Settings to create backups on monthly cycle

[birney]

SFFS has a lot of options for control over backups, but I'm coming from the world of traditional backups, so it has made me unsure of the settings I need. I'm used to making standard full backups (monthly) and differential backups (weekly). When I needed to restore a file, I would choose the file version I want to restore based on the days the backup jobs were run. No real options, except which files/folders should be included in the backups.

So I find I'm needing help. What settings should I use to set up a monthly routine where I start the month with a full backup, but each week after only a delta is created? I'm putting the backups on an external usb hd.

Here's what I have so far:
-Copy left To right
-Copy all subfolders
-Standard copying
-No schedule while testing, I'm running profiles manually. I think I can set up the schedule.
-Use VSS for locked files
-Files>>Files tab-unchecked all
-Files>>Deletions tab-unchecked all (Like with a traditional backup scheme, when delete a file from my live data, I would want the file to remain in the backups made before I deleted it. )
-Files>>More tab-only thing checked is Never Replace Any Files
Special>>Special Features tab-only have Use Partial Updating checked
Versioning>>Versioning tab/ Synthetic Backup tab/More tab - not sure what to do
Not wanting to zip or encrypt yet, but maybe later

(I need to get these backups set up, but after I do I plan to start exploring some of SFFS's other abilities)

Thanks very much.

[superflexible]

The normal use case for this program is to keep a complete copy of your data on a separate hard drive or on some web storage. So in the normal use, there is no such thing as full and incremental. You always have a full copy of all the folders and files, and the program copies only the new or changed folders and files to it every day.

There is a way to keep initial and incremental backups in separate folders, but it's not the original intended use case for the software.

To create a full backup, you need a separate profile from the incrementals.

The full backup would use the following option on the tab sheet Filters->General Filters:
"Clear Archive Flags"

Whereas the incremental profile would use:
"Copy Only Files With Archive Flag" as well as "Clear Archive Flags".

Finally, you need to make sure that the weekly incremental backups go to a different folder every week. There are various variables that can be used, for example:
D:\Backups\$WEEKOFYEAR

See also http://www.superflexible.com/docprofi.htm

[birney]

Thanks. Yes, eventually I intend to use SFFS for the purpose you described first, but I also want to use it to make traditional backups (fulls + delta incrementals between the fulls) that I can save indefinitely, and restore from if/when needed.

a) I see what you mean about the business with the archive flags, but are the incremental backups going to be "delta-only" backups by default?

b) Many of the profile options seem more applicable to the primary use case you described rather than to my full/incremental backup plan. My uncertainty is about which profile options to select, or unselect, in order to do traditional backups? I think my biggest questions are about the options on the Special and Versioning tabs.

Thank you.

[superflexible]

a) I see what you mean about the business with the archive flags, but are the incremental backups going to be "delta-only" backups by default?

The incrementals will contain complete copies of all new or changed files.

If you want block-level deltas, the only way is using Synthetic Backup which will keep all differentials in one destination folder like I mentioned is "the normal use case" for this software. You can read about Synthetic Backup here: http://www.superflexible.com/history.htm

b) Many of the profile options seem more applicable to the primary use case you described rather than to my full/incremental backup plan. My uncertainty is about which profile options to select, or unselect, in order to do traditional backups? I think my biggest questions are about the options on the Special and Versioning tabs.

If you want Full and Incremental in separate folders, you cannot use any options from these tab sheets. Well except maybe "Process Security and Shares" if you want NTFS permissions to be copied too.

[birney]

Hi,
I'm wondering if maybe I haven't adequately communicated what I'm trying to achieve, so let me quickly try again and then you'll probably know exactly what to tell me.

I need to do quarterly full backups, and between those, weekly delta (differential or incremental, doesn't matter) backups.

I need it to backup files in use.

My only folder/storage requirements are that every two years I will delete the two-year-old deltas and copy the two-year-old fulls to long term storage (If a restore is needed from a backup in long term storage, I would need to copy the backup from there to a place SFFS could use it to do the restore).

After any backup is made, I would not want SFFS to modify its contents in any way. My need is to have the backups as snapshots of the files/folders as they were when the backup was made.

The reason I am wanting SFFS's delta ability is so that the backups between the quarterly full backups would be as small as possible (many files are large but only small portions change).

It doesn't matter if I have to run it from command line. Whatever is required.

If there are better ways to achieve these results using SFFS, I am open to them. Thanks for your help. I'm hoping SFFS can help me too.

[superflexible]

There is no quarterly schedule, so you need to schedule that externally or launch it manually. You can invoke a profile via SuperFlexibleSynchronizer.exe /RUNX="Profile Name" /U

The full backup would use the following option on the tab sheet Filters->General Filters:
"Clear Archive Flags"

Whereas the incremental profile would use:
"Copy Only Files With Archive Flag" as well as "Clear Archive Flags".

These archive flags cause the incrementals to contain only modified and new files.

To get a new destination folder every time, you can choose the following option on the "Folders" tab sheet:
"On The Right Side, Create A New Folder Each Time"

You do not need any other option other than the default settings.

[birney]

Will this make delta backups? Above you said this

If you want block-level deltas, the only way is using Synthetic Backup ...

But you also said this

You do not need any other option other than the default settings.

and this

If you want Full and Incremental in separate folders, you cannot use any options from these tab sheets.

As I said, I don't care how the SFFS stores the backups, as long as I can 1) delete two-year-old deltas while keeping the two-year-old fulls, and 2) be able to move those fulls away and then back again if I need to do a restore with them

I appreciate your help and I'm just trying to make sure SFFS will be able to do what I need.

Thanks.

[superflexible]

Will this make delta backups?

Yes. Try it. Follow the last instructions I gave.

[birney]

I set up and ran a test but unfortunately it wouldn't make a delta backup, it would only copy the entire modified file.

For the test I created two profiles, FullTest and a IncreTest, according to your instructions. I used a 2,330 kB .ppt file to be the test file. I ran FullTest and it backed up the file. I modified the .ppt file, then confirmed that the archive attribute had been set by the modification, and then ran the IncreTest profile. But it would copy the entire .ppt file (instead of just the deltas only) to the destination folders made by IncreTest.

If it helps, it's fine for me to have the fulls and deltas in the same folder, as long as I can a.) restore files/folders as they were when each quarterly full and each weekly delta backup were done, and b.) go in after two years and delete the delta backups and keep the full backups.

I appreciate your help in figuring out how to get this set up because I would like to use SFFS if possible. Thank you.

[superflexible]

I used the term "delta" meaning that only modified files are copied, not all files.

If you want block-level deltas you have to use Versioning->Synthetic Backups and keep all versions in the same destination folder. There can be no such thing as a "Full" and an "Incremental" backup in separate folders if you want block-level deltas.

If it helps, it's fine for me to have the fulls and deltas in the same folder, as long as I can a.) restore files/folders as they were when each quarterly full and each weekly delta backup were done, and b.) go in after two years and delete the delta backups and keep the full backups.

Yes that is all possible with Synthetic Backup. It can even clean out old incrementals automatically.

But .ppt files are very unlikely candidates for delta backup anyway because I believe they are not block-based. Also, 2,330 kB is a very small file to test this with. Block-level backup can work with block-based files such as database files and Outlook .PST files which are typically much larger. The log files will report if space was saved due to partial file processing or not.