Best Free backup Software?

[C08]

I have given up totally on the microsoft windows backup for windows 7 and I need some new backup software. I just want something user friendly that does its job and does not bring with it a host of other problems like unwanted apps etc. Any recommendations?
Thanks.

PS Yes it was meant to be in the lounge!

 

[DipperToo]

There are so many out there it can be a personal choice at the end of the day.

I use FBackup (www.fbackup.com) Free which has a scheduler and it regularly backs up (incrementally) several PCs to a NAS box. There were some reported issues with version 5 last August and I am still using version 4.8 which runs fine on Win7.

I am sure there will be a host of alternatives!

 

[theoldsalt]

As said there are many available however I have had no problems with Windows 7 backup. I have used it on a multi partition and multi operating system PC and it does restore the complete HDD after creating the backup image on an external drive. Especially helpful is the option to create a bootable CD to access the backup image if the internal HDD completely fails.

 

[Ex-SolentBoy]

There is a perfect solution. Works every time. No user intervention. Continuous backup.

It's called Time Machine.

But, it will mean you have to burn that PC of yours and buy a Mac. Best decision you will make.

 

[Skipper_Christoph]

+1
Mac user since 1984

 

[stuartwineberg]

For various reasons I use different ones on different machines but they seem OK and both backup over a network to a NAS - they are GFI BackUp Freeware and EZ backitup. I also use EaseUS Todo backup to save an image for potential disaster recovery. This comes without any recommendation and please do check these things do what you want. For the IT experts please don't shoot the messenger, it's just what works for me.

 

[Tony Cross]

It depends on what you want to back up.

If you have just one hard disk and one partition (ie. just a C: drive) then a disk imaging product is what you need. These take a snapshot of the disk which can later be restored, this method avoids the "file locked by Windows" problem with other backup tools trying to backup a live Windows partition. I use the free version of Macrium Reflect for disk imaging, you can get it from http://www.macrium.com/reflectfree.aspx. Macrium Reflect also allows you to mount a previous disk image as a virtual disk so that you can access files and folders within the image without having to restore it. It also has a WinPE based stand-alone restore disk that gives you access to some basic Windows diagnostic and maintenance software (like chkdsk and diskpart etc.) as well as the disk image restore tool.

If, on the other hand, you are just looking to backup a data only disk or partition then a file-by-file product is the simplest. I use SyncBack from http://www.2brightsparks.com/freeware/index.html because it synchronises the external backup drive with the data drive and only copies across files that have changed since the last backup, this makes the backup process much faster. SyncBak is highly customisable and you can schedule automatic backups.

 

[KevinT1]

I use Microsoft SynchToy - you can create multiple backups on different devices ( I also use it to automatically copy my Sailing manuals to Dropbox )

It's free and you don't get any cr~p, used it on XP and Windows 7 ( 32 and 64 bit )

You can mirror both ways or just one way

http://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/download/details.aspx?id=15155

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SyncToy

It just works !

 

[bendyone]

http://www.macrium.com/reflectfree.aspx

Works for me and backs up everything

 

[Storyline]

There is a perfect solution. Works every time. No user intervention. Continuous backup.

It's called Time Machine.

But, it will mean you have to burn that PC of yours and buy a Mac. Best decision you will make.

Plenty of problems with Time m/c (Google it).
It is horses for courses. Some people like windows, some prefer iOS.

 

[thalassa]

http://www.macrium.com/reflectfree.aspx

Works for me and backs up everything

+1

 

[JumbleDuck]

I use dropbox to share files and also as backup for the ones that really matter. It's free (up to 2GB), runs all the time, works on Windows, Mac and, in my case, Linux, as well as on iOS and Android devices and it keeps previous versions available which is useful if you save something you didn't mean to.

For on-site (ie in-house) backup I use a network attached storage box to which all my personal files are copied at 2am each day. The NAS box came with some software, but I use rsync.

 

[jwilson]

I am currently using FreeFileSync to back up data files to several external hard disks. Seems to work well. Not worried about backing up programs or operating system, these can be restored from original disks if need be. I do also run a automatic scheduled windows backup - but don't really trust it: have been bitten by backups that would not restore in the past, including back in pre-history from tape drives. I have no faith in any backup that compresses data.