[July 2024] A Comprehensive Guide to Backing Up Your Computer (Windows and Mac)

I. What is Backup and Types of Backup Backup refers to creating a copy of data to ensure its safety and recoverability in case of loss, damage, or threat. It is a crucial measure to prevent data loss due to unforeseen circumstances. Depending on different needs and strategies, backups can be categorized into various types. Here are some common backup types: 1. Full Backup: This is the most basic type, involving backing up all selected files, applications, and system data. It contains all the data, resulting in faster recovery times but requires more storage space. 2. Incremental Backup: After a full backup, an incremental backup only backs up files that have changed since the last backup. This conserves storage space, but restoring data may require multiple incremental backups and the latest full backup. 3. Differential Backup: Similar to incremental backup, differential backup records files modified since the last full backup. However, it backs up all changed files, not just those altered since the last incremental backup. This makes the recovery process quicker than incremental backup but consumes more storage space. 4. Point-in-Time Backup: This backup type creates a snapshot of data at a specific point in time, typically used for databases or frequently updated data. Even if changes occur after the backup, the data can be restored to its state at the time of backup. 5. Continuous Data Protection (CDP): Unlike scheduled backups, CDP captures data changes in real-time. This allows recovery at any point in time, but it necessitates high-performance hardware and software support. 6. Offsite Backup: To protect against catastrophic events like fires, floods, or natural disasters that could compromise local backups, offsite backup replicates data to a remote location. Nowadays, cloud storage services are commonly used as a solution for offsite backup. Understanding these backup types can help you choose the most suitable data protection strategy to ensure efficient and timely data recovery when needed.

The "backing up" mentioned here mainly refers to creating backups of computer files.

Every data protection website stresses the importance of backups. Yet, despite knowing that we should create backups to protect our data and important files, anyone can get confused about which backup method is best and most secure. So, let's start from the beginning. Before creating a backup, we first need to understand what a backup is and the types of backups available.

What is a backup? Generally, a backup refers to a copy of data that can be used to restore the original data in case of data loss. The purpose of creating a backup is to protect important files from being lost due to hardware failures, software corruption, accidental deletion, or other unforeseen disasters.

There are three main types of backups: Full Backup, Incremental Backup, and Differential Backup. Let's delve into each one. 1. **Full Backup**: A full backup involves backing up all selected data and files without any exclusions. This method provides the most comprehensive data recovery option since you can restore the entire system or dataset. However, it typically requires the longest backup time and the most storage space. 2. **Incremental Backup**: An incremental backup only backs up the data that has changed since the last backup. So, the first backup is a full one, and subsequent backups contain files modified or added since the previous backup. This approach saves time and storage but may necessitate multiple incremental backups for data recovery, as they are interdependent. 3. **Differential Backup**: Similar to incremental backup, a differential backup stores all data that has changed since the last full backup. This means each differential backup will include all files altered since the last full backup. Recovery is generally faster than with incremental backups because you would need just the last full backup and the last differential backup. The choice of backup type depends on your needs, such as backup frequency, available storage, recovery speed, and tolerance for data loss. In practice, many businesses combine these three strategies for optimal data protection.

1) Full Backup: A full backup copies all files within the selected folder/directory to a specified location. Because full backups require more time and storage space, they are typically less frequent than other types of backups. If you have a large amount of data to back up, you might consider using an external hard drive or other portable storage device.

2) Incremental backup: An incremental backup copies only the files that have been modified since the last backup (either full or incremental). Incremental backups are usually more frequent than full backups and take less time and storage space.

3) Differential Backup: A differential backup copies only the files that have been modified since the last full backup. Differential backups are usually performed less frequently than incremental ones but more often than full backups. They take longer than incremental backups but occupy less storage space.

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II. Smart Schemes: The Best Strategies for Backing Up

There is no one-size-fits-all solution to computer backups, and the best strategy depends on your data, how often it changes, and how much loss you can tolerate.

When creating a backup plan, consider the following:

- How much data do you have? - How frequently does this data change? - What type of data is it? (e.g., documents, photos, music, etc.) - How much data loss can you afford? - What is the likelihood of data loss? (e.g., hardware failure, software corruption, accidental deletion, etc.) - What is the cost of data recovery?

The answers to these questions will determine how often you back up and what kind of backups you use.

For example, if you have large amounts of data that change frequently, you might want to consider an incremental backup strategy. This means that you back up your data at regular intervals (say, daily or weekly) and copy only the files that have been modified since the last backup. This can be a good choice when you have limited storage space and/or tight backup windows.

On the other hand, if you have a small amount of data that doesn't change frequently, you might want to consider using a full backup strategy. This means backing up all your data at once (for example, monthly or yearly) and copying all files to a designated location. This is a good option if you have enough storage space and/or time for backups.

Regardless of which backup strategy you choose, it's vital to test your backups regularly to ensure they're working. This can be done by restoring some files from the backup and comparing them with the originals. If there are any differences, you'll know that your backup isn't working correctly, and you'll need to troubleshoot the issue.

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III. How to Backup Your Windows Computer – Backup Options

With the basics of backups out of the way, it's time to learn how to back up your computer on Windows. When we say "back up your computer," that's actually a vague description because there are several parts to the data on your computer you might want to back up. For example, you might want to back up important files on your computer that are stored in folders or on drives. Or, you might want to back up your system drive so you can restore your system if your computer won't boot or becomes severely damaged. This section will explain how to go about backing up different parts of your computer and where to store your backups.

Backup Options You Need to Know About

When creating a backup, choosing the right save location and backup format is crucial. Typically, there are three backup options to cater to different data protection needs: backing up to an external hard drive, creating a disk image backup, and backing up to a cloud service.

External hard drive: Choosing the right location to store your backup files is crucial. The best place for keeping backups is an external hard drive, as it's safe, user-friendly, and can accommodate large amounts of data. With an external HDD, you can copy and paste specific files, save backup images, or clone disks or partitions onto it.

A disk image is an exact copy of a disk or partition. Disk images are often used for backup purposes. It is recommended to create a system disk image on an external hard drive in case your computer becomes unbootable.

Backing up files to a cloud service is a growing trend. Compared to traditional backup locations, the cloud offers advantages in terms of universal access and scalability. If you think you'll need to check on and access your backup files from time to time, using a cloud drive service is a good option.

4. Back up entire computer | Includes all backup options

• Step 1: Back Up Your Computer to an External Hard Drive
• Step 2: Create a Disk Image Backup of Your Computer
• Step 3: Back Up Your Computer to the Cloud

#1. How to Back Up Your Computer to an External Hard Drive

As mentioned above, an external hard drive is the best backup destination. It offers large storage space, fast data transfer speed, and portability. Besides, with an external hard drive, you can manually copy important data or set the drive as the target location for backup software.

Manually back up files and folders:

This is the easiest way to back up your computer's data to an external hard drive.

Step 1. Connect the external backup drive to your computer. (If it's a new drive, you might need to initialize it first.)

Step 2: Copy and paste the files you want to back up to the external hard drive.

b) Set a drive as the backup location:

When backing up your computer to another PC using built-in Windows backup tools (File History or Backup and Restore) or third-party backup software, you're prompted to choose a backup drive during the setup process. Here's how to set an external hard drive as your backup location.

Set file history:

Step 1: Click on “Control Panel” > “System and Security” > “File History.”

Step 2. Connect the external hard drive to your computer.

Step 3: Click on “Select Drive” on the left and then choose the connected hard drive as the backup destination.

Select the backup drive in File History

Configuring a third-party backup software:

If you use third-party backup software, you might have the option to save your backups to multiple locations. Here, we'll show you how to back up your computer to an external hard drive using the Todo Backup tool as an example. Download the free backup software and follow along with the guide.

Step 1: Tap on "Select Backup Content" to start the backup process.

Step 2: There are four backup types: Files, Disks, System, and Mail. Click on Files.

Step 3: Your local and network files will be displayed on the left. Expand the folders to select the files you want to back up.

Step 4. Choose where you want to save your backup as indicated on the screen.

Click “Options,” and under “Backup Options,” set a password to encrypt the backup, and under “Backup Schedule,” set the schedule for your backups and choose to start a backup at a specific event. There are many other customizable options you can choose from during the backup process.

You can save the backup to your local disk, the tool's online service, or a NAS.

Step 6: Todo Backup allows customers to back up data to third-party cloud drives and their own cloud drives.

If you want to back up to a third-party cloud service, choose “Local Disk,” scroll down, add your cloud device, enter your account details, and sign in.

You can also save the backup to the tool's cloud storage service. Tap Tool Cloud, sign up for a tool account, and log in.

Step 7. Click “Backup Now” to start the backup. When it's done, it will appear as a card in the left pane. Right-click it for more management options.