Best windows back up program

I use Macrium Reflect, which I have been using for a number of years. A lot of Forum members also use Macrium.

I have version 5, Home User paid version, which has some features that the free version does not have. I have restored images a couple of times & it has been very straight forward.

Macrium have since launched version 6 which has some extra features, but I am still using v5.

I use the paid version of Macrium Reflect but the free version is plenty for most people. I only use it to image my boot drive which only has my OS and programs on it. I have it set to automatically verify an image as soon as it finishes making it. I rarely have an image fail to verify but the few times that happened, I just ran Reflect again and the image would verify afterwards. I've never had a verified image fail to restore and I have restored images many times.

While imaging is the best way to verify system files (OS and programs), imaging is too time consuming and requires to much space to efficiently backup data. To backup my data drives, I use a folder/file syncing programFreeFileSync set to Mirror. It compares a source drive or folder to the destination drive (i.e. backup drive) or folder and copies files from the source drive to the destination drive or folder and/or deletes files on the destination drive or folder as needed to update the destination drive or folder to be essentially a clone of the source. Since only files that have been added, changed, or deleted since the previous update are affected, the update is much faster than an image which involves all the files on the source drive. FreeFileSync also has a feature that allows it to send files being deleted to a Versioning drive or folder. That protects you from accidental deletions and also allows you to recover earlier versions of a file.

Macrium and Windows native imaging both work perfectly.

DavidE said:

...Lady F is the queen of backups, she knows a lot more than me for backing up everything, including data drives.

Thank you! You are too kind, especially considering how many times you have bailed out my ample asset.

AddRAM said:

Macrium and Windows native imaging both work perfectly.

Actually, many of us have found Macrium Reflect to be more reliable and more flexible than Windows' native imaging.

Hi,
Indeed windows imaging is not all that friendly
Sure it may create a system image but if you go to create the recovery cd it will likely fail to do so or possibly create 30 cd's for your trouble when all that is needed is the 1 winpe cd or flash media which is a world of difference :)

I believe my personal favorite error creating the recovery cd's in windows is please insert a blank cd

It is what it is, a simple no fuss imaging program that just works.

Hi,
Yes Macrium reflect is