. Keep records and store all installation software’s. Keep all this in a remote location.

If you use Windows XP Professional, you can use the built-in Backup utility to help you make copies of files, settings, or everything on your computer.
You can schedule the utility to back up certain files on a regular basis.

To start using the Backup utility:

1. Click Start, and point to All Programs.
2. Point to Accessories, and then point to System Tools.
3. Click Backup.

If you’ve never used the Backup utility, the first screen you will see is the Backup or Restore Wizard welcome window.
Click Next and follow the instructions on the wizard.

Windows XP Home Edition: Add the Backup utility

If you’re using Windows XP Home Edition and you want to install the Backup utility, first locate your original Windows XP CD.
Add the Backup utility manually to your computer from the CD by following these steps:

1. Insert your Windows XP CD into the drive and, if necessary, in My Computer, double-click the CD icon to display the Welcome screen.
2. On the Welcome to Microsoft Windows XP screen, click Perform Additional Tasks.
3. Click Browse this CD.
4. In Windows Explorer, double-click the ValueAdd folder, then Msft, and then Ntbackup.
5. Double-click Ntbackup.msi to install the Backup utility.

Windows Vista: Backup and Restore Center

Depending on the version of Windows Vista you have, there are two ways to back up files: Automatic Backup, which backs up just your files and data; or Complete PC Backup, which backs up everything on your computer, including the operating system and applications.

To access the Backup and Restore Center:

1. Click Start, and point to Control Panel.
2. Click System and Maintenance and then click Back up your computer.

Windows 7: Backup and Restore

Windows 7 helps you configure backup settings in three quick clicks. You can choose to automatically back up all your personal files and, if you choose, your system files. You can schedule regular backups, so you won’t have to remember to do it manually. You can back up everything or just specific files, and you can choose from a number of advanced backup options, such as backing up files to a network location and performing system backups to a DVD.

To access Backup and Restore:

1. Click Start, and click Control Panel.
2. Click System and Security and then click Backup and Restore.

What to back up

Back up anything you cannot replace easily. Here are some suggestions to get you started:

• Bank records and other financial information
• Digital photographs
• Software you purchased and downloaded from the Internet
• Music you purchased and downloaded from the Internet
• Personal projects
• Your e-mail address book
• Your Microsoft Outlook calendar
• Your Internet Explorer bookmarks

Next, decide where to store your backup copies-external hard disk drive, CDs, DVDs, or some other external storage format in a different location from your computer.

Where to back up your files

The following are some storage devices and locations to consider.

• External hard drive
• CD
• DVD
• USB flash drive
• Online backup and storage service

How to back up your files

When you make backup copies of your information, a simple copy and paste works well. If you use Windows 7, Windows Vista or Windows XP, a backup tool is available.

You have valuable material on your computer. Pictures and videos, email addresses and phone numbers, bank account information, and silly sentimental things. And they all live on your hard drive.

It’s convenient, but it also exposes a lot of important things to loss in the same accident. This is why you should back up your hard drive.

How likely are you ever to lose any data?

According to various studies, 6% of computer users lose some of their data in any given year. That’s one out of every seventeen computers. Which seems fine . . . until that one computer is your computer.

But there’s one more statistic that works against the average computer user. Nearly half of them never make backups. Never.

There are no guarantees in life. But you can certainly beat the odds with just a bit of knowledge and the right product or plan.

Can data be recovered from a failed hard drive?

If you don’t back up your hard drive and something happens, you might still be able to salvage some of your files. But it’s not easy, it’s not cheap, and it’s not guaranteed.

You’re far better off having a backup system. That way, instead losing all of your photos, music, videos, and files, you only lose a hard drive. And that’s something that’s much easier to replace.

What are your backup options?

There are four basic approaches to backing up your data:

1. CD/DVD
   Simply copy your important files onto CDs or DVDs. This is an inexpensive method at first, but if you back up as frequently as you should, you begin to accumulate a lot of old discs with old data. Plus you have to take the time to create and burn these discs, then sort through them to find the file you might be looking for.
2. Online backup
   Pay a backup service, install their software, and let your computer back itself up automatically over the Internet. This is an easy “set it and forget it” backup method, and it puts your backup offsite which saves you from having to make a backup of your backup. But there are yearly fees and the backups could slow down other tasks you want to perform over your Internet connection.
3. USB sticks
   Just copy your files onto a series of USB sticks or “flash drives.” This is easier than burning CDs and DVDs, plus you can carry your backup with you. But these tiny drives don’t have the capacity for a full backup, so you’ll have to use a few of them. And they’re as easy to lose as they are to use.
4. External hard drive
   Hook up an external hard drive—like a Seagate FreeAgent® drive—to your computer and simply drag your files to the drive to back them up. A drive like Seagate Replica will automatically and continuously backup your entire system for you. And a system like Seagate Central Axis can serve as a backup for every computer on your network.

Does a RAID configuration mean you don’t have to backup?

RAID (specifically RAID 1) is a method of using two internal hard drives that mirror one another. So, in theory, if one of them fails the other keeps going.

We say in theory, because RAID has been known to react differently in real life than it does on paper. There have been reliability issues with RAID configurations—failures, data corruption, etc. And with both drives in the same location, whatever might corrupt one drive could easily get both—a power surge, fire, or flood.

So, in our opinion, using RAID is not a substitute for performing regular backups to an external drive.

1. Insert your Windows XP CD into the drive and double click it when it pops up on your desktop.
2. In Windows Explorer, double-click the ValueAdd folder, then Msft, and then Ntbackup.
3. Double-click Ntbackup.msi to install the Backup utility.
4. Click Backup to run Microsoft’s Backup program.

How to Run the Backup Utility

1. Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, point to System Tools, and then click Backup to start the wizard.
2. Click “Next” to skip past the opening page, choose Back up files and settings from the second page, and then click Next.
3. Decide whether you want to back up everything or just certain things.
4. Decide where you want the backups saved to.
5. Set a schedule for regular backups.

CD-RW drives are great for backups, but they usually come with their own backup programs.
To restore a disk from a backup, open the Tools menu in the Backup utility and select Restore Wizard.

File Backups
The most common form of backup copies your files (photos, documents, videos, spreadsheets—also known as your data), but not your software or operating system, from your computer to another drive or some form of storage media. Your data is the hardest thing to re-create or replace if your computer is lost, stolen or destroyed, so it’s the most important thing to back up.

System Backups
A system backup backs up your operating system and installed software, as well as your files. File backups protect against accidental deletion or corruption of your files, but if your entire drive fails, you’ll need to reinstall the operating system and software before you can put your files back on the computer—unless you have a system backup.

Full vs. Partial Backups
A full backup backs up all your files. A partial backup, usually known as an incremental backup, backs up the files that have changed since the last time you performed any kind of backup. A differential backup backs up the files that have changed since your last full backup. Most backup software makes a full backup the first time you use it and incremental backups thereafter.

Drive Images
A drive image, also known as a "clone," or a "disk image," preserves a mirror image of your entire hard drive at a specific point in time in a single file. Drive images make restoring your computer after a drive failure very fast, but they often take hours to make. Drive imaging software also uses proprietary formats, which can make restoration harder.

Continuous Data Protection
Rather than making a backup of all your data at once on a set schedule, a continuous data protection (CDP) system backs up your files as they change. This may slow the system down a bit, but never takes it offline entirely. CDP also preserves the greatest amount of data in the event of a system failure, because there is the shortest delay between backups.

Onsite vs. Offsite
A backup that you keep onsite, that is, in the same location as the computer you’re backing up, is the quickest one to restore in the event of data loss. Unfortunately, it’s also vulnerable to many problems that might affect the computer you’re backing up, such as theft, fire or natural disasters. That’s why it’s good to have a second backup stored offsite. Individuals store offsite backups with friends or in safe-deposit boxes; enterprises hire third-party services that specialize in secure records storage. Offsite backups may be at risk of theft while in transit to their storage location, so it’s a good idea to encrypt them.

Online vs. Offline
Backing up your files online (over the Internet) gets them offsite and out of your home and office, but in most cases online backup is only feasible for your most important files, due to monthly bandwidth caps and restrictions that ISPs impose on upload speeds. Offline backup can refer to backups stored either onsite or offsite.

SyncBack is a freeware program that helps you easily backup and synchronize your files to: the same drive; a different drive or medium (CDRW, CompactFlash, etc); an FTP server; a Network; or a Zip archive.

SyncBack is a freeware file backup & synchronization program that can be used with hard drives, rewritable CD’s & DVD’s (formatted with UDF), removable media (e.g. Compact Flash), FTP servers, ZIP archives, and network shares. It’s easy to use, but includes many options for the power user. SyncBack is a software that backups and synchronizes all your files and folders.

Main features of SyncBack:
· Copy open/locked files (XP/2003/Vista)
· Fast Backup feature that greatly reduces backup time, especially over networks
· Smart Synchronization
· Zip compression that has no limit on the number and size of files
· WinZip compatible 256-bit AES encryption
· FTP engine that supports the latest FTP features, e.g. MODE Z compression and SSL/TLS encryption
· Complete control over which files and folders to backup
· Fully Unicode so it can copy files with filenames in any language
· New: Option to ignore file date and time changes due to DST (enabled by default).
· Fixed: Installer sets SyncBack installation folder permissions so files can be created and delete there, e.g. log files.

Free Download SyncBack Now

EASEUS Todo Backup 1.0 is a freeware. You can use this freeware to backup the system or important data to a safe place. With it you can create mirror image, clone disk, upgrade small disk to bigger one. You can also backup your data into hard drive or CD/DVD.

EASEUS Todo Backup 1.0 is an award-winning and Free backup and restore solution for a good reason: with detailed instruction wizards, your computer will be in a safe condition within minutes without the help of an IT specialist to backup your system state, partition and disk. And this program is totally free to use!

EASEUS Todo Backup 1.0 can backup your system partition to quickly get the system up and running in the event of a system crash or hardware failure. It allows you to backup and restore disk or partition after viruses attack, unstable software download, hard drive failure, etc. Meanwhile, EASEUS Todo Backup is useful if you want to upgrade the older smaller hard disk without reinstalling the operating system and applications once again.

Main features of EASEUS Todo Backup 1.0:
* Backup system: backup the entire system partition, including the system state and all files to an image file.
* Backup disk: backup the whole disk including operating system, all data to an image file.
* Restore image: restore all the previous backed up disk and system image in a few minutes.
* Bootable CD/DVD: restore system and disk with bootable CD/DVD when there is a boot failure.
* Clone disk：clone disk to backup or upgrade to a newer or larger one without reinstalling operating system.
* Check image file to ensure successful Restoration.
* Mount backup image files as virtual drives. you can free download EASEUS Todo Backup 1.0 now.

Free Download EASEUS Todo Backup Now

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