Listing Vista Backups

[Neil Jones]

On Vista Ultimate, I do complete system backups frequently. How do I
find out the list of backups on the backup drive?

Thank you in advance.

NJ

 

[Gordon]

On Vista Ultimate, I do complete system backups frequently. How do I
find out the list of backups on the backup drive?

Thank you in advance.

NJ

This might be a silly question - you have opened the drive in Windows
Explorer to see what's there?

 

[Mark H]

Complete PC Backup takes an image of your hard drive/partition the very
first time you use it.

When you next create a backup, Complete PC Backup only does an incremental
backup, in other words, it only backs up files that have changed since your
initial backup image was created. Your next backup does the same, and so
does the backup after that. You are not going to get multiple full backup
files. You will only get one backup file and cannot access individual files
within this backup.

Because only incremental backups are performed, if you want to create a full
backup again, you simply delete the current backup files and then create a
new one afresh.

Restore function will show the latest "increment." Backup function will show
the date of the original image creation.

There is a method to force full backups each time, but this requires setting
a checkbox (only available in the scheduling function of backups) and then
using a command line to perform the backups. Not very convenient and quickly
fills any hard drive.

Many recommend Acronis True Image as an alternative to gain control over the
individual file retrieval, but this does not reduce the HDD use if multiple
images are being made. An alternative, since you are using Vista Ultimate,
is to learn how to restore shadow copies.
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-vista/features/shadow-copy.aspx
But this will not help you if the HDD becomes corrupted. Not sure if backup
restoration also restores the shadow copies making them available to restore
prior versions of files.

 

[Bill Sanderson]

The best restore for Vista or XP or Windows 7, or even a Mac, is a Windows
Home Server. (For the Mac, you need to buy HP's version thereof, and the
very latest edition of that)

Full backups every night, with the ability to restore or look at any
individual file. The system writes like data only once so only changed data
is written after the first backup, and this scheme holds across all
machines--I.e. large swaths of Windows files will only be on the WHS once,
even with multiple Windows machines.

Bootable CD to restore from bare metal in about 40 minutes or so on older
hardware.

(HP's newest version has software that makes it Time Machine compatible.)

Complete PC Backup takes an image of your hard drive/partition the very
first time you use it.

When you next create a backup, Complete PC Backup only does an incremental
backup, in other words, it only backs up files that have changed since
your
initial backup image was created. Your next backup does the same, and so
does the backup after that. You are not going to get multiple full backup
files. You will only get one backup file and cannot access individual
files
within this backup.

Because only incremental backups are performed, if you want to create a
full
backup again, you simply delete the current backup files and then create a
new one afresh.

Restore function will show the latest "increment." Backup function will
show
the date of the original image creation.

There is a method to force full backups each time, but this requires
setting
a checkbox (only available in the scheduling function of backups) and then
using a command line to perform the backups. Not very convenient and
quickly
fills any hard drive.

Many recommend Acronis True Image as an alternative to gain control over
the
individual file retrieval, but this does not reduce the HDD use if
multiple
images are being made. An alternative, since you are using Vista Ultimate,
is to learn how to restore shadow copies.
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-vista/features/shadow-copy.aspx
But this will not help you if the HDD becomes corrupted. Not sure if
backup
restoration also restores the shadow copies making them available to
restore
prior versions of files.

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