Network Backups for Windows PC

piggy_rambo · Sep 20, 2017

I'm wondering if anyone knows a good way that I can get my Windows PC to backup once a week to my NAS server however I've changed my windows installation so that the Documents, Downloads, Desktop, page file and the rest are on my second drive since I'm using a 180GB SSD. I've heard that since I've changed all this the Windows backup utility's can sometimes fail to restore it properly as they get confused, my second issue is that I cannot do a full system image as I have my 180GB SSD and 2 2TB SSHDs in my system while my NAS Server is only 500GB. So if anyone has a solution to this please help me ASAP because I really dont want to buy a 4TB HDD just to backup my PC.

Solandri · Sep 20, 2017

piggy_rambo :

I've found Windows' built-in backup utility to be extremely unreliable, especially as the amount of data you're trying to backup increases.

I would suggest ditching it and using Macrium Reflect, EaseUS ToDo Backup, or Paragon Backup and Recovery. All come in free versions which allow scheduling and custom selection of which folders and files are backed up. They all support either incremental or differential backups. These will backup only changes, instead of backing up everything again every time you run it, greatly reducing runtime and required storage space.

Differential backs up changes from the previous full backup. To restore everything requires the full backup and one differential backup. So you can lose some of the intermediate backups without losing data. The drawback is it takes more time and space.

Incremental is slightly better. It backs up only changes from the previous backup - full or incremental. The drawback is that it needs the full and every intermediate backup to restore everything. If one of the incremental backup files becomes corrupted, you will lose any new files added or changes to old files contained in that backup.

my second issue is that I cannot do a full system image as I have my 180GB SSD and 2 2TB SSHDs in my system while my NAS Server is only 500GB. So if anyone has a solution to this please help me ASAP because I really dont want to buy a 4TB HDD just to backup my PC.

There's no way to avoid that. Backups can be compressed, but typically only by 10%-30%. You cannot backup ~2 TB of data to a 500GB drive. You have to buy a bigger HDD for your NAS.

I'd recommend the backup drive be at least 1.5x to 2x bigger than the amount of data you're trying to backup. To allow space for incremental/differential backups, and for future growth in the amount of data you have.

piggy_rambo · Sep 24, 2017

Solandri :

piggy_rambo :

I've found Windows' built-in backup utility to be extremely unreliable, especially as the amount of data you're trying to backup increases.

I would suggest ditching it and using Macrium Reflect, EaseUS ToDo Backup, or Paragon Backup and Recovery. All come in free versions which allow scheduling and custom selection of which folders and files are backed up. They all support either incremental or differential backups. These will backup only changes, instead of backing up everything again every time you run it, greatly reducing runtime and required storage space.

Differential backs up changes from the previous full backup. To restore everything requires the full backup and one differential backup. So you can lose some of the intermediate backups without losing data. The drawback is it takes more time and space.

Incremental is slightly better. It backs up only changes from the previous backup - full or incremental. The drawback is that it needs the full and every intermediate backup to restore everything. If one of the incremental backup files becomes corrupted, you will lose any new files added or changes to old files contained in that backup.

my second issue is that I cannot do a full system image as I have my 180GB SSD and 2 2TB SSHDs in my system while my NAS Server is only 500GB. So if anyone has a solution to this please help me ASAP because I really dont want to buy a 4TB HDD just to backup my PC.

There's no way to avoid that. Backups can be compressed, but typically only by 10%-30%. You cannot backup ~2 TB of data to a 500GB drive. You have to buy a bigger HDD for your NAS.

I'd recommend the backup drive be at least 1.5x to 2x bigger than the amount of data you're trying to backup. To allow space for incremental/differential backups, and for future growth in the amount of data you have.

Ok thanks, I'll get a bigger hard drive for my NAS and have a look at the software you have mentioned.

USAFRet · Sep 24, 2017

piggy_rambo :

Read the first post here for my current procedure:
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-3383768/backup-situation-home.html

And yes, you need more NAS space.

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