Backup of backups: I have Dell 8930 windows 10 PC. It has a C drive and a 2TB D drive and I have a 4 TB external SSD drive. I put my raw pictures into my D drive and make a backup to...

supercub

I have Dell 8930 windows 10 PC. It has a C drive and a 2TB D drive and I have a 4 TB external SSD drive. I put my raw pictures into my D drive and make a backup to my External drive. I also have backups go to One Drive.
Is this all I need to do with my files?
I have some old external drives that i backed up music and photos to only to find they can not be opened because the files are no longer supported. I looked up a couple of programs that were supposed to be able to open them but they didn"t work. When i backed them up I thought i had everything covered but apparently not.

Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Woodsman Loc: North of Peterborough Ontario

Sounds like you have the actual backups covered. File type support is beyond your control through so keep up with the news on the future of the file types you are using for your images. What are the file types you cannot open with Windows 10. Have you looked to see if you can add those file types to windows through a plug in or driver?

Dngallagher Loc: Wilmington De.

supercub wrote:

I have Dell 8930 windows 10 PC. It has a C drive ... (show quote)

Depends on the way you backup...if you use a program that creates a proprietary file to compress all your files then you could be waiting for trouble...use a system that backs up by making copies of your files...so that each can be accessed when needed without any special software.

Your needs really depend on you...how’s many backups you need to assure a recovery.

FWIW - I backup everything on my computer to a 10 TB external drive every 60 minutes using Apple’s Time Machine. It does a full backup initial, and then incrementals ( only what changed ).

I also backup my images monthly to a separate external as a mirror copy. This drive gets disconnected and kept in a fire resistant box.

My images are also backed up hourly to Amazon Prime Photo storage - a free unlimited backup for Prime members.

I can restore from any backups at anytime.

If you can restore from your backups, and you should test restore every so often, then you should be ok, depending on your needs.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

First of all, why are you backing up a HD to an SSD? I would think you would want your working storage on SSD (for access speed) and back up to the slower spinning disk.

Second, a local backup and an off-site disaster copy is good - that’s fine.

Finally, my personal recommendation is to simply mirror to your backup and DR copy and forget backup SW that creates proprietary compressed file format as dngallagher referred to above. That way you (a)will never have a problem with a file format going obsolete (b)in the event of a failure, you can mount the backup drive and immediately access your files with no restore operation (which can fail) and (c) with large image files, you won’t get that much compression anyway from a proprietary backup format.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Dngallagher wrote:

Depends on the way you backup...if you use a program that creates a proprietary file to compress all your files then you could be waiting for trouble...use a system that backs up by making copies of your files...so that each can be accessed when needed without any special software.
...
...

YEARS and years ago I did a backup with the DOS Backup command.
I found it made a compressed backup set and none of the files were individually retrievable.
It was ALL or nothing for a restore.
I never used it (or any other of that type) again.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

I also have an 8930, and I backup seven folders to two external hard drives and an NAS using SyncBack. You have an SSD as a C drive? I considered getting that, but I couldn't justify the cost because my main computer has an M.2 as the C drive, and one is enough. I've since learned that the way you order the computer changes how it is built. Mine came without an internal optical drive (my mistake), and I cannot add one. I'll use an external, instead.

I have a 4TB drive I'm going to install in the Dell as the D drive.

NCMtnMan Loc: N. Fork New River, Ashe Co., NC

What is the extension on the old backup files? Try Googling that file extension and see if it references and programs that can access that file type. And, as others have said, use a backup software that allows you to have it copy the file instead of using a proprietary file type. You might want to check out FBackup. It's been around for years and will let you either just copy the file or compress them into a zipped file.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

jerryc41 wrote:

I also have an 8930, and I backup seven folders to... (show quote)

I was surprised that the computer didn't come with SATA data cables because it has to cages for hard drives and also the SATA power cables. I ordered some, but it will take two weeks for Amazon Prime to get them to me.

tlmly

We had a total loss house fire many years ago. Everything in the computer that was not metal melted. Miraculously, I was able to boot up the data drive in a new computer and save my files, but ever since then I keep three separate backup drives: one in a removable drive tray in my computer, the second in a fire safe, and the third OFFSITE at my in-laws house. On a periodic basis I rotate them to keep the data current So far, that strategy has prevented a second house fire. :-}

BTW, a fire is not the only physical risk to your data.

aellman Loc: Boston MA

supercub wrote:

I have Dell 8930 windows 10 PC. It has a C drive ... (show quote)

It's called cloud backup. Without it you are not fully protected from loss. carbonite.com is a good choice.

smussler Loc: Land O Lakes, FL - Formerly Miller Place, NY

aellman wrote:

It's called cloud backup. Without it you are not fully protected from loss. carbonite.com is a good choice.

I use Carbonite and One Drive.
I like Carbonite as it will keep older versions of files. Useful to me for files other than photos.
What I don't like about it, is if you accidentally delete a file, in 30 days or so Carbonite deletes it too.
That I think is a poor feature in a backup program.

All my photos are on my Desktop, two external Drives (2 copies) and my laptop.
I've written my own photo organizer. My "keepers" get copied over to One Drive, which I'm using as a cloud backup for my photos and some household data.
I don't use my laptop much. Old and slow. When I do use it, I can access the One Drive files. I also access the One Drive files from my phone. That's a neat feature If I want to show someone a recent photo and I only have my phone with me (and have a signal to get to the cloud storage)

I also have a WD passport Drive for local constant backup. If I accidentally delete a file, if will remain on the Passport drive - and burn up in a fire . . . should that happen.
One Drive is my disaster plan. $1.99 a month for the storage I use.

aellman Loc: Boston MA

smussler wrote:

I use Carbonite and One Drive. br I like Carbonite... (show quote)

As you know Carbonite has excellent telephone customer service. I bet you could call them once a month and check whether they have any files scheduled to be deleted.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

aellman wrote:

As you know Carbonite has excellent telephone customer service. I bet you could call them once a month and check whether they have any files scheduled to be deleted.

They delete files?

aellman Loc: Boston MA

jerryc41 wrote:

They delete files?

If you delete files on your computer, they will remove the corresponding files from the cloud backup after 30 days.

11bravo

Just finishing provisioning 2 8TB WD RED HDD's. That's:
1. LONG format, NOT a quick format - approximately 12+ hours each
2. Full chkdsk run from a console window as administrator - chkdsk drive_letter: /x /v /f /r /b - another 12+ hours each
3. StableBit scanner (paid version) surface scan - another 10+ hours each

But after all that continuous read/writes, NOW I have confidence in the drives.

When doing, temperature control CRITICAL. I have the drive in a toaster style dock, with a fan blowing air over it, along with HardDisk Sentinel Pro (paid) monitoring the temps (StableBit Scanner also monitors temps when scanning).

Once done, I'll TeraCopy (with verify) my photos/videos onto one, then the other. Will keep current backup HDD's (2 4TB HGST's, 1 for current backup copies, the other now for new).

Point is, if using HDD's, PROVISION first. As Ronald Reagan said, "Trust but verify". StableBit scanner used to periodically scan all drives, along with full time temperature monitoring by Hard Disk Sentinel.