Solved what exactly does "backup" backup?

[dunkinidaho]

Using 7pro here and I'm wondering what the backup function actually backs up. I'm only running 2 programs on my desktop, photoshop lightroom and family tree maker genealogy. I was told that the easiest way to back up the photos or pictures that lightroom uses is to use the backup function in windows. In other words in stead of just backing up the 6500 pictures separately to an external drive just back up the entire drive. It does seem to be the simplest way. Thoughts???

Brian

 

[mjf]

I was told that the easiest way to back up the photos or pictures that lightroom uses is to use the backup function in windows. In other words in stead of just backing up the 6500 pictures separately to an external drive just back up the entire drive.

Not for me.
I think you are talking about system imaging which is good/essential but large amounts of data should really be on at least a separate partition to your operating system or a separate internal drive. For a 6500 picture database I'd be looking for a different backup strategy.
I think Lightroom has facility to backup your catalog but not the actual data itself.

 

[dunkinidaho]

I was told that the easiest way to back up the photos or pictures that lightroom uses is to use the backup function in windows. In other words in stead of just backing up the 6500 pictures separately to an external drive just back up the entire drive.

Not for me.
I think you are talking about system imaging which is good/essential but large amounts of data should really be on at least a separate partition to your operating system or a separate internal drive. For a 6500 picture database I'd be looking for a different backup strategy.
I think Lightroom has facility to backup your catalog but not the actual data itself.

Yes lightroom has a path to bu the catalog. I have searched for months for a simple fool proof way to back up the images. I have used the drag and drop process where I connect a back up HD to the desk top. From the menu, when I open "computer" from the desktop, I drag the file "pictures" down to the ext hd. This is fine if all my pictures are located within the "picture" folder. If there are pictures in another folder, for any unknown reason, they would be missed with this process. When I used adobe "elements" it was so very easy as both the catalog and pictures would be backed up together.

 

[ignatzatsonic]

There are a number of applications that can backup your pictures or any other data you may have, WITHOUT backing up Windows itself.

These applications would effectively be similar to drag and drop, but would just automate the process.

But it's up to you to tell the application what folders or files to back up---to know their location. If you don't know where they all are, they won't be included in the backup.

Most people would tell you that Windows Backup is NOT the ideal application for that process, or to back up Windows, for that matter.

 

[Stevekir]

I have started using Second Copy (recomended on this forum) to back up my Documents, Music, Pictures and Movies which are on an internal 1 TB drive, and also the Desktop on my C drive (an SSD). It is extremely simple to set up and runs in the background. The above files are saved from my compouter to a 1 TB partition in a 2 TB USB HDD (Western Digital Elements, £64 from PC World), and that drive's files are saved to a 1 TB partition on another WD 2 TB HDD (but the actual timing is what is in the last sentence). This is therefore a grandfather/father/son arrangement but without the circular rotation (that is, son/father/grandfather each session rather than the conventional son/father/grandfather/son/father ....). Son here is the second external HDD and the grandfather is the internal HDD. Therefor the timing of the sequence is father to son; then grandfather to father, repeated every several days.