Using BC3 as backup tool

[DorothyFan1]

After getting Windows 7 and reinstalling BC3...I've discovered I can use BC3 as a backup tool. Ever since I'm now using WLFS in Windows 7 (Home Premium 64 bit) I can use DVD/CD like flash drives.

This allowed me to "burn" files using BC3 onto my discs as necessary. However, I'm wondering if there are tradeoffs to using BC3 as a backup tool as compared to using a dedicated backup utility.

For example...does BC3 allow me to backup changed files onto CD/DVD like incremental or differential options like regular backup tools use? Thanks in advance.

[Aaron]

Hello Dorothy,

Using a combination of BC3 snapshots and Copy To Folder commands, you could perform incremental backups to a CD or DVD, but it requires a bit of control over configuring which files are considered different and then copying them to a third location. BC3 is also good at keeping two different folder locations in sync using the Folder Sync session or Compare session.

It depends on your overall backup strategy on how you want to use BC3 as your backup tool. The most important part of any backup strategy is that all of your data should exist in two locations at the same time. This way, if anything were to happen to one location (stolen, fire, corrupted harddrive), the second location can immediately be used to recreate it.

[DorothyFan1]

Any chance BC will mimic dedicated backup software and allow you to select an option to say...copy over "differential" or "incremental" or "mirror" version options in the future? Maybe even allow shadow copying of files in current use?

How about a 64 bit version of BC too?

[Chris]

Right now making differential backups is a manual process if you use BC interactively. Adding more backup features is on our wish list.

You can automate differential backup in the current version using a script:

criteria timestamp
load c:\backmeup c:\lastsync.bcss
expand all
select lt.newer.files lt.orphan.files
copyto left path:base d:\backups\backmeup-%fn_date%
snapshot left output:c:\lastsync.bcss

The above script creates incremental backups from the last sync (stored in a snapshot) and saves them in folders named with the date of the backup, such as "backmeup-2010-11-30".

Shadow copy is on our wish list for a future version.

We would like to have a 64-bit version, but Beyond Compare is written in Delphi, which doesn't currently support 64-bit. Once Delphi releases 64-bit support, we'll look into the possibility of 64-bit BC.

[bcdewul]

@Chris:
Please allow me to bring up this thread. I have written a few posts on BC3 more or less as backup tool.

What are the differences between running 'mirror' and running (differential) 'backup' ?
Is running mirror not (at least very close to) same as running a differential backup?

I still have a backup program. One of the major things that this program can, that BC3 can not (at present!) is that when it is synchronizing folders and when comparing 2 files a newer file is found in the source folder, it will copy the old file (in destination) folder to hidden folder as backup, so users can always restore the older file should the new file be wrong for one reason or the other. Users can 'set' the number of times files are backupped first this way. Depends on diskspace of course.
Hopefully BC3 will have this option as well one day.

But that aside... maybe I am overlooking something, but is Mirror-ing not doing the same then?

=

[Aaron]

Hello,

The BC3 Mirror command will select and copy specific files based on the comparison criteria. The Mirror, specifically, will copy any non-equal files (defined by criteria): Older, Newer, Different, or Orphan. It will also delete any Orphans on the Destination side. The Mirror command makes the Destination side completely identical to the Source.

BC3 can also be configured to store automatic backups of files that are overwritten during a copy. This is done in the Tools menu -> Options, Backups section. This would not backup any files deleted by a Mirror. In general, you only perform a Mirror command if you know you want the Destination side to be identical to the Source.

Our Sync Update command is a less extreme sync type. It will only copy Newer and Orphan files, and does not delete anything from the Destination side.

Chris' suggestion is to use scripting to copy your files to a backup location instead of comparing directly to and overwriting them. Then updating a snapshot to compare against next time. Alternatively, you could also manually perform a backup by using the Select command to select files that would be removed during a mirror or update (rt.older, rt.differet, rt.orphan, etc) and manually copying them to a backup location.

[bcdewul]

Hello to you,

Thank you so much for your eleborated reply. I think I tend to be confused on Sync and Mirror,
where I assumed that sync results in folders that are in fact synchronized, i.e. the same.
When folder x and y are being synchronized, then, in fact, they are the same,which is then
the same as when running mirror on both folders.

As said, right now I am using a backup program (SyncBackPro) for my backups. However, the use
went down from frequent to once a while only and am much more using BC3, i.e. it will be very
likely that I might switch over to BC3 totally at one point in time. The more so as BC3
is much much faster..!

What is holding me back is that SyncbackPro does have some features that BC3 (still) does
not have, like the versioning thing, outlined in my previous post.
Also BC3 is deleting files to dustbin, instead of to a (hidden) folder, keeping tree structure,
is tricky. One may not be able to restore an accidentally deleted file. It may take a while
before the user discovers that a file has been deleted. I know... by experience..
Anyway, this is on the 'wishlist', have posted a separate thread on this earlier.

That aside, BC3 is a fantastic tool! There is no doubt about that.

=

[Aaron]

Hello,

BC3's Sync Mirror command can and will delete files. If you would like to preserve them you will want to manually copy any different files to a 3rd backup location manually first. Both Sync Mirror and Sync Update 'logic' can be performed manually using various selection, copy, and delete commands; the purpose of Mirror or Update is to take a couple common workflows and put them into a single command.

Thanks. We always appreciate hearing how our customers are using our product and questions or suggestions they have.

[SamD]

What is holding me back is that SyncbackPro does have some features that BC3 (still) does
not have, like the versioning thing, outlined in my previous post.
Also BC3 is deleting files to dustbin, instead of to a (hidden) folder, keeping tree structure,
is tricky. One may not be able to restore an accidentally deleted file. It may take a while
before the user discovers that a file has been deleted. I know... by experience..
Anyway, this is on the 'wishlist', have posted a separate thread on this earlier.

I would also like a versioning thing like that in BC. I don't know if I should use another software or do it with BC.

For example, just incremental backup is not enough. For example I want to keep only the last 3 version. Is it possible by scripting to delete the others right now with BC3?

[Aaron]

Hello,

Not built into BC3 scripting. You could use BC3 scripting to output to a set location, then use batch file script to delete the "oldest" location, and then rename all the backup location folders (increment them). That way, each time the script is run the oldest is cleared out.

If your backups can be determined by date, you could use BC3's date filters to select and delete your files. Please note this requires the files to be of a specific date and not the folders.

Or you could manually clear out your incremented backups every once in awhile (using BC3's date filters or just deleting the oldest few.)

[jof]

For example...does BC3 allow me to backup changed files onto CD/DVD like incremental or differential options like regular backup tools use? Thanks in advance.

BC3 is a great tool for performing incremental backups.

Be aware however that at present backing up files/folders with BC3 causes the backed-up files/folders to have the Creation timestamp set to the time the files/folders were copied, thereby losing the original Creation timestamp and being not quite exactly the same as the original.
This may or may not matter to you.