# Good Vista/Win 7 Backup Software?



## wilbur_the_goose (Aug 16, 2006)

What do you like?

I've been using MS One Care Live, but that software is toast, so I need something new. Suggestions?


----------



## LarryFlowers (Sep 22, 2006)

Acronos True Image Home 2009... available between $35-40... Amazon NewEgg, etc...


----------



## Michael D'Angelo (Oct 21, 2006)

I am using Windows Home Server software with an HP MediaSmart Home Server and it works great. It backs up my four PC's with Vista every night. I have not had a problem yet. I have not installed Windows 7 yet to test it but I don't see it having a problem. I believe the software works with up to 10 PC's. 

If you have an old PC to run it on you can try a 120 day trial free on Microsoft's site.


----------



## dave29 (Feb 18, 2007)

Michael D'Angelo;2100956 said:


> I am using Windows Home Server software with an HP MediaSmart Home Server and it works great. It backs up my four PC's with Vista every night. I have not had a problem yet. I have not installed Windows 7 yet to test it but I don't see it having a problem. I believe the software works with up to 10 PC's.
> 
> If you have an old PC to run it on you can try a 120 day trial free on Microsoft's site.


Agreed, WHS is awesome. It does work with W7 as well.


----------



## BattleZone (Nov 13, 2007)

WHS is absolutely the easiest backup solution yet made. 100% automated, very reliable, and easy to use.

One of my PCs had a drive fail. Dropped in a new drive and the WHS restore CD. Booted from the CD, logged into the server, picked the latest backup for that machine (the day before), and 45 minutes later, the PC was back in service exactly like before. Doesn't get much easier.


----------



## harsh (Jun 15, 2003)

I personally don't like the idea of backing up my data on another computer that may just as well fail. Even the most redundantly RAIDed machine can have a hardware failure and you can't always find a suitably identical replacement motherboard and/or RAID controller anymore (I've been bitten by this twice).

I like Acronis for doing image backups and Genie Backup Manager for doing backups to conventional media. I use image backups to do the basic OS installation and then automated incremental backups (with revision history) for the data. Genie can produce executable backup files which can be a real lifesaver.


----------



## Cholly (Mar 22, 2004)

I use Acronis True Image and backup to an external hard drive. Doing backups to an internal drive is self-defeating.


----------



## Marlin Guy (Apr 8, 2009)

I only backup data, as the OS and programs can be reinstalled easily enough.
Acronis works well, as does the software that ships with most external drives like Maxtor's one touch series.

There are also some free apps available from Cnet's download.com.
I used Syncback for someone the other day and it works well.


----------



## BattleZone (Nov 13, 2007)

I back up my WHS to an external drive once a month or so, so I have no issues relying on it to work. That wasn't an original feature of WHS, but it was one of the top request, and MS delivered it in an update a few months back.


----------



## Stuart Sweet (Jun 19, 2006)

Actually Windows Backup, the one that comes with it, isn't that bad either. I have been using it since my two prior choices, Norton Ghost and EMC Retrospect, aren't compatible with 64-bit Vista.


----------



## CorkyMuldoon (Oct 6, 2006)

Cholly said:


> I use Acronis True Image and backup to an external hard drive. Doing backups to an internal drive is self-defeating.


Same here. Acronis has saved my tail a couple of times.


----------



## harsh (Jun 15, 2003)

Stuart Sweet said:


> Actually Windows Backup, the one that comes with it, isn't that bad either. I have been using it since my two prior choices, Norton Ghost and EMC Retrospect, aren't compatible with 64-bit Vista.


The fatal flaw with Windows Backup is that it doesn't seem to be able to verify the backup. I was having some problems with a RAID setup and the backup contained a number of errors that the software didn't warn about. Microsoft's solution is to use enhanced error logging but unless I miss my guess, that doesn't check the accuracy of the backup.

Regardless of the media used, I always do at least a checksum verify.


----------



## Stuart Sweet (Jun 19, 2006)

Perhaps. On the other hand, I've had so-called verified backups fail when I go to restore from them as well. At work I've got four completely different backup scenarios just so I can feel confident that one of them will work when I need it.


----------



## wilbur_the_goose (Aug 16, 2006)

Isn't Windows Backup only included with the Business editions of Vista?


----------



## Stuart Sweet (Jun 19, 2006)

I have it on my laptop which came with Home Premium.


----------



## LarryFlowers (Sep 22, 2006)

Acronis seems to be functioning fine with Windows 7 32 bit, but 64 bit has issues. I applied today to beta test the new version of this software, we will see what happens.

Larry


----------



## Hansen (Jan 1, 2006)

Here's another vote for MS Windows Home Server. It does a great job of backing up all computers on your network automatically each night and does it very efficiently by storing incremental backups after the initial backup is stored. I've had the opportunity to have to restore a backup'd image after replacing a harddrive in a laptop and it couldn't have been easier. Just plug the computer into your network, put the WHS Client Backup Restore disk in your drive, and away it goes automatically. So simple and automated.


----------

