Full Version: Backup... backup... BACKUP!
From: Laura (ELLEMD628) [#1]
16 Jul 2005
To: ALL
Just a friendly reminder to backup regularly and OFTEN. And create new Corel files rather than add pages to old ones!
I was working on a file this afternoon which I had let accumulate to about 20 pages of sample designs with a lot of text. I added 3 pages this afternoon and I somehow I managed to delete the contents of the previous 17 of those pages. Gone. ::poof:: no trace of ANYTHING! And wouldn't you know I *just* deleted and empted my recycle bin last night which probably held the automatic backups Corel creates that just might have saved my butt. I checked my mobile flash drive I use to store backups and realized I hadn't backed up my Corel files in months.
Unbelieveable. Luckily it wasn't VITAL designs that can't be redone, just many, MANY hours of work. So, just thought I'd share so you can learn from my mistake! :S
EDITED: 21 Jul 2005 by JOHNFISH
From: Da Big Fish (JOHNFISH) [#2]
16 Jul 2005
To: Laura (ELLEMD628) [#1] 16 Jul 2005
Search your Program Files => Corel (or where ever your Corel program files are), you may have a backup there. Or check in your Corel preferences for where the automatic backup folder is?
It may be lost, it may not. There are also "undelete" programs that have a free trial you can try. If it hasn't been overwritten, you may be able to recover a simple deleted file.
Which reminds me, I need to do a backup....
From: Laura (ELLEMD628) [#3]
16 Jul 2005
To: Da Big Fish (JOHNFISH) [#2] 17 Jul 2005
Like I said, luckily it wasn't something irreplaceable, more annoying than anything. I know better...I often think "I need to do another backup eventually." Now I'm kicking myself for not actually doing it when I think about it.
From: Engravin' Dave (DATAKES) [#4]
17 Jul 2005
To: Da Big Fish (JOHNFISH) [#2] 17 Jul 2005
John,
While we are on the subject of backps, what media do you recommend for a good backup system? I know there are some who will run a second external hard drive on their system, but if lightning strikes just right, it could fry the original data and the backup.
I prefer to have this done automatically at night, switching out the media each night throughout one given week, so I have at least six relatively current copies of the data.
Life would be more comfortable if I also had a complete system backup, rather than just the data. That would likely require the second hard drive I mentioned above. I guess you could backup the complete system once a month to an external hard drive, then disconnect it for secure storage.
From: JHayes55 [#5]
17 Jul 2005
To: Engravin' Dave (DATAKES) [#4] 17 Jul 2005
David
My method (which sure does not mean its the best) is to use an external/portable hard drive. I try to back new files each week on Friday. I then take the hard drive back home and lock in a safe. My main thought is if we got a fire, tornado ect. at the shop or home or both the hard drive would still be safe. The one thing I have been looking for is a simple program that will pick out all new files each week and quickly back them up on my external hard drive. Currently I use the drag and copy method but there must be something better (?? John Fish). I only back up once a week figuring that I could handle looseing a week of work but I sure would hate to loose the whole thing.
From: Da Big Fish (JOHNFISH) [#6]
17 Jul 2005
To: Engravin' Dave (DATAKES) [#4] 17 Jul 2005
http://www.fssdev.com/products/casperxp/ (free trial version)
http://www.fssdev.com/products/drive2drive/ (free trial version)
In Linux, I have a boot CD, and just copy drives (or partitions) with that. (I'm not sure about Mac, sorry DGL). Since Linux normally sets up with root (op sys files) and home (personal files) on separate partitions or drives, it makes backup simple.
Do daily backups (or whenever it makes sense, get in the habit of copying work you don't want to lose) of personal work files to a flash drive or CD (or both).
The ideal backup IMHO: 3 drives in removeable trays, exact drive copies. Drive 1, your main work drive, drive 2 and 3, Caspered from drive 1 weekly (or daily if needed), one of the drives in a fire safe. If you're doing minute to minute mission critical work, RAID 1 the drives, this isn't a replacement for the casper, it's just to insure against drive failure.
The drive copy is done OFFLINE after a complete scan for viruses (AVG, free from http://www.grisoft.com/doc/40/lng/us/tpl/tpl01 ) and spyware (Ad-Aware, free from http://www.lavasoftusa.com/support/download/ ), if you want to make sure you have everything covered, also do a scan with Spybot Search and Destroy, free from http://www.safer-networking.org/en/download/ then casper and rotate with the drive in the safe.
Having your personal work files separate is important, if all goes wrong, you can always reinstall the op sys and programs.
In my case I also have a secured copy of my "Don't Want To Lose" files uploaded to my server. I'm covered except for something that could destroy drives both in a server farm (several states away) and all my home backups. The server does a daily backup automatically.
EDIT: BTW, Norton is not your friend anymore, IMHO, it doesn't work, and takes up a HUGE amount of resources. If you want to check, run AVG and Ad-Aware and see how big the list is....
EDITED: 17 Jul 2005 by JOHNFISH
From: Da Big Fish (JOHNFISH) [#7]
17 Jul 2005
To: JHayes55 [#5] 17 Jul 2005
EDITED: 17 Jul 2005 by JOHNFISH
From: LaZerDude (C_BURKE) [#8]
17 Jul 2005
To: ALL
Laura,
THANK YOU for the reminder about backing up. I will spend some time doing so today.
My thoughts on backing up to store your data on cdr(w) and not worry about full system back up. My reasoning for this is that I have found that every once in awhile a solid format of the HD and re-installation of the software keeps my system running much smoother...
Regardless of the method one uses, Laura is right..... Backup...backup...BACKUP!
My two cents. Want change?
From: Da Big Fish (JOHNFISH) [#9]
17 Jul 2005
To: LaZerDude (C_BURKE) [#8] 17 Jul 2005
I've been doing server admin stuff too long, I get carried away.
You're right, for the average person, a backup to CDR(W) or a JumpDrive (or both) will handle most needs, the Op Sys and program files can always be slammed back on if you keep your install simple.
I'm just adding a 1 GB and 2 GB JumpDrives to one of my customer's online catalog. These are high speed, and not cheap at $140 GB, but I've seen cheaper ones for around $70 GB, 512 MB for $40. I really think it's the way to go for daily or continual backup of personal files.
You're also right that a clean install (especially in Windows) can really speed things up for awhile.
From: Cindy (CINDYM) [#10]
21 Jul 2005
To: Laura (ELLEMD628) [#3] 21 Jul 2005
We have a system set up that makes it pretty worry free. Don't ask me technical questions on it though, because it wasn't me that set it up, it was my IT person, who is my son.
He put in a server, which is actually just another computer system. The server and all my computers through out our store are networked. At certain times through out the night, starting at 7pm the server starts to back up all my programs - Quickbooks, Corel, Xenetech - every file I have on any of my computers. They back up each night, and then once a week I have a zip drive that I use to copy a disk I remove from the premises and put in my safe at home.
My main concerns were my Quickbook records and my Xenetech records, but this way I get it all without having a lot of hassle. And it's easy for a old person like me, who understands computers enough to use them, but not set something like this up, to use.
The server is also set up with a loss of power machine, so if we have a power outage, the server keeps on going until the power comes back on. The few outages we've had while I've been at work have proven to me that this machine is worth it's weight in gold.
Cindy M
From: Laura (ELLEMD628) [#11]
21 Jul 2005
To: Cindy (CINDYM) [#10] 21 Jul 2005
From: Cindy (CINDYM) [#12]
21 Jul 2005
To: Laura (ELLEMD628) [#11] 21 Jul 2005
This system didn't end up costing me anything because my son had all the parts needed sitting around and just pieced it all together. The server is a very basic computer with little on it, just a lot of memory space. The networking is very easy also. Now that I see how it was done I could do it, but glad he did instead.
If you have any contact with the high school you might be able to find a student there who is really sharp with. If you are lucky enough, you might find someone good with hardware and software.
My son started with computers as soon as he was born I think, but he is mostly a hardware guy. He is good with software, but doesn't like the complaints from people he would do installations for. He found once he installed it they wanted him to maintain it, even when they made changes that made the software stop working. He just didn't want the calls so he stuck with hardware (like building computers for people) and would just do the software stuff for me.
I was lucky because he kept me up to date and going all of his school life. He just graduated from the university in industrial engineering and moved away for his job, but he still has my computer on remote, so he can repair it as long as it has life enough to run. All I do is get on the internet and he takes over from there and does his magic. It's kind of freaky actually to see the mouse move all over the place and I know I'm not in control.
Find someone you can trust and build a relationship so they can take care of all this for you. Just by watching them change parts and run programs you can learn quite a lot. I'm not a techie by any means, but I can install just about any component if needed, change out a hard drive, install and run programs - stuff like that. The college gives classes also to learn a lot of this stuff, like networking your computers and all that.
Cindy M
From: Laura (ELLEMD628) [#13]
21 Jul 2005
To: Cindy (CINDYM) [#12] 21 Jul 2005
Actually, I'm a computer geek myself and I've taken some IS classes, but I'm more of a software person than the hardware. I'll be making my first attempt this weekend to install some additional memory on my grandparents' computer. If I could find the time I bet I could set up a basic server, I've got a couple older desktops sitting around that could probably work if I cleaned them out...I'm just too busy, or lazy.
I'm the girl everyone in the family calls about any little computer issue. In fact, I used to work at a bank and I still get calls from them on how I set something up when I was there! I usually don't mind, and enjoy working on computers in almost all facets, but now I'd rather be lasering. Guess I'm a laser geek now. :)
We do have a close friend who does networking. One of these days I ought to give him a call and have it all setup properly.
From: Cindy (CINDYM) [#14]
21 Jul 2005
To: Laura (ELLEMD628) [#13] 21 Jul 2005
If you're a software geek, then you know the difference between a software and hardware geek. Hardware geeks usually don't want anything to do with the software part due to user problems after installation.
You'll do fine on the memory install - that's very easy.
If you have old desktops lying around, depending on how old, you may be able to set up a computer for your laser also. My engraving computer only has the software installed for my Xenetech operations. Everything else is designed and held on my office computer, which is a monster. The engraving computer is pretty basic though, with just a big hard drive and lots of memory. I've only run in to one problem when the operating systems were not the same - one ran 98 and one was upgraded to 2000. Once we made them all the same, things were good again. On the other office computer we just have Quickbooks and basic Word programs, so again, that computer doesn't require much in guts.
I don't envy you running around with your laptop and trying to make that work for all your applications. You know enough to do most of this yourself from the sounds of it, and with a friend who knows networking, they can talk you through it. It really is pretty simple on the wiring, and then just getting the networking software to cooperate is not too hard if the computers are all on the same page to begin with.
What makes the networking well worth its salt is when you create a design, job or download a logo and you don't even have to leave your computer to send it to your computer that does the lasering or engraving. You just send it through the network and voila - there it is. I remember too well saving on a disk and running it back to the other computer and then loading it in - what a pain now that I think of it.
Good luck!
Cindy M