On-The-Fly File Sync?

[sagebrushfire]

I take a lot of Digital Photos and I usually organize them in a Photo folder on my extra HDD.

I have an External HDD that I'd like to use to backup those photos.

I'm looking for a program that I can use to synchronize the two folders just whenever I feel like it. I don't want something in the background ghosting my files; I just need to be able to update the folder on my External HDD after a shoot.

I would just copy them over but I have my photos organized by subject matter so I don't have tons of folders for every shoot. I used to do folders by date but it got to hard to find a particular photo because I couldn't remember when I took it.

Ideally it would be free software (Actually it has to be, I'm broke! )

Thanks in advance.

I honestly wouldn't have to do this if there was a "No to all" option when you replace folders with the same name. Then I could just drag the photography folder over the other, select "No to All" and only new files would be copied over.

Can I not find this or did they not do it in Win7? I never understood why there was always Yes to All but not No To All.

 

[NitroNate]

i've been using viceversa pro for several years now. it is by far the best one i've found. it has a ton of options for synching, it's cheap and they have a 64-bit version as well. it recognizes modifications, deletes, additions, etc. so it can synch everything properly.

 

[pparks1]

Robocopy which is already installed. Command line tool
robocopy C:\sourcefolder1 D:\backup\sourcefolder1 /MIR /E
This mirrors the destination from the source. So, if you delete files from the source they are deleted from the destination. The /E does empty folders.
It's fast because it only does files that have changed or are different.

Karen's File Replicator: Same sort of thing, but comes with a GUI.

 

[dnorris]

SynchToy 2.0

http://www.microsoft.com/Downloads/...36-98E0-4EE9-A7C5-98D0592D8C52&displaylang=en

 

[zigzag3143]

SBF

there is a free (i think) app called folder sync. can do manual scan. or be set to do it automatically

 

[sagebrushfire]

Robocopy which is already installed. Command line tool
robocopy C:\sourcefolder1 D:\backup\sourcefolder1 /MIR /E
This mirrors the destination from the source. So, if you delete files from the source they are deleted from the destination. The /E does empty folders.
It's fast because it only does files that have changed or are different.

Karen's File Replicator: Same sort of thing, but comes with a GUI.

Robocopy seemed to work very well.

Can I put the parameters in a shortcut so I can just click once and repeat that task?

 

[pparks1]

Can I put the parameters in a shortcut so I can just click once and repeat that task?

Yeah, you can put multiple commands on separate lines in notepad and then save the file as C:\backup.bat. Then you can just run the backup.bat file and your backups will run. That's exactly how I do my backups...my file is C:\batch\backup2externalHardDrive.bat.

 

[etegration]

SynchToy 2.0

Download details: SyncToy v2.0

SyncToy is one of the worse ones. It does not sync deleted files. eg, files you delete are not replicated from source to destination.

Use Allway Sync: Free File Synchronization, Backup, Data Replication, PC Sync Software, Freeware, File Sync, Data Synchronization Software it is the best thus far for multiple sync even.

 

[sagebrushfire]

Can I put the parameters in a shortcut so I can just click once and repeat that task?

Yeah, you can put multiple commands on separate lines in notepad and then save the file as C:\backup.bat. Then you can just run the backup.bat file and your backups will run. That's exactly how I do my backups...my file is C:\batch\backup2externalHardDrive.bat.

I had no idea you could do that. There are SO many cool things I could do with that!

 

[dnorris]

SynchToy 2.0

Download details: SyncToy v2.0

SyncToy is one of the worse ones. It does not sync deleted files. eg, files you delete are not replicated from source to destination.

Use Allway Sync: Free File Synchronization, Backup, Data Replication, PC Sync Software, Freeware, File Sync, Data Synchronization Software it is the best thus far for multiple sync even.

Allway looks like a good program.
However, I'm leery of synching deleted files. That would be an easy way to lose your backup.

 

[BeechV35Pilot]

Allway looks like a good program.
However, I'm leery of synching deleted files. That would be an easy way to lose your backup.

Funny you bring that up because I had that happen to me. Entirely my fault in not having the proper options chosen, though, but still... lost a few hours of work.

I am a big fan of GoodSync, but I realize the OP was looking for freeware and GS free version only allows up to 100 files to be synced at a time - not practical for him.

As a payware customer, though, I use this app to back up my media collection. I also was using it to back up a Picasa (image cataloging) database - after spending a few hours with Picasa's new face recognition feature and being able to tag many of my pictures by face, I quickly set up a one-sided, left-to-right backup job in GoodSync. By habit I chose the "propagate deletions," even though no files in the source Picasa DB folder get deleted.

After a couple of system restores I lost track of the fact that one of my restores was prior to my work in Picasa and didn't have the Picasa database in it (Picasa forces the storage of its DB on the C, or system drive). Well, the GoodSync backup ran and poof... good-bye backup.

I still haven't rebuilt all those Picasa face tags but at this point I am waiting until the Win7 retail version is installed.