Nightly full OS backups.

[RS2007GOD]

Is it possible to have one dedicated drive in a system to perform a full OS and data backup of an ssd automatically every night?

How would i got about doing somthing like this?

 

Ssd is a 120gb and backup is a 1tb hhd.

[Lehti]

You can use a backup solution that takes advantage of Windows' Shadow Copy service, like EaseUS ToDo Backup. I would advise against the practice of backing up live operating system, because they're generally a waste of space. Instead, you should consider doing one system backup right after a Windows and applications reinstall, so that you save time by reverting to that image instead of having to reinstall everything from the ground-up.

[RS2007GOD]

7 minutes ago, Lehti said:

You can use a backup solution that takes advantage of Windows' Shadow Copy service, like EaseUS ToDo Backup. I would advise against the practice of backing up live operating system, because they're generally a waste of space. Instead, you should consider doing one system backup right after a Windows and applications reinstall, so that you save time by reverting to that image instead of having to reinstall everything from the ground-up.

The problem im having is the windows os on the ssd seems to spntaneously corrupt inself during updates and fails to repair forcing me to manual remove the files i want to keep with another pc then reinstall os from scratch. I figured having a nightly backup if the ssd fails to boot i can boot of the second drive instead then easily format and migrate back onto the ssd. 

[Lehti]

That's not how operating system backups work. You're still supposed to restore your system after a failed update.

[RS2007GOD]

1 minute ago, Lehti said:

That's not how operating system backups work. You're still supposed to restore your system after a failed update.

So its not possible then?

[Lehti]

No, unfortunately. Not only that, but you can't simply boot from whatever drive you want: your bootloader (either Windows' or, if you run any type of Linux OS, GRUB) needs to have an entry for it, otherwise that operating system simply doesn't exist, as far as your computer is concerned.

The high likelihood of updates that break your install may be a symptom of a failing SSD. Have you tried checking its SMART status?

[RS2007GOD]

3 minutes ago, Lehti said:

No, unfortunately. Not only that, but you can't simply boot from whatever drive you want: your bootloader (either Windows' or, if you run any type of Linux OS, GRUB) needs to have an entry for it, otherwise that operating system simply doesn't exist, as far as your computer is concerned.

The high likelihood of updates that break your install may be a symptom of a failing SSD. Have you tried checking its SMART status?

Alright an no i havnt check smart but i assume its the ssd getting tired. Its not every time, its say once ever couple of months it happens. How would i go about doing what you mentioned earlier and what would i loose/keep when it comes to actual data emails, receipts, photos etc

[Lehti]

EaseUS allows you to do full system backups, meaning you'll only lose the things that changed since your last backup. Since you want to run the backup every night, you'll lose at most 24 hours worth of documents.

If you're really paranoid about your data, you can set up hourly backups, possibly incremental instead of full. I usually can't be bothered with running backups this often, so I just do an incremental document backup every week and a full one every six months.

I would advise you against backing up to a drive on the same physical machine: if anything goes very wrong, like a thunderstorm frying your computer, you're at risk of having both drives destroyed. A better idea is to backup to a different computer to your home network, preferably using Ethernet. If this is out of the question, an external drive will do.

[RS2007GOD]

2 minutes ago, Lehti said:

EaseUS allows you to do full system backups, meaning you'll only lose the things that changed since your last backup. Since you want to run the backup every night, you'll lose at most 24 hours worth of documents.

If you're really paranoid about your data, you can set up hourly backups, possibly incremental instead of full. I usually can't be bothered with running backups this often, so I just do an incremental document backup every week and a full one every six months.

I would advise you against backing up to a drive on the same physical machine: if anything goes very wrong, like a thunderstorm frying your computer, you're at risk of having both drives destroyed. A better idea is to backup to a different computer to your home network, preferably using Ethernet. If this is out of the question, an external drive will do.

Alright so using the EaseUS tool how do you go about restoring after a failure? Also is this a set and forget feature? 

[Lehti]

Just now, RS2007GOD said:

Alright so using the EaseUS tool how do you go about restoring after a failure? Also is this a set and forget feature? 

You need to create a recovery disk (it's Windows PE-based, so it's fully compatible) and boot your computer from it, then follow the procedure to restore to a previous backup.

It is a set and forget feature if you click on "Schedule backup" when you create your backup task. You can't miss it, it's the option with an arrow.

[Mark77]

"Acronis Workstation Backup" can do nightly backups, of the entire system, to another HDD, a network share, ftp site, etc. 

 

http://www.acronis.com/en-us/business/backup-advanced/workstation/

[Lehti]

1 minute ago, Mark77 said:

"Acronis Workstation Backup" can do nightly backups, of the entire system, to another HDD, a network share, ftp site, etc. 

That one is paid software, though.

[Mark77]

Yeah well programmers don't work for free after all.

[RS2007GOD]

2 minutes ago, Lehti said:

You need to create a recovery disk (it's Windows PE-based, so it's fully compatible) and boot your computer from it, then follow the procedure to restore to a previous backup.

It is a set and forget feature if you click on "Schedule backup" when you create your backup task. You can't miss it, it's the option with an arrow.

So a recovery disk like USB flashdrive? 

 

3 minutes ago, Mark77 said:

"Acronis Workstation Backup" can do nightly backups, of the entire system, to another HDD, a network share, ftp site, etc. 

 

http://www.acronis.com/en-us/business/backup-advanced/workstation/

Does this include a bootloader to boot from the hdd or still need a recovery disk?

[Mark77]

Basically you use an ISO or DVD/USB stick, and it has enough of an OS (some stripped down Linux) to get you into their restoration software, mount an image from a remote network server or a local disk, and restore accordingly. 

 

It works quite well, though you'd probably want to experiment if you have a weird disk configuration, RAID controller or software RAID, etc. 

[Lehti]

Just now, RS2007GOD said:

So a recovery disk like USB flashdrive? 

 

Does this include a bootloader to boot from the hdd or still need a recovery disk?

1) Yes, or a CD/DVD.

2) No backup solution "includes" a bootloader: they're installed to your hard drive by operating system to allow the loading of operating systems.

[RS2007GOD]

 

2 minutes ago, Lehti said:

1) Yes, or a CD/DVD.

2) No backup solution "includes" a bootloader: they're installed to your hard drive by operating system to allow the loading of operating systems.

 

2 minutes ago, Mark77 said:

Basically you use an ISO or DVD/USB stick, and it has enough of an OS (some stripped down Linux) to get you into their restoration software, mount an image from a remote network server or a local disk, and restore accordingly. 

 

It works quite well, though you'd probably want to experiment if you have a weird disk configuration, RAID controller or software RAID, etc. 

Awesome seems pretty easily done. Thanks a bunch for the info.