USB HDD as a backup

If you touch your software enough does it become hardware?

Moderator: Forum Moderators

Post Reply
Dog Pants
Site Moderator
Site Moderator
Posts: 21653
Joined: April 29th, 2005, 13:39
Location: Surrey, UK
Contact:

USB HDD as a backup

Post by Dog Pants »

This may be an easy as hell task, or it might be a right ballache. I don't know, so I'm asking you chaps.

Can I back up my My Documents and/or other valuable folders to my USB drive from my desktop and laptop so that they're effectively the same folder? Sort of like the synchronise function you have on laptops. This not only gives me the safeguard of having my important stuff saved in triplicate, but also means I'll have access to my folder wherever I happen to be.

So, any suggestions?

Have a nice picture in advance:

Image
Dr. kitteny berk
Morbo
Morbo
Posts: 19676
Joined: December 10th, 2004, 21:53
Contact:

Post by Dr. kitteny berk »

http://www.5punk.co.uk/wiki/index.php?t ... sonal_data might be a good place to start.

https://www.foldershare.com/ may also be worth a look.
Dog Pants
Site Moderator
Site Moderator
Posts: 21653
Joined: April 29th, 2005, 13:39
Location: Surrey, UK
Contact:

Post by Dog Pants »

Good start. I do have My Documents on a seperate partition (I would use a seperate drive if I had one), and I occassionally (ie, when I'm likely to break something) back up to DVD. I do keep copies of infrequently changed stuff on both my desktop and USB drive, but you can bet that I get a failure right before I planned on doing a backup.

The online stuff might have been useful if I didn't have a shite connection, and my laptop is usually offline because I only really use it when I'm away from home.
FatherJack
Site Owner
Site Owner
Posts: 9597
Joined: May 16th, 2005, 15:31
Location: Coventry, UK
Contact:

Post by FatherJack »

Haven't looked into foldershare, but the best method is one that makes a copy to the USB drive and keeps it in sync, rather than using the USB drive to store your "live" data.

USB drives can fail, but more common is the situation where you power up without it plugged in, Windows can't see the files and resets everything to some arbitrary location.
Dr. kitteny berk
Morbo
Morbo
Posts: 19676
Joined: December 10th, 2004, 21:53
Contact:

Post by Dr. kitteny berk »

FatherJack wrote:Haven't looked into foldershare, but the best method is one that makes a copy to the USB drive and keeps it in sync, rather than using the USB drive to store your "live" data.
:above:

I'd try to get both machines to sync, then leave the USB drive plugged into one (or plug it in every so often) and run a backup to it.


edit: fuck me, 12000. :)
Dog Pants
Site Moderator
Site Moderator
Posts: 21653
Joined: April 29th, 2005, 13:39
Location: Surrey, UK
Contact:

Post by Dog Pants »

Well at least my question as to whether it would be easy has been answered. Weekly backup sounds like a good idea, along with the virus scan I forgot to reschedule after the rebuild. Stil doesn't give me the crossover with the laptop, but that's not really important, just convenient.

Course now NT backup will bugger up as soon as Windows decides to change the drive designation again.
cheeseandham
Shambler In Drag
Shambler In Drag
Posts: 780
Joined: March 16th, 2007, 20:22
Location: on the sofa
Contact:

Post by cheeseandham »

Maybe map a docs folder to a share and then use Offline files and folders?
Might be horrible, but just a thought.
Dog Pants
Site Moderator
Site Moderator
Posts: 21653
Joined: April 29th, 2005, 13:39
Location: Surrey, UK
Contact:

Post by Dog Pants »

That was roughly what I was thinking, I just don't know how it'd work with a drive rather than a server/workstation.
deject
Berk
Berk
Posts: 10353
Joined: December 7th, 2004, 17:02
Location: Oklahoma City, OK, USA
Contact:

Post by deject »

Offline files is the bane of my existence. The way it is implemented in XP is pathetically shit and I wish pestilence and death on the hellspawn that coded it.
cheeseandham
Shambler In Drag
Shambler In Drag
Posts: 780
Joined: March 16th, 2007, 20:22
Location: on the sofa
Contact:

Post by cheeseandham »

While I agree with deject in principle, the situation is looking more favourable with Fista.
Post Reply