Many of us are responsible to friends and relatives for all computer software and hardware they have purchased or plan to purchase. This is true even if we have never seen or heard of the software or hardware as “you know computers…”
Just spent several hours on the phone with one such who has an XP laptop which will not boot. Had him run diagnostics, including HD diagnostics, no errors.
Asked him what backup software he used, as I knew he was very cautious about being backed up. Turns out he bought a new “Western Digital My Book Essentials HD” that came with “Smartware” which has a nice website where it claims to be the ultimate in convenience and protection. He stopped using Retrospect Express (which does do a system image and file based backup, and does have a disaster recovery CD) and moved to SMARTWARE which has no system image feature.
Actually, it does a file based backup ONLY and does not make an image of the HD. This means unless he can repair Windows so it will boot, he is in for a re-install of the OS and all his programs, followed by restore of his data files from “SMARTWARE”.
Crappy. If you have Win 7, you are far better off using Windows Backup. If you have XP, you should run to the store and get Norton Save and Restore or Retrospect or something.
The puffery about SMARTWARE is very unfortunate. They don’t mention that you will be completely unprotected from a HD failure, or corrupted OS that won’t boot.
Those are the most common reasons to need your backup, in my opinion.