How To Back-up Files In Your PC

How to back up files and recover data

Even computer novices know that file backups are important in case of hard drive crashes, but many people wonder exactly how to back up files and how to recover data. This article covers the Backup and Restore feature in Windows 7, Windows Vista, which can help save you a lot of time and trouble. It also focuses on how to back up Microsoft Outlook files and how to back up files in the cloud. All of these tools and processes can all help with data recovery in the event that something happens to your computer.

Why backups are important

Files can be lost from your computer in any number of ways—you might accidentally delete a file, or a virus might wipe one out. You can also have a complete hard drive failure. When a hard drive dies an untimely death, it's kind of like having your house burn down. Important personal items are usually gone forever—family photos, significant documents, downloaded music, and more.

Thankfully it's a really simple process these days to back up your content to a second, separate location. By doing so, your files can be protected against viruses or complete computer failure. This makes it easy to retrieve and place them on a new hard drive and get going again.

Today, there are many options for backing up your content. You don't need any sophisticated equipment—you can use CDs, DVDs, external hard drives, flash drives, network drives, or even online storage like Windows Live SkyDrive. It might be a good idea to back up your data to multiple places. For example, you might choose to back up your content onto both an external hard drive and to an online storage site.

Back up files to the cloud

Windows Live SkyDrive is one option available if you choose to back up your data to an online storage space. A couple of additional storage options from Microsoft include Hotmail, which offers enough storage for you to store your email, calendar, and contacts, and Windows Live Mesh, which lets you sync all your files and folders across your PCs and devices and provides enough cloud storage for your most important files. If you need extra space, do a little research, and choose the online storage spot that best fits your needs.

Windows Backup and Restore

Windows comes with a very cool feature called Backup and Restore, which has been improved for Windows 7. To open Backup and Restore in Windows 7, in the Search box, type Backup, and then click the item in the results list. In Windows Vista, click the Start button, and you should see Backup and Restore Center in the menu. Or just type the phrase into the Search box, and click the item from the results to open it.

What makes the Backup and Restore feature so cool is that it simplifies the entire backup process for you. With easy-to-follow steps and prompts, you can decide whether to back up specific files or your entire computer.

It's a good idea to back up your entire computer when you first set it up. This option captures everything from files to software programs to system settings. If your computer ever stops working completely, you can potentially restore it using the initial entire computer backup.

Back up your files

To help ensure that you don't lose your files, you should back them up regularly. You can set up automatic backups or manually back up your files at any time.

To back up your files

Open Backup and Restore by clicking the Start button, clicking Control Panel, clicking System and Maintenance, and then clicking Backup and Restore.

Do one of the following:

1. If you've never used Windows Backup before, click Set up backup, and then follow the steps in the wizard. If you're prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
2. If you've created a backup before, you can wait for your regularly scheduled backup to occur, or you can manually create a new backup by clicking Back up now. If you're prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.

Notes

• We recommend that you don't back up your files to the same hard disk that Windows is installed on.
• Always store media used for backups (external hard disks, DVDs, or CDs) in a secure place to prevent unauthorized people from having access to your files—we recommend a fireproof location separate from your computer. You might also consider encrypting the data on your backup.

To create a new, full backup

After you create your first backup, Windows Backup will add new or changed information to your subsequent backups. If you're saving your backups on a hard drive or network location, Windows Backup will create a new, full backup for you automatically when needed. If you're saving your backups on CDs or DVDs and can't find an existing backup disc, or if you want to create a new backup of all of the files on your computer, you can create a full backup. Here's how to create a full backup:

1. Open Backup and Restore by clicking the Start button, clicking Control Panel, clicking System and Maintenance, and then clicking Backup and Restore.
2. In the left pane, click Create new, full back up.

Note

You will only see this option if you’re backup is being saved on CDs or DVDs.

To set up a backup after upgrading from a previous version of Windows

After you upgrade Windows, you will need to set up Windows Backup, even if you had a scheduled backup in the previous version of Windows. This is because there are several changes to the backup program. Instead of selecting file types to back up, you can have Windows back up data files saved in libraries, on the desktop, and in default Windows folders, or you can choose specific libraries and folders to be backed up. You can also create a system image of your computer. For more information, see How does Windows choose which files to back up?

To set up your backup, follow these steps:

• Open Backup and Restore by clicking the Start button, clicking Control Panel, clicking System and Maintenance, and then clicking Backup and Restore.
• Click Set up backup, and then follow the steps in the wizard. If you're prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.