http://www.tgrmn.com/ offers ViceVersa which is very powerful and once
you've set up the backup, it runs scheduled by Windows or just by
double-clicking a shortcut on your desktop. It may run all the time, I
don't use that mode if it exists.
I've used it for ten years and it's been wonderful.
The pro version has some advantages (multiple compares).
I also suggest STRONGLY that you do not delete files from the backup,
but do over-write updates. 99% of the use of my backup is to recover a
file I accidentally deleted.
If you want something that you can re-create the PC from, Windows 7's
own backup is pretty good. I've used Norton Ghost for that purpose (but
not day-to-day backups) for a long time and have rebuilt two machines
from these images--maybe three. It was funny to have my old laptop
travel back to about 2005 when I replaced the HD in 2010.
VV does not allow creating the bootable system, Ghost is not robust or
easy to use for file-by-file backup.
With VV, the backup is a full copy of the directory structure,
immediately browsable.
I like the combination as I protect the basic machine configuration with
Ghost and I protect the data files with VV.
Cheers,
Richard
On 2011-10-09 6:56 AM, Tom Fine wrote:
> Seeking recommendations for favorite backup program. This is for a
> relative, they just want to "keep my hard drive backed up on a USB
> drive so if my computer dies I won't lose all my files." No need for
> keeping previous copies of stuff, no need for anything complex. What
> they are seeking is something as simple as possible, that hopefully
> works in the background, and that keeps the backup drive up to dates,
> maybe copying updated files before each shutdown. They envision one
> long session where the backup is established, but moving forward it
> would just be a matter of overwriting the few updated files and
> erasing what had been deleted off the main PC. Basically something
> that never bothers the user but keeps the two drives sync'd like a
> RAID. Is any such thing made for the Windows world? Something
> butt-simple and bulletproof? If so, please do tell and THANKS in advance!
>
> -- Tom Fine
--
Richard L. Hess email: [log in to unmask]
Aurora, Ontario, Canada (905) 713 6733 1-877-TAPE-FIX
http://www.richardhess.com/tape/contact.htm
Quality tape transfers -- even from hard-to-play tapes.
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