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  1. Member lordhutt's Avatar
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    I am looking for software for backing up a folder that will constantly be changing for awhile. Currently about 50gig but will probably be closer to 100gig when I am done.

    I don't want my data compressed...just an exact copy of the the folder on another hard drive. Once the files are tagged and named properly they never change but as new ones are added they will be moved/altered. I want the program to be able to be scheduled for automatic backups and the ability to just do it immediately if I had made a lot of changes.
    However the backup is made I just want an exact mirror of the source folder.

    When I first started doing this I was just manually copying and moving the files with Windows Explorer.
    Then I tried Nero's Backitup software and it crashed in the verify process twice (in different places) so I am giving up on it.
    There seems to be a shitload of programs out there for this and was wondering what you may have used and what is the better software.

    I am not really sure if I understand the difference between differential/incremental...I just want an exact copy of my files.

    Thanks.
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  2. Member
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    Cobian Backup version 8

    http://www.educ.umu.se/~cobian/cobianbackup.htm

    Never used it, but it has a good reputation and it's free!
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  3. All you want to do is sync two folders. The easiest, as reliable as Windows solution is Xcopy. Don't overlook the power of the command line. Here's all you need to know:

    http://www.ss64.com/nt/xcopy.html

    Write a batch file in notepad save it to your desktop, then double click it to do a backup. Copy it to the startup folder and it will automatically do a backup when you start your PC.
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  4. Member lordhutt's Avatar
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    I'll check out the Cobian...thanks.

    Thanks for the suggestion nic2k4, but that looks to much like work...and I have never written a batch file.

    Any other suggestions?
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  5. Member
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    Give Karen's Replicator a look over at karenware.com. Not open source, but also free (requires Visual Basic Runtime 6).
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  6. VH Veteran jimmalenko's Avatar
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    Originally Posted by nic2k4
    All you want to do is sync two folders. The easiest, as reliable as Windows solution is Xcopy. Don't overlook the power of the command line. Here's all you need to know:

    http://www.ss64.com/nt/xcopy.html

    Write a batch file in notepad save it to your desktop, then double click it to do a backup. Copy it to the startup folder and it will automatically do a backup when you start your PC.
    yep, either that or Robocopy (Win Server 2K3 resource Toolkit).

    It takes a little bit of knowhow to create your batch file but once you get it right it's set and forget.
    If in doubt, Google it.
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  7. Member p_l's Avatar
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    I use SyncToy. Free, easy, quick, reliable and has several incremental/differential options.
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  8. SO what happens to the backup once its been copied over? is it just overwritten? or is it actually backed up to external media. google "granfather father son backup" A backup, held on the same computer, held even on the same hard disk, isnt really much of a backup at all?
    Corned beef is now made to a higher standard than at any time in history.
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  9. Member p_l's Avatar
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    SyncToy is a free PowerToy designed by Microsoft that provides an easy to use graphical user interface that can automate synchronizing files and folders. It is written using Microsoft's .NET framework.

    SyncToy can manage multiple sets of folders at the same time; it can combine files from two folders in one case, and mimic renames and deletes in another. SyncToy can keep track of renames to files and will make sure those changes get carried over to the synchronized folder.


    Features
    Users initially need to create a “folder pair” that represents the two folders ("left" and "right" folders) to be compared and synchronized. These folders can be on the local drive, on an external device such as a flash drive or camera, or on a network share from another computer. SyncToy supports UNC paths. It provides a Browse option to find the folder or network share, or users can type it in directly. SyncToy offers two safeguards to ensure that user do not lose files permenantly in case they are deemed unnecessary during a sync. First, users can preview what is going to happen when the sync takes place, without actually changing anything; second, any deleted files are moved to the Recycle Bin.

    SyncToy defines five different types of operations to synchronize two folders: Synchronize, Echo, Subscribe, Contribute, and Combine. A Synchronize operation takes the two folders and makes sure they have the exact same files. To do this, SyncToy may copy files in either direction and may delete or rename files in either folder. The Echo operation looks for changes (new files, renames, deletes) in the left folder and makes them in the right folder (one-way sync). A Contribute option is like an Echo, but it does not delete any files on the right folder that may have been deleted on the left folder. With Subscribe, the two folders are examined to see what files they have in common. If either the left or right side has updated these common files, only those files are synchronized. Any of the other files in the folders are untouched. Finally, the Combine operation just copies new files in both directions, without deleting anything. SyncToy doesn’t consider a renamed file to be new, so it is possible to have the same file under different names on the left and right folder after they have been combined.

    SyncToy. (2007, May 19). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 06:42, May 21, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=SyncToy&oldid=132084618
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