Please recommend me a data backup solution

pete_agreatguy

pete_agreatguy

pete_agreatguy

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Requirements: I do a monthly clone of my data drive as a just-in-case of hdd failure, fire etc.

Use to use Macrium Reflect but as that is no longer free; nor do they offer a lifetime license; I'd like an alternate option.

Looked at the following so far:

  • Clonezilla - I really dislike this interface so prefer something else.
  • Acronis True Cyber Protection (what use to be True image) - Yearly Subscription (thank you Adobe :mad:); prefer lifetime license.
  • AOMEI Backupper - No experience or ever heard of this. However, this offers a lifetime license. Anyone had any experience with this?
  • EaseUS ToDo Backup Personal - Already own their Data Recovery software and it's very good. Their free version looks to offer what I need but am unsure if I would need to upgrade to the lifetime license for their software. Anyone had experience with this?
  • Macrium Reflect - Used the free for years to do simple backup (clone my drive as a backup). Do not offer a lifetime license.
If you could let me know what you would do I would appreciate it. :)

Please feel free to recommend anything I have not considered.

Thanks for advice in advanced :)
 
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Well you could do this:- select all on your data drive, copy, paste to your backup drive!
With Macrium reflect you only have to pay for an update if its a major update ive been uning the paid version over 2 years so far and not been offered an upgrade yet, and it updates every so often.
The 12 months thing is for their support : "12 months Essentials Support"
 
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I just wanted to start a thread about this myself, but more for imaging/cloning, I am looking for the easiest most straightforward cloning software.
Prefferably a bootable one on usb stick like old Norton ghost (in dos) or Clonezilla but not like Macrium where it doesn't have its own OS but have to create a windows recovery stick, that is useless for me. Perhaps a linux based boot with a tool that clones whatever's connected?
Macrium is good in Windows though!

App I want must do device-image and on the fly/direct aswell and resize partitions relative to the source drive (or adjustable). Finally, must be able to clone Windows and Linux without issues or having to rebuild the boot loader after...

I want to have a bootable USB stick that boots on all systems, where I can make or restore images to any drive, or clone from one drive to another, with an easy no nonsense UI.

I'm familliar with:

Clonezilla - Fine if same hardware, a pain if you want to clone a bigger drive to a smaller drive. I don't know how often I struggled because the destination drive was a few gb's smaller than the source, even though the data on all partitions would easily fit.
Macrium Reflect - Superb in windows, can create an image while actually working on that OS drive, a pain to create a bootable usb stick that boots on all (x86/x64) hardware configurations though.
Norton Ghost 2002 DOS - This actually does 100% what I want, except this doesn't support GPT, UEFI and doesn't know SSD's so it messes up the SSD 4k alignment. Because of this a bit useless since SSD's became the norm, because you'd need to run paragon alignment tool after a clone...

On HDDs with MBR and BIOS/Legacy systems Ghost is still unbeatble. Stick stick in, boot to DOS, start ghost, a few button presses and it does its job...
Clonezilla is fine, and programmable, but for ''ease of use'' via the ui it's a bit ****, try explaining to your 67 year-old father how to use it... There are more then 17 effin steps (including the double ''are you sure'' questions ARGGHHH) if you use it to clone using a Samba server for example... The mounting of drives and general visualisation of drives and paths is also a huge pain for any Windows/MS (DOS) user...

Features like Macrium (in windows) has where you can image the drive you're booted and working on at the same time as working on it is superb, but only a bonus really, the creation of a usb stick in macrium is a pain.

Is there something like the old DOS version of Norton Ghost, but one that understands SSD's and HDD's ? All the other rubbish like scheduled backups, incremental backups, smart copy and basically 95% of the Windows Macrium Reflect program is unnecessary for what we want to use it for.
 
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