One very important task that is all too easily overlooked is that of backing up your files. The process of ‘backing up’ your files involves creating copies of your files and storing the copies in a separate location from where the originals are stored.
The files that should be backed up are those files that you create, modify, and store on your computer – files that would be difficult or impossible to replace, and files that you change frequently. This includes such things as photos, music, graphics, videos, documents, data files that you’ve created with any specialized application (such as tax preparation software), and so forth.
In addition to regularly backing up the data files mentioned above, you should also backup your files before making any significant system changes, such as updating drivers, adding new hardware or software, and so forth.
There’s no need to back up software programs because you can use the original application disks to reinstall them.
Why is it important to back up these files? Files can be lost, accidentally overwritten, corrupted by a virus or worm, or rendered inaccessible by virtue of a software or hardware failure, or at its worst, a complete hard drive failure. If any of these situations occurs and your files are backed up, you can easily restore those files. While there are companies devoted to data recovery, the outcome is not guaranteed and the process is very expensive.
Some people back up their files by searching for known files (example: all files with a .doc extension) or by browsing through Windows Explorer and manually selecting each file and folder, and then copying those files to a flash drive, CD, or secondary hard drive. However, this hunt-and-peck method is tedious and time-consuming, and you have to remember to backup all new and modified files and folders.
A far more reliable solution is to use the Backup wizard that is incorporated into the Windows operating system. The exact name of the utility can vary from one version of Windows to another, but it can be readily found through the Control Panel. In Windows Vista, for example, the path would be Start/Control Panel/System and Maintenance/Back Up Your Computer. With the backup utility, you can backup your personal data files, as well programs and system settings.
When using the Backup wizard, there are two approaches to backing up your files: manual backup and automatic backup. You can launch the backup utility any time at your convenience (i.e. ‘manually’), or you can configure your computer to run the utility automatically, at some interval/time that you specify.