How to Backup a Computer to an External Hard Drive ?

-

Here is the explanation of how to back up a computer to an external hard drive. These instructions apply to Windows 10 & 11.

How to Create a Partial Backup of Your Computer?

If you want to back up your important files & folders, then you can automatically save them to an external HDD at a regular time interval of your choosing.

  1. In Windows 11, connect the external drive to your computer & then select the Start menu. In Windows 10, type File History & select File History then type backup & select Backup settings.


  2. Choose Add a drive.


  3. Now choose an external drive you want to back up your important files & folders from Select a Drive popup that lists all the external drives connected to your computer.


  4. You will now see that Automatically back up my files checked. It uses a default list of files & folders. Select More options to add more files & folders under the toggle.


  5. After choosing the files & folders, check the folders in Back up these folders if any are missing from the list. Click Add a Folder & then browse for and extra folders you want to include.


[If any folder that you don’t want to include then you select it & Remove that folder from the list.]

How to Create a System Backup of Your Computer?

If you have created a complete back up of your whole Windows 10 system, it’s known as a ‘system image’. Now you can save this to an external hard drive. You can use this system image again to recover your OS & all settings if you ever need to recover your computer.

[Creating a complete system backup requires more disk space than a partial backup that contains only files & folders. The size required depends on the files on your system. Therefore, To reduce disk space usage, be sure to clear cache & log files. You'll need an external hard drive with at least 250GB of free space if you expect more than 200 GB].

  1. Select the Control Panel app in the search bar.


  2. Click Backup & Restore.


  3. Click Create a system image from the left panel.


  4. Now Create a system image pop-up window will open, Choose your connected external HDD from the On a hard disk drop-down list.


  5. Click on the Start Backup to start the backup process.


  6. It may take some time depend on the size of your system. When the backup is complete then you unplug the drive & store it in a safe place.

How Many Types of Computer Backups?

You can make two types of backups depending on your needs.

  • Partial Backup – Here you can only backup important files & folders and nothing else.

  • Complete Backup – Create a complete ‘clone’ of your whole system, including your operating system settings, important files & everything else on your HDD.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What is System32 in Windows?

-
Image
Windows operating systems have the system32 folder. The directory contains important files that are vital to the normal operation of Windows so it should never be deleted. The System32 directory is located in either C:\Windows\System32 or C:\Winnt\system32 directory. The system32 folders are copied to the hard drive during the initial installation of Windows, typically to C:\Windows\System32\. This applies to both 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows . Mostly important Windows system files reside in system32. The most common types of files in this directory are DLL (dynamic link library) and EXE (executable) files. Error messages often refer to files in this folder, especially DLL errors. It's also the only place you'll find the dasHost.exe file, which is used to connect to wired and wireless peripherals, such as a mouse or keyboard. DLL - DLL files allow Windows programs, both built-in programs and third-party utilities that you install, to perform various tasks. For...
Read more

What are the Best Email Apps for iPhone 2022?

-
Image
If you are emailing from your iPhone, you will want a dedicated iPhone email app for the job. There were no third-party mail apps available initially, but email on the iPhone has come a long way since then. The App Store is full of alternative email apps, so the challenge now is to find the best email app for your iPhone needs. Here are the best email apps you will see –  1. Spark Mail If you first open Spark, you'll see an inbox automatically grouped by category. You get one-touch replies, swipe actions & quick search results that you can save as smart folders. Spark Mail supports all popular accounts like Google, iCloud, Exchange, Yahoo, Outlook, and IMAP. You can view your schedule using the calendar and set events from email. Push notifications and customizable actions for each email account are worth considering.  It supports IMAP and is available as a free download, while Spark Premium packages are available for enterprise environments. These features, along with ema...
Read more

What is an External Hard Drive?

-
Image
An external drive is simply a  hard disk drive  or solid state drive that is attached to a computer externally, not internally. It is connected via a USB cable or wireless connection. Some external drives draw power through their data cable, which of course comes from the computer itself, while others may need an AC wall outlet for power. What Does External Hard Drive Mean? It is a storage device located outside of a computer that is connected via a Wireless connection or a USB cable. It is usually used to store media that a user needs to be portable, for backups & when the internal drive of the computer is already at its full memory capacity. External hard drives come in different storage capacities, but they all connect to a computer via FireWire, USB, eSATA, or wirelessly. External hard drives is portable so it can be stored in a safe & secure location.  A flash drive is a highly portable type of external hard drive. Why Should I Use an External Drive? ...
Read more