2Q's 1:Can I delete useless partition? 2:Best backup software?

Hi, 2 questions if I may, regarding storage/data

1: Ages ago i stupidly put a windows 7 dvd into my computer already running on win 7 (to test whether the dvd was ok). It automatically made a 100mb partition on my hdd. Its been there for a long time and I've just left as it does no harm, Can i deleted it though? or is it safer just to leave it now as its only 100mb.

2: I just got another sata hdd which i'm using in an usb enclosure for back up purposes. Apart from the normal method of copying my files over every week or so, do you have any recommendations on free software which is more efficient for my backup needs?

Thanks guys!

1. I would leave it for now, as it is only 100 MBs. In the future, you don't have to create it during the install. None of my drives have it.

2. I still consider SyncToy the gold standard for free syncing apps. It's very simple to use, gives you plenty of options, and can be scheduled.

Thanks guys, some really helpful tips here i'm gonna check out some of those programs.

And sorry i probably didn't explain the 100mb partition issue properly, basically its not from my install of win 7. I already had win 7 installed on my machine for like a year or something with no partitions. Then one day a friend was having trouble installing his win 7 on his machine, so he asked me to test the dvd. Upon putting it in my machine, the normal screen appeared (Autoplay with the 'run setup option') but then it just went ahead and started creating a 100mb partition so i stopped it.

I put a screen shot of it

kado897 said:

I liked FreeFileSync so much I did a video on how to use it. Backup With FreeFileSync - YouTube

Nice tut, u should do one of how get the invisible taskbar, thats awesome!

Hope I'm not off topic or missed something, but i think it's worth noting...

I haven't seen any mention of backup imaging the OS and Programs in this thread.
That is different than backing up personal data.

The day a system will not boot, or does not work correctly, having a backup image can be a life saver and save many hours of frustration.
System Restore points may fix an issue, but a backup image is a better option to have available.
A backup image is a complete restorable "copy" of the OS, restore points are not.

An image can restore the OS and programs in < 1 hour without needing to re-install/re-configure/re-activate the OS and programs.
If you re-install Windows and all programs regularly, then you may not need or want backup images.
If being able to recover from an HD fail, Windows fail, etc. is important, then you should consider imaging.

A couple of tutorials about this:
Backup Complete Computer - Create an Image Backup
Imaging with free Macrium

For a paid solution for Disk Imaging apps i recommend and use Acronis True Image...

For a Free solution out of all those i tested the top 2 would be Macrium Reflect or CloneZilla...