Why is Windows 7 Backup so slow? I am backing up my own files. Not the system.
Your own files may be all you want to back up, but it probably is backing up the system anyway.
Apart from that, copying files is a relatively slow process, and they have to be done one after another, so copying them (and compressing them, as Backup does) is going to take time.
The time it all takes is much more a function of the speed of your hard drive and of whatever backup drive you are using than of the program you use to automate it.
Personally I use
- Syncback Free to back up data files.
Backup software - free and commercial versions available - Macrium Reflect Free to make disk image of program files:
http://www.macrium.com/reflectfree.aspx
So far, 4 1/2 hours and I am on the 4th dvd. Seems to be about 3/4 of the way through. Is it compressing all the files as well?
I’ve since upgraded to 8.1, but as I recall, the built in “Backup and Restore” in Windows 7 saves an image of your system drive as well as backing up the folders you select. I’m guessing the image is chewing up all of that space/time. If you’re only interested in the files, I think you can un-check the box for saving an image.
Thanks… I am going to try Syncback next time I do a backup to see if it is better for me. Maybe I will try reflectfree too.
Get yourself a couple of external USB HDDs and rotate them. USB 3.0 if you can. If you’re backing up to DVDs you don’t want to use MS Backup. Just copy the files to DVDs in DVD-sized chunks. With an external USB 2.0 HDD, if you’re backing up everything, you just set it going as you go to bed and it will be done in the morning; a USB 3.0 HDD connected to a USB 3 port will be significantly faster.
Yeah, huge USB 3.0 external drives are ridiculously cheap (under $70). I use one of these as my ‘data’ disk (all my documents, pictures, files etc.) and my internal drive as my ‘system’ disk (has the OS and Program Files on in). I back up my ext data disk via a cloud service, Mozy, for $5/month and I back up my system disk with Macrium Reflect Free. I have it write the system backup image file onto the external data drive as it’s about 55GB and would take too many DVDs (and would be horribly slow and tedious to do!) Macrium compresses my 180GB system drive into the 55GB image file and writes it to the ext USB 3 drive in only a half hour. I do NOT however include this image file in my ‘data’ disk cloud backup as it’s again too large. I think the chances of both my hard drives failing simultaneously are pretty slim (famous last words…)
Windows-7 backup lets you choose which folders to back up. Did you manually select only the data files, and unckeck the “backup system files” option?
It may just be the speed of the external drive you’re backing up to. The USB 2.0 hard drives I have can only manage about 22 MB/s average.
Where your backing up to may have a tremendous effect on the speed of backup. For example the optimal backup solution is backing up from one hard drive to another. If those drives are on the same cable (IDE) then you’re gonna lose a good chunk of speed. Things get even slower over a USB connection. burning is also pretty slow. What you’re backing up also is equally as important an influence on speed of backup. for example if you’re backing up simply pictures and videos or whatever on you’re computer it may be a good chunk of files but the system backup takes like 10 times as long because windows has a FUCKLOAD of directories and different files in the structure alone and then it’s gotta usually backup EVERY single thing you’ve installed and maybe even a bunch of useless temporary files that you’re not even aware are wasting space on you’re backup. That’s why you want a program like the ones mentioned earlier because they ALLOW you to customize you’re backup layout but it still takes you to be smart and choose what to backup. Remember computers are really stupid, they are only capable of doing what we tell them to do.
He’s backing up to DVDs…
Well, that’s a ***BIG ***part of the problem of the backup being so slow. And not only are they an order of magnitude slower than an external hard drive, DVD-R discs are notoriously unreliable if/when it comes time to restore from them. And with multiple-disc backup sets it can only take one part of one disc to be unreadable to hose the entire restore process. They are a terrible medium for modern PC backups.
I agree.
I have 6 hard drives in my PC 3 I work with and 3 I back up on. If I backed up to DVD that would be a 3 month job.
To back up system I use acronis to make image of C drive, its free from seagate, as long as you have at least one seagate drive its free even if its an external drive. I make a small C drive all the system stuff is on it so I can back it up quick. All the other stuff like programs and games and user files go on other drives which I back up directly to duplicate drives.
DVD is the most expensive storage you can get, hard drive is way cheaper now.
That depends how you calculate things: a 100 pack of DVDs from Amazon costs ~£20. That’s 470 GB or 20p each or 4.3p per GB. A 500 GB external USB 3 HDD costs ~£40. 2 TB drives cost ~£70 - 3.5p per GB. Cheaper per GB than DVDs but a far greater per unit cost.
BTW Blu-Ray blanks are ~64p apiece for 2.6p per GB. Cheaper than HDDs but more than DVDs. And a much lower unit cost than HDDs but higher than DVDs.
It depends upon how much you’re backing up and the longevity required, and when you’re backing it up. If you’re backing up less than a DVD’s capacity then it’s still by far the cheapest. If you require longevity and don’t have much to back up, then DVD is again the cheapest. Stored correctly, DVDs will last a long time. The time consideration is very important. The acme is to set the backup going and come back when it’s finished: people are expensive.
And I’ve not even touched on tapes.
You need to choose the most appropriate tool for the job.
It’s not the burn that’s taking all that time and if it is you SERIOUSLY need a new burner because that is very abnormal burning (Unless maybe burning over USB or a old computer with a very slow bus speed). But I’ve seen times like that on some computers with bad setups. I would change sofware. Windows built in software isn’t worth a damn literally. Don’t waste your time get any small freeware program to do a much better job than the windows build in shit does.
Hell, I do system image backups and it only takes like 20 minutes to backup or restore from one disk to another. Never bothered to burn it to dvd but I know it wouldn’t take no 4 and a half hours.
I’ll give you an example, Windows does offer a disk cleaner utility out of the box, but it practically cleans nothing, ccleaner or disk cleaner are both free and small downloads and clean MUCH MUCH more.
Several SSD’s.
HD clone
The whole thing, every bit…
Switch cloned drive to C cable
Disconnect last used drive. Can’t electrocute something that is not connected.
Running each drive proves it’s integrity.
Disconnect cloned drive
Almost faster than I can type this.
Works for me.