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tempnexusawa
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tempnexusawa

Anon

What backup software do you recommend for a Windows 7/8 machines?

I am looking into Acronis True Image 2014.
Home Use, doesn't have to be free. However, what are the benefits of free vs paid?
I am looking for reliability of recovery and backup. Since backup software fails if you can't restore the backups. i.e. I had an issue with Acronis 2008 where I could not restore the backup, it just kept saying that it was invalid...however the same happened to me with Norton Ghost 2005.

trparky
Premium Member
join:2000-05-24
Cleveland, OH

trparky

Premium Member

I'm using Acronis True Image 2014 right now. So far I've not had a problem with it.
HarryH3
Premium Member
join:2005-02-21

2 recommendations

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I use Macrium Reflect Pro at home and on customer PC's. I use Macrium Reflect Server on customer servers. Been using it for about 4 years now and it's never failed me. You can check out the free version at »www.macrium.com/reflectfree.aspx

The free version is limited in that it will only do full backups. The paid versions will do scheduled backups, differential or incremental backups, auto-delete old backups (based on criteria that you select), email you with results, etc. The Pro and Server versions include ReDeploy, which will let you restore a full backup to totally different hardware (like when you replace an old system with a new one). It is hands down the best backup software that I've ever used.

Ian1
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join:2002-06-18
ON

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Another vote for True Image Home 2014. Works fantastic for me.

I might have gone with some of the free options, but since I had a 2009 license, could upgrade for cheap.

Chubbzie
join:2014-02-11
Greenville, NC
Hitron CDA3
(Software) OpenBSD + pf

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I second the Macrium Reflect Pro recommendation. Incredible backup software with many interesting features and capabilities. Just like HarryH3 had mentioned, it has never failed me either. I'm also quite fond of its encryption/password protection capabilities.

Ken1943
join:2001-12-30
Brighton, CO

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Another one into the mix, Paragon Backup & Recovery Home. Dumped Acronis 2009 after problems. With Paragon, you have to delete partitions to restore, like it's a new disk. Don't know if the others can overwrite a drive.

The only thing is that with computers from Dell, Asus and the rest is the amount of partitions on the drive. On my new Asus laptop, I am going to image the whole drive because it has 5 ? partitions and what order to restore if I pick and chose.The image is about 20-to-30gigs on a 500gig drive.
.
Unlike my home built desktops which don't have all the "other" partitions.

trparky
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join:2000-05-24
Cleveland, OH
·AT&T U-Verse

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I did like Macrium at one time but I've found that Acronis does way more for me than Macrium did. Acronis does individual folder/file backup as well as full drive backups. I needed that individual folder/file backup part.

I keep specific folders backed up with Acronis on a nightly basis with a 62 day turnover. That way, if I screw something up... like I did two days ago in which I deleted something by accident I was able to recover it from the backup that was done the night before.

Gone Fishing
Premium Member
join:2001-06-29

2 edits

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said by tempnexusawa :

I am looking into Acronis True Image 2014.
...

DSLR: »Acronis True Image Upgrade (2014 Premium - $19.99)
85160670 (banned)
"If U know neither the enemy nor yoursel
join:2013-09-17
Edmonton, AB

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Yep .... I'm using Acronis True Image 2013 & two other older version for another machine NEVER let me down ..... so far so good !!!

morbo
Complete Your Transaction
join:2002-01-22
00000

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said by trparky:

Acronis does way more for me than Macrium did. Acronis does individual folder/file backup as well as full drive backups. I needed that individual folder/file backup part.

Macrium does this.

I use Macrium Pro.

jaykaykay
4 Ever Young
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join:2000-04-13
USA

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Unlike many have mentioned here, I use an off premises backup, Mozy, Mozy.com. I know it's not software, but it is still viable for back ups, IMO.

DownTheShore
Pray for Ukraine
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I put Macrium Reflect Pro on my Win 8.1.

NOYB
St. John 3.16
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join:2005-12-15
Forest Grove, OR

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Robocopy / xcopy / winzip (w/command line add on) to BitLocker encrypted external drives that are rotated off-site.
drivel
join:2013-07-12
Santa Clara, CA

1 recommendation

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Acronis True Image has lots of bad reviews on Amazon:

»www.amazon.com/Acronis-T ··· title_sw
Expand your moderator at work
85160670 (banned)
"If U know neither the enemy nor yoursel
join:2013-09-17
Edmonton, AB

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Re: What backup software do you recommend for a Windows 7/8 machines?

It is true, every software has some weakness & I show ATI too and they give me "Disk Direktor' for free In my experiences, "IF" something bad, people tell 100 other people, but "IF" someting good they tend just to tell own family {{{ SMILE }}}

WickedWinter
join:2003-08-02
USA

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The OP said they could not restore a backup. I assume they are talking about a drive image. I always clone my important hard drives to another hard drive, and then boot from the clone to verify it 100%. I currently use Acronis.

ZZZZZZZ
Premium Member
join:2001-05-27
PARADISE

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Tried Acronis True Image for a couple of years and finally dumped it when I found Paragon.........had had problems with TI,but Paragon is amazing.

I run a dual boot so it's just a matter of running the restore from the other OS.

Also have tried Easeus Todo but prefer Paragon.

HA Nut
Premium Member
join:2004-05-13
USA

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For images, I use free Clonezilla and paid Image for Windows/Image for Linux. Both rock solid. Never had a failed restore. They are a bit geeky though (especially Clonezilla's GUI (which isn't so bad after using it a time or 2.)).

For friends that want/need a more polished GUI, I recommend free Macrium Reflect. One caveat with Reflect is to build the Windows PE boot/restore CD, not Linux (just works soo much better with a variety of hardware.)

All 3 of my recommendations run just peachy using 64-bit Windows 8/8.1 (everything runs under 32-bit.) That means the recovery environments boot under UEFI with Secure Boot enabled. (There are still some image creation programs that won't.)

For individual file backups, I use either paid GoodSync or paid SyncBack Pro.

I use and rotate 3 portable hard drives for all this stuff. 1 is always off site.

dib22
join:2002-01-27
Kansas City, MO

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Another Macrium reflect recommend.

dandeman
MVM
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Chapel Hill, NC

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Another vote for Acronis True Image 2014.. Been a long term user of ATI on 4 machines at home...
doppler
join:2003-03-31
Blue Point, NY

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Clonezilla

TheJoker
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join:2001-04-26
Charlottesville, VA

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I've long been a user of Acronis. Currently using True Image 2014 Premium, I have 4 copies at home. I've never had a problem with it, and always do full image backups. I figure that if I have to restore, it's much simpler to restore a full image and not have to worry about incremental backups. I've found that restoring an image, particularly to an SSD, is MUCH faster than trying to figure out what happened through troubleshooting.
neteng
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join:2002-08-04
Overland Park, KS

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Decide what and why you are backing up? I'd recommend Backblaze for easy automated off-site file/data backup, and Macrium Reflect Pro for images/quick recovery. Sensitive files can be encrypted using AxCrypt at rest on your disk so backups do not store unencrypted versions.

ymhee_bcex
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join:2006-04-21
Tarzana, CA
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I've been using Areca for several years. Open source, allows full/incremental/differential, scheduling, scripting, etc.

Maybe my needs are too simple (no drive image, no OS backup - just data), but I had to restore a few times and never had a problem

bcool
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join:2000-08-25

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I've been on True Image for years. Version 9.x saved me a few times over the years without any problem. Accepting its quirkiness is perhaps akin to some dysfunctional relationships. It was hard for me to leave Ghost behind, but once I couldn't deal with Norton Ghost anymore, I went to TI and never looked back. Now that it's time to leave Windows XP behind, I opted to upgrade to Acronis True Image 2014. Some things have really been beefed up, dare I say, improved and yet some weirdness lingers. So far it performed its first vital task for me which was to clone a brand new hard drive I just bought with the existing Windows 7 systemdrive that I was replacing. TI2014 did this and adjusted the final C: partition proportionally without incident. Now when I'm forced to use TI2014 in a real emergency, then I'll find out if my decision to stick with Acronis was ill advised.

dandeman
MVM
join:2001-12-05
Chapel Hill, NC

1 recommendation

dandeman

MVM

said by bcool:

Now when I'm forced to use TI2014 in a real emergency, then I'll find out if my decision to stick with Acronis was ill advised.

The ultimate acid test that can sometimes fail with imaging software...

I've installed the C: drives in several of my machines into the server farm like HDD cassette housings so it's easy to swap C: drives.

In my more critical machines, one a month I pulled the C drive and rotate one of the two spare cassette mounted drives into the machine and do an image restore.

I don't know if they have fixed it, but in a past Aronis True Image version, if your backup was made of a drive that had a bad sector in it, the image would not restore.

So now, I also have fsutil.exe run in the boot up command file so if a bad sector develops on one of the drives I know it immediately..

Ian1
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join:2002-06-18
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Maybe off-topic, but I have a True Image 2014 question someone might be able to answer.

I do a full disk backup, and then back that up incrementally. At the moment I have one initial .tib, and about 7 additional ones that were done. What's the best way to prune these? If I consolidate, do I select the initial, and the last? And can I then delete 1-6? Or does it have to be the initial and all 7?

Thanks.

DownTheShore
Pray for Ukraine
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Beautiful NJ

1 recommendation

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For those of you who might be interested in Paragon, keep an eyeball peeled on the Giveaway of the Day site. They frequently offer various Paragon programs for free.
centacre
join:2003-03-17
Cypress, TX

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I currently run daily scheduled backups using Acronis 2012 on the desktop. I installed version 2011 on my son's laptop. I have been using Acronis since version 11 and it has never let me down. On the few occasions, I needed to restore (using versions 11 and 2012), it restored the hard drive flawlessly, thus saving my bacon. It is not perfect and has its little quirks, but nothing I couldn't overcome. I have never tried the "Secure Zone" creation or the "Try & Decide" features, as I use it purely for backup and restore. I think that's when the trouble may begin for some because it affects the partition table.