Computer back-up software

To restore a backed up image to a drive with Windows installed, you must use the Macrium Reflect program to build a Windows or Linux rescue disc, both of which can restore an MRIMG file. You can also mount the backup as a virtual drive that mimics a local one, allowing you to browse through the backed up files and folders and copy out anything you want.

The program should work on all versions of Windows. We tested it in Windows 10 and Windows 8. Determine if you are running a bit or bit version of Windows to know which option you should choose on the download page. Make sure to select one of the blue download links since the red ones are for the paid editions. A backup image can be built into one file or separated into chunks for easier placement on media like CDs and DVDs.

You have the option to back up a drive's used data or the used and unused portions of the disk. Restoring a backup is really easy with ODIN because you just select the disk that should be restored and then load the backup file. Freebyte Backup can back up multiple folders at a time to any local, external, or network drive. A backup can't be compressed or encrypted with this program. Scheduling isn't built-in either, but you can make a few changes to how the program launches as well as use an external scheduling program to make it work.

You can filter a backup job so that files with particular extensions get copied, leaving out all the rest. There's also an option to only back up files that have been modified after a particular date and time, as well as a toggle to turn on incremental backups.

Freebyte Backup is said to work only with Windows Vista, XP, and older versions of Windows, but we tested it in Windows 10 and 8 without any issues. Freebyte Backup downloads as a ZIP file.

Inside is the portable version FBBackup. CloneZilla Live is a bootable disc that can back up an entire hard drive to either an image file or another disk.

This program is text-based, so you won't find regular menu options or buttons. You can compress a backup image, split it into custom sizes, and even check a hard drive for errors using a free hard drive testing tool before creating an image. Restoring a backup with CloneZilla Live involves taking the regular backup process steps but doing so in reverse. It sounds confusing, but following the on-screen instructions makes it pretty easy.

Karen's Replicator is easy to use, simple folder backup utility that supports a local, external, or network drive as a backup destination. Data is backed up using a regular copy method without encryption or password options, which means you can browse through a backup like you would any other folder in Explorer.

Options let you exclude subfolders from a backup, filter out certain files by their extension, avoid backing up particular directories, and schedule backup jobs. You can also decide whether or not Karen's Replicator should delete files from a backup if they're removed from the source folder.

The interface of Karen's Replicator is a bit outdated but it didn't interfere with backups or our ability to find settings. Personal Backup can back up data to a folder on an external or local drive, FTP site, or network share.

When selecting the files to be backed up, Personal Backup only allows single files to be added at a time. You can keep adding more, but only one can actually be chosen at a time, which can slow down the process of creating a backup job. You can , however, select whole folders, and context menu integration is supported.

A backup can be built as an archive for each and every file, creating many ZIP files, or as a single archive which contains all the data. Options are available for encryption, compression, and file types that should be excluded from compression.

Personal Backup allows a total of 16 backup jobs to be created, each of which can have their own scheduling options and incremental or differential backup type.

To use Personal Backup, you must download the proper bit or bit version that matches your version of Windows. We find Personal Backup to be very cluttered, making it hard to find what you're looking for because nearly all the settings are simply thrown into the program interface with seemingly no organization.

However, it does update a lot, which is a good sign that it's constantly trying to improve. The bit version runs on Windows 11, 10, 8, and 7, as well as Windows Server R2, , , and Windows Vista and XP users can install the bit version. Incremental backups are also supported. Settings are available to compress a backup and manage how much splitting, if any, should be done to cut the backup into smaller pieces. Restoring data is as easy as selecting the backup image and choosing the drive to restore it to.

Also, the setup file is over MB, so it could take some time to finish downloading. Take note that you need to register for a free user account on their website before you can fully use the program.

That, or log in via another account when you first open the program, like your Google account. There is no restore function, and everything that's on the destination disk is wiped clean before XXCLONE beings backing up the source drive's files. You're able to adjust the speed of the backup as well as make the destination drive bootable.

We tested this program in Windows 10, 8 and 7, but it should also work for Windows 11, Vista, and XP. PING is a program that runs straight off bootable media like a disc. You can back up one or more partitions to a file with PING. There isn't a graphical interface when using PING, so you must be somewhat comfortable with a text-only navigation screen to use this program.

You have the option to back up partitions to a local or external drive as well as to a network share or FTP server. When selecting the correct source and destination drive for a backup or restore, it's actually a bit difficult to determine which drive is which.

PING does not show you the name of the drive or the size, but instead just the first few files that are located on the disk. This is only slightly helpful when determining the right disk to select.

You can compress a backup and optionally set it up for incremental backups in the future, both of which are options you're asked before starting a backup. When restoring a backup with PING, you're required to know the exact path of the backed up files. You're unable to "browse" for the files like you can when an operating system is loaded, so you must know the exact path to the files to successfully restore them. This program, nor backing up in general, has anything to do with the more commonly known computer term ping , as in the ping command.

Areca Backup makes it simple to add new files to a backup job by supporting drag and drop. You can save a backup to any internal drive, FTP site, or network folder. Backing up to external hardware is not supported. We've ranked Areca Backup this low on the list because it isn't as easy to use as most of the other programs you see here.

Visit the Areca official website for tutorials and manuals. We were able to get this program to work with Windows 10, 7, and XP, but it may also work in other versions of Windows. CopyWipe is a backup program that can run outside of Windows on a disc or from within Windows like a regular program, though both options are text-only, non-GUI versions.

It backs up entire hard drives to other hard drives, supporting both internal and external devices like flash drives. You can copy hard drives even if they're different sizes by choosing to scale drives or do a raw copy so that everything is copied, both used and unused space. You must confirm a copy before starting, which is a good thing, but CopyWipe doesn't provide any identifiable details to differentiate between the drives, which means you must use Disk Management to know which one is Hard Drive 0 , Hard Drive 1 , etc.

We tested the most recent version in Windows 10, 8, and 7, and it worked just as advertised so long as the program ran as an administrator. It should also work for Windows 11 and older versions of Windows.

Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Use precise geolocation data. Select personalised content. Plenty of vendors have stepped in with worthy alternatives, and while none are quite as slick or transparent as Time Machine, some come darn close—and many are free.

Read on for our top picks. It has some downsides too. Scroll to the bottom of this article to see links to all our backup software reviews. Read our full review. In all our years of using it, R-Drive has proven to be a reliable workhorse that leaves us feeling confident our data is in good hands.

Among the free programs we tested, Backupper Standard wins primarily because it has the most features, including imaging, file backup, disk cloning, and plain file syncing, plus multiple scheduling options see our full review. This was the case with Backupper 4, and the latest version has only added more options, making it a surprisingly well-rounded free offering. We hit a few performance snags with less-conventional system setups, but for the average user, it should perform as expected.

Retrospect tool protects every part of your PC environment. The trial version of this software can be used for 45 days. Small business can easily backup data using this software. This software makes Mac backup simple. Backup4all is an online backup tool for computer and mobile devices. It provides a free 5 GB storage space. Available editions of this software are personal and business. You can store files online and use them from anywhere.

Easy to share data with others and change access rights. Iiperiusbackup is all in one backup software for servers and PCs. It has two solutions, advanced and business. This software is reliable and stable to back up your data.

A free version of this software has no license and expiration limitation. Synametrics is a cloud backup and synchronization tool. The software prevents the third party to access your files. It is fast and secure to back up your data. Backup Radar is all in one solution to manage all different backup vendors. It is designed to reduce the time spent in checking your backup files. It provides compliance auditing and backup reporting. This software is an ideal option for automating your remediation process.

Nexetic Shield helps you to backup your data automatically. You can use this software to backup your data from cloud-like Microsoft office and Google G Suite. This tool is an excellent way to secure your business data. SysCloud is a cloud backup software for Office and G Suite. Use this software to secure your cloud data backup on AWS. It maintains the confidentiality of your cloud data.

Such a tool is accessible to users and IT administrators. Altaro is a high-performance virtual backup and solution.

The fully-functional trial is available for 30 days. You can use free edition for small businesses for up to two virtual machines per host. Pyxis Backup is easy to use software to backup and protect your everyday data. The software offers backup support for any internal or external drive. Backups can be compressed to save space, and there's optional encryption to keep your data secure. Cobian Backup loses when it comes time to restore data — there's no simple wizard to automate the process, so you're left on your own having to copy files back into place, decrypting and decompressing first if necessary.

Still, for backing up your most valuable data, this is one of the most comprehensive tools out there. A couple of other software applications you can consider are for cloud backup software. Although you install the application on your PC or other device, your files are backed up in the cloud. This means not only do you have an easy way to recover those files if you PC or hardware fails, but you can also ensure that your backup is continuous, as well as accessible from any device through synchronization.

Microsoft OneDrive is the backup and sync storage option bundled with Microsoft Office There is a free version that allows up to 10GB of storage and there are paid options to upgrade, but this can prove expensive over the long-term if you want to backup and sync a sizable hard drive.

Even still, it's a useful keep to keep the most essential files safe. What makes OneDrive potentially ideal is if you also have a subscription to Office , as that entitles you a huge 1TB of cloud storage. Dropbox is another cloud server that allows you to save important documents online, again being free to use with the same limitations as above.

But as before, the ability to save a smaller number of essential files, such as for work, study, creative projects, and similar, can be invaluable.

An image is an exact copy of an entire drive or partition, including all installed programs and system files. If you need to reinstall Windows, you can boot from the image file and avoid having to reinstall all your programs and reconfigure your Windows settings.

Note that you can't use an image to restore your system on a different PC. Images are very large and take a long time to create, so you won't want to make one every day. For everyday backups, you'll only want to copy the most important data on your PC — your documents, photos and music, for example. There are several types of regular backup:. Each differential backup will be larger than the last, but to restore your system you'll only need the full backup and the latest differential one.