alternating backup media

[QUOTE=aamiri;1741837]I alternate between two network hard drives on a weekly basis and backup everyone's PC , some on a daily basis, some less often. I have been wondering about how does the Windows 7 Backup figures out how to back up incrementally. One thing for sure, the list of folders keeps growing. Can I clean up some of the much older backup folders? Does the software simply backup an entire file if a previous folder that contained an older version of that file no longer exists?

Can someone please shed some light on the way the folders are arranged on the backup media?


Thanks,
IT newbie

I don't know if this will help. I can't recall the event id (4098?) that gets written to the application event lot when a successful FILE backup (as you are discussing) occurs. In that event, if you look at the XML, there might be some flags/fields in there saying if a given backup was incremental, etc.

You can delete/manage your FILE backups from the Backup and Restore GUI panel, clicking on the blue MANAGE link. The next screen allows you to selectively delete Backups (IIRC).

I wasn't able to carry out the suggestion since there is no "MANAGE" button on the Backup and Restore GUI. I am using Windows 7 Professional. Can you please elaborate?

It should be there IF you have taken a backup at some point (and your initial post shows you have BUT those are on a network drive). Make sure on the GUI you have the network drive pointed to correctly such that it will look there for backups and, we hope, respond with the MANAGE link being shown.

Thank you for your help. I did find the "Manage Space" link and used it to delete some backup "sets".

I guess what I still don't fully understand is how the sets are put together.

1. Since the backup is incremental, are the sets self contained or interdependent?
2. If independent, how does the backup program decide when to start a new set?

1) I would think Set means just that. A logical grouping of backups (incremental).

2) I'm not sure about File Backup, but on System Image, there are registry settings that say how many DAYS pass until a new one will be complete (non-incremental). Maybe these registry settings apply to both File backup and System Image. I don't know.

Thanks again Jim.
Too bad there is no documentation anywhere to read up on it. Or is there?

Hi Danny,

Thanks for your help and posting the link. That's very helpful.