back up data to external hard drive

[qcanpc18]

I have a external hard drive, 500 gb- It came installed with a software
program called memeo- It is ok on the documents, pictures and such, however
if I want to make a complete back up I was told to do it with windows xp
backup. I looked . at it and I got confused on what way to select where it
goes after it is completed. Can someone guide me through the tech stuff so
after I make back up where and how to get it on my external hard drive. I was
also told by Dell that I really do not need a complete back up, I am
confused. I just want to be safe, that is why Iought an external hard drive .

 

[Big_Al]

I have a external hard drive, 500 gb- It came installed with a software
program called memeo- It is ok on the documents, pictures and such, however
if I want to make a complete back up I was told to do it with windows xp
backup. I looked . at it and I got confused on what way to select where it
goes after it is completed. Can someone guide me through the tech stuff so
after I make back up where and how to get it on my external hard drive. I was
also told by Dell that I really do not need a complete back up, I am
confused. I just want to be safe, that is why Iought an external hard drive .

Who told you you can't use your backup program and have to use XP backup?

Dell is right on one hand. If you PC dies, you can reload XP, you can
reload your applications, you just can't reload your data. So the
things you create, you need to save. As you say your pictures etc.

But then there are all the settings. This is the part that causes the
stir between everybody on these newsgroups. The best backup, best as
easy to recover from, is one that just 'images' your hard drive so you
can reset it back, with every setting, file etc all the same. Look at
Acronis True Image Home. Its one of the better image and clone
programs for a full backup.

Still, the first two questions would be interesting to know.
If your external drive is not formatted NTFS, then there is a 4 gig
limit to file size (backup file that is) that you can save and this may
be the only thing that is stopping you from doing a full backup to that
drive. A few files etc might be less than 4 gig, but the whole drive
might exceed that size easy.

Write back, and someone will follow up with you.

 

[qcanpc18]

Yhank you for reply, my external hard drive is formatted- are you telling me
not to use memeo that is making daily copied of my documents, e mail and
pictures and switch to Acronis? I am confused-

 

[Big_Al]

Yhank you for reply, my external hard drive is formatted- are you telling me
not to use memeo that is making daily copied of my documents, e mail and
pictures and switch to Acronis? I am confused-

No, Acronis is an option, not a need. I have no idea what memeo is, or
its features / limitations.
But how is your drive formatted? NTFS or FAT32? Yes I know its formatted!
And who told you that you could not backup the whole drive?

 

[qcanpc18]

Its NTFS-someone at Dell- my backup is Western Digital, 500 gbs, came with a
backup program called memeo automatic backup pro-www.memeo.com-

 

[Richard in AZ]

| qcanpc18 wrote:
| > Yhank you for reply, my external hard drive is formatted- are you telling me
| > not to use memeo that is making daily copied of my documents, e mail and
| > pictures and switch to Acronis? I am confused-
| >
| > "Big_Al" wrote:
| >
| >> qcanpc18 wrote:
| >>> I have a external hard drive, 500 gb- It came installed with a software
| >>> program called memeo- It is ok on the documents, pictures and such, however
| >>> if I want to make a complete back up I was told to do it with windows xp
| >>> backup. I looked . at it and I got confused on what way to select where it
| >>> goes after it is completed. Can someone guide me through the tech stuff so
| >>> after I make back up where and how to get it on my external hard drive. I was
| >>> also told by Dell that I really do not need a complete back up, I am
| >>> confused. I just want to be safe, that is why Iought an external hard drive .
| >> Who told you you can't use your backup program and have to use XP backup?
| >>
| >> Dell is right on one hand. If you PC dies, you can reload XP, you can
| >> reload your applications, you just can't reload your data. So the
| >> things you create, you need to save. As you say your pictures etc.
| >>
| >> But then there are all the settings. This is the part that causes the
| >> stir between everybody on these newsgroups. The best backup, best as
| >> easy to recover from, is one that just 'images' your hard drive so you
| >> can reset it back, with every setting, file etc all the same. Look at
| >> Acronis True Image Home. Its one of the better image and clone
| >> programs for a full backup.
| >>
| >> Still, the first two questions would be interesting to know.
| >> If your external drive is not formatted NTFS, then there is a 4 gig
| >> limit to file size (backup file that is) that you can save and this may
| >> be the only thing that is stopping you from doing a full backup to that
| >> drive. A few files etc might be less than 4 gig, but the whole drive
| >> might exceed that size easy.
| >>
| >> Write back, and someone will follow up with you.
| >>
| No, Acronis is an option, not a need. I have no idea what memeo is, or
| its features / limitations.
| But how is your drive formatted? NTFS or FAT32? Yes I know its formatted!
| And who told you that you could not backup the whole drive?

Most likely referring to this PC Mag article
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2270960,00.asp

It rates the Memeo software as very poor, especially in the area of System Backup.

 

[Big_Al]

Its NTFS-someone at Dell- my backup is Western Digital, 500 gbs, came with a
backup program called memeo automatic backup pro-www.memeo.com-

Great, then NTFS is sufficient for a system backup, so I would guess
looking at Richard's input that you might opt for another program. And
I'll add that the built in windows backup is generally given a thumbs
down on these newsgroups.

I've had an old copy of Stomp backup for about 6-8 years old. Works
like memeo for my random file backup. But I now have Acronis for a
full system backup. NewEgg.com had it a month back for 10$. You
might bookmark that and keep an eye, or subscribe to their newsletter.

 

[qcanpc18]

I thank all of you, I will look into NewEgg.com-

Great, then NTFS is sufficient for a system backup, so I would guess
looking at Richard's input that you might opt for another program. And
I'll add that the built in windows backup is generally given a thumbs
down on these newsgroups.

I've had an old copy of Stomp backup for about 6-8 years old. Works
like memeo for my random file backup. But I now have Acronis for a
full system backup. NewEgg.com had it a month back for 10$. You
might bookmark that and keep an eye, or subscribe to their newsletter.

 

[PiperB]

You are correct in the distinction. Memeo AutoBackup is designed with
simplicity in mind for the average user and is not meant to support a
full system backup or disk image at this time. Instead, it focuses on
monitoring your files and instantly backing up any changes that are
made in real-time in order for the latest versions to always be backed
up. However, we have recently received feedback from some of our users
who would like a disk image feature and are looking to add the
functionality to the Professional version of the software in the near
future.

If you have any questions or comments about the software, you can
always feel free to email me at piper at memeo dot com.

Regards,
Piper
Product Manager, Memeo

 

[Plato]

Yhank you for reply, my external hard drive is formatted- are you telling me
not to use memeo that is making daily copied of my documents, e mail and
pictures and switch to Acronis? I am confused-

Back up your most important data to standard CDs. Do NOT depend on
backup programs.