Backup questions - Files missing??

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B

BT

This is a general Windows XP/dos question. I'm using Windows XP Pro, so I
hope that my question can be answered here.

I have a Maxtor MSS II networked external drive (NAS) (m/n S01R320) that I
have been using for several months as a media server. Now I am trying to
use it to backup files. Although the backup seemed to go OK, I fear that
something is missing based on file counts and total size of the backup
directory versus the source.

I backed up my c: drive using the Maxtor EasyManage software. Here is what
I found:

Backup directory z:\My Backups\c: (right click on folder and choose
properties):
1.27 GB
22,879 files

c: drive (right click on folder and choose properties):
Used space: 9,140,343,345 bytes
8.5 GB

c: drive (command window - dir /s):
90,443 files
14,032 directories
7,754,548,734 bytes

Does this look like a complete backup of my c: drive? The entire c:\windows
subdirectory is missing from the backup. I know that there are a bunch of
active files that probably aren't backed up, but a backup of 1.27 GB vs a
source of 8.5 GB seems like too much variation. The file count is way off
also. The command line check says there are 90k files. I believe that
includes 3 extra files for each subdirectory that may not be listed in the
other file counts; the folder itself plus the dot file and the dot dot file.
With 14,000 folders that is 42,000 extra files. Backing these off the
90,000 files leaves 48,000 actual files - still a long way off from the
22,879 files backed up.

What's going on? Can anyone help me make sense of this.

many thanks
 
I dont use Maxtor backup software, but you will find its only backing up
certain file types or folders.
If you wish to 'Image' the drive use a specific third party tool, eg Acronis
True Image
 
BT said:
This is a general Windows XP/dos question. I'm using
Windows XP Pro,
so I hope that my question can be answered here.

I have a Maxtor MSS II networked external drive (NAS)
(m/n S01R320)
that I have been using for several months as a media
server. Now I
am trying to use it to backup files. Although the
backup seemed to
go OK, I fear that something is missing based on file
counts and
total size of the backup directory versus the source.

I backed up my c: drive using the Maxtor EasyManage
software. Here
is what I found:

Backup directory z:\My Backups\c: (right click on
folder and choose
properties):
1.27 GB
22,879 files

c: drive (right click on folder and choose
properties):
Used space: 9,140,343,345 bytes
8.5 GB

c: drive (command window - dir /s):
90,443 files
14,032 directories
7,754,548,734 bytes

Does this look like a complete backup of my c: drive?
The entire
c:\windows subdirectory is missing from the backup.
I know that
there are a bunch of active files that probably
aren't backed up, but
a backup of 1.27 GB vs a source of 8.5 GB seems like
too much
variation. The file count is way off also. The
command line check
says there are 90k files. I believe that includes 3
extra files for
each subdirectory that may not be listed in the other
file counts;
the folder itself plus the dot file and the dot dot
file. With 14,000
folders that is 42,000 extra files. Backing these
off the 90,000
files leaves 48,000 actual files - still a long way
off from the
22,879 files backed up.
What's going on? Can anyone help me make sense of
this.

many thanks
Click to expand...

It sounds like the backup program you're using isn't
really a backup in the pure sense of the word, but
rather it backs up things important to recover the
computer to some known state and has nothing to do with
any of your data and probably many other things.
Having zero experience with your app, I'd say read
the papers that came with it, or maybe Help, and see
what they say. I doubt it's intended as a full backup
application but is more aimed at getting a new drive up
and running
..
Either use XP's own backup program, or look into some
3rd party imaging applications which are much easier to
use and restore things from. If you can't afford a 3rd
party app, then you already have the XP backup utility,
and it is fully functional and capable of backing up
everything on your computer from the System State to
your data files. Only the ASR part is a little clunky
(total drive meltdown).

HTH

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