Windows 10 File History offers a simple backup solution anyone can do

[RV_]

Another great idg video showing how to do simple back ups of Windows 10 files.

http://www.infoworld.com/video/64663/windows-10-file-history-offers-a-simple-backup-solution-anyone-can-do?token=%23tk.IFWNLE_nlt_infoworld_hardware_rpt_2016-05-12&idg_eid=6aa01e18b29f7b6f9149f611f8eac228&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=InfoWorld%20Hardware%20Report%202016-05-12&utm_term=infoworld_hardware_rpt

[hiljoball]

This is a great tool - I have been using since I got Win10.

 

I keep a thumb drive on my key ring, and plug it in about once per week, and run the backup.

 

When I leave the house, I have my key ring with me so I always have an 'off site' backup.

 

John

[RV_]

John,

I hear ya. No excuse for not having backups today.

[hiljoball]

I thought of another advantage of using a thumb drive for the file backup - Once the backup is completed, I eject the drive. This is a good practice because of the sophistication of the ransom-ware attacks. From the alerts, ransom-ware not only encrypts your files, it goes looking for backups on attached drives as well as in the cloud. So my thumb drive is not available to attack - its in my pocket. (the movies refer to this an an air-gap).

 

John

[DuffMan]

I've always wondered about the difference between Windows Backup and Windows File History.

 

Does windows 10 Backup backup all files every time or only those that have changed since the last backup event? ie. if I set it for every 10 minutes does it copy all the files the first time then only those that have changed on every follow on scheduled backup event? (I wonder what would happen if I manually changed a file in that backup or recovery drive?)

 

How does this differentiate itself from file history which retains a copy of the last x # of iterations of your files? (I keep the last 5 iterations of my files.)

 

Does Windows Backup make a copy of open files or just skip them? (I hope it takes a snapshot and saves that iteration!)

 

As the last resort for disaster recovery: I currently do a manual image back-up (thru Windows 10 File Recovery) on a ~bi-weekly basis and keep that drive offsite. Is there an option anywhere in Windows 10 Backup to have that (image backup) done automatically on a scheduled basis? (I have a wireless network drive that I could put on a timer to keep it disconnected except during a desired back-up & keep malware from corrupting it.)

 

Currently I have Windows Backup keep a daily backup on one external drive plus a weekly full backup on a separate drive. Nice thing is all the files (Both on backup drive and File History drive) are un-encrypted and un-compressed so are accessible with fast and easy with Windows Explorer in real time.