Computer Care: Back it up or risk losing it forever

	By Arthur Glazerglazer.tech@gmail.com POSTED: April 14, 2012 1:00 a.m. Most computer users have systems with sufficient technology to accomplish the tasks they were purchased to perform. They have hard drives large enough to store all the data necessary, plenty of RAM and fast processors to allow the system to function quickly and all of the proper updates installed necessary for security. Yet one thing I have found is that many of them lack an important component: a comprehensive backup. Should disaster strike, whether in the form of an operating system crash, hard drive or motherboard failure or from a virus or malware infection, if you don’t have a proper backup all of your data, could be placed in jeopardy. If you have documents, photos, videos, music, tax forms or anything else that you can’t afford to lose, you should have your system backed up on a regular basis. It’s prudent to have one, if not more, copies of things you can’t afford to lose. Why gamble having just one copy of your baby’s first steps video, photos from Nana’s 80th birthday party or the new resume you just spent hours creating? Many alternatives exist. You either need a program, a website or someone to back up your system. Various utilities are available, some of them free. You’ll need access to an external hard drive, a network hard drive or a cloud-based storage account. As long as you save your backup to a place other than what is being backed up, you’ll be fine. In other words, if you’re backing up your C drive, don’t save it to that same drive. Put it on your D drive, if it’s a hard disk, on DVDs or to another external source. There are different types of backups. Imaging creates an exact clone of your hard drive, but can be large. There are full, incremental and differential backups, each saving different things. Some use more space than others and take longer to save and restore. Incremental and differential backups save only the data that has changed since your last backup, thus saving space and time. You’ve got to decide what you want to archive and how often you want to do it. If you have a system disk (a copy of your operating system I.E. Windows XP, Vista or 7), you won’t need to copy it. You could simply duplicate your programs and data (files), or maybe just your data, if you also have the program disks. Even if you do, it can be more convenient to create a complete system backup or clone every few months instead of worrying about having to reload the operating system, then the programs, and then replace your data. Windows 7 will ask you when you initially set it up if you want to create backup disk. It’s always a good idea to do it while you are reminded of it. Put it off and it may be too late. Look on the Start Menu under Maintenance. There is the need for an emergency startup disk as well as the series of backup disks. Each serves a purpose in a computing disaster. Some external drives come with comprehensive backup programs built into them. If yours does not, you may want a standalone utility, although you could drag and drop files without one. Available for download are tools such as Acronis True Image, Norton Ghost and others. For a review of these utilities and more, go here. As always, I also suggest you visit download.com and do a search for backup or clone utilities. You’ll get an idea of what users think of the programs and in most cases, an opportunity to test-drive them. There are some good free tools, but you’ll find more options in the paid versions. Alternatively, there are web sites as Mozy, Carbonite, SOS Online and others that provide the software and the storage space for you in the cloud. Most have free trials with some free space available. A good video primer on backups can be found online from YouTube. While there, look on the right margin for similar videos. If your system fails and you have no plan in place, I may be able to save your photos and tax forms as long as your hard drive hasn’t failed. But if you don’t have a way to reinstall Windows, you may find yourself suddenly looking for a new computer. When I get called to do a repair and discover, for whatever reason, that the computer has failed, my first question is, “Have you backed up your stuff?” Depending on the type of failure, without a backup, all too often the data is gone. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but if you tell me you have not created a backup, there isn’t much I can do but assist you in finding a new system. Redundancy is good when it comes to data. Failure is imminent; it’s not a matter of if, but when. Whatever else you do with your computer, back it up. Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly on the Business page.

Backup Your Drivers

Computer Care: Back up your drivers before they can steer you wrong

By Arthur Glazer
arthur@glazerthepctech.com

POSTED Feb. 28, 2009 1 a.m.

Let's talk drivers. There are those that take us places, some that hit balls, and some are drivers for screws.

But there are also drivers for computers. They are device drivers: small programs, the catalysts that allow components to run on our computers. Without them, things like printers, video or sound cards, to name a few, would not work.

They run quietly in the background, never commanding our attention until something goes wrong.

There are dozens of these drivers on our computers. Sometimes they get corrupted or lost. Updating and backing them up are yet more tasks on the list of computer maintenance to-dos.

When your system crashes or when you suddenly discover you can't hear iTunes or you lose the ability to print, it's time to take a look at your device drivers. When you reinstall Windows, there are usually things that don't work properly, including sound and Internet. The display on your monitor may work, but it may look different. This is all due to drivers or the lack thereof.

When you purchase a printer, video card or whatever, a disk is usually included in the package. That's your driver. After their initial installation, we tend to misplace them, never to be seen again.

Windows, being the selfish operating system that it is, only comes with enough drivers for itself. The rest is up to us. Since everyone has different printers, different video cards and all sorts of other unique devices, Microsoft chose not to include those drivers with Windows. All that will change with Vista's successor.

So for now, we have the option of scouring the manufacturer's Web sites for the extraneous drivers, or getting a program to do it for us.

Some of these programs will find updates for you; some will back up your existing drivers as well. But some leave it up to you where to place them.

I like the ones that create a self-installing package for use after the inevitable operating system crash. They update the drivers, back-up everything and create an auto-installer. All you need to do is click on it and the drivers go where they need to go.

Let's start by looking at the drivers. In XP, right-click on My Computer and go to Properties then the Hardware tab. In there you'll see a Device Manager button. In Vista, click Start, then Control Panel, go to System and Maintenance, then to Device Manager. If the list you then see has any yellow exclamation marks or red x's, you have some device driver issues.

You'll see an option to Reinstall Driver in that box. If you click on it, it will ask you if you want to look through the file structure, where you'll need to know where to look, or to look on the Internet for the driver.

The thing is, if you don't have a driver for your Ethernet card, you won't have an Internet connection to find that driver. Joseph Heller would have loved this. You'll also have the option to roll back the driver to a previous one.

Let's say for now that you don't have a program to help you. If you do have a driver disk, put it in the drive and go to Device Manager. Ask it to reinstall a driver and make sure you have the box checked to search your CD drive. Hit Enter and wait. If it is the correct disk, all you need to do is follow the prompts and you're set.

If you do need to look on the Internet (you could always use another computer if you have to), go to the manufacturer's Web site and look under either support or downloads for drivers. Make sure you download the correct driver for your device and that it's for your operating system.

After you install it, be sure to reboot the system.

Even if your system is working properly, it doesn't hurt to check for updates occasionally. It could enhance your computer's performance. If you notice a device isn't working as it should, running slowly or otherwise malfunctioning, consider the driver. It could be corrupt.

Some programs worth checking out are Driver Max, at www.drivermax.com which is free, or Driver Detective at www.drivershq.com, a $30 program but worth the cost. Driver Genius is also a good program and although not free, you can try it for two weeks. You can find it at www.driver-soft.com.

Whether you're doing a driver backup because you need to, or just as a precautionary measure, it's always a good idea to archive them off of the computer. Burn them to a CD or put them on an external drive. You never know when you might need them.

The bottom line is that we could not do without our drivers, no matter what type they may be.

'Nuff said. Home, James.

Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly. Arthur welcomes your computer questions and ideas for future columns.

Backing Up Your System

Computer Care: When the crash comes, have PC backed up

By Arthur Glazer
arthur@glazerthepctech.com

POSTED Dec. 27, 2008 1 a.m.

Few computer users run utilities on a regular basis. Most will wait until something goes wrong, and by then, it's usually too late.

My advice is, even if you don't keep your system defragmented, your registry optimized or viruses and malware at bay, there is still one thing you should do: Back up your system.

Whether it's your entire hard drive, a partition, system files or just some documents, when your computer crashes - and it will - with a backup, you will have something to resort to.

There are countless programs that will help you. Some will clone your drive; others let you choose what to back up. There are external hard drives with programs built into them. I know Maxtor and Western Digital both have one-touch operation for backups on external drives.

Alternatively, you could store your data on DVDs with programs like Norton Ghost or Acronis True Image. They make images of your drive. You boot with them in a disaster and your system is returned to the time that image was created.

There are also online storage services that allow you to back up your system to their space. Try some and decide which is best for you. Most programs now allow a test drive, a try before you buy.

Check out Web sites like download.com or majorgeeks.com for trial ware and take some out for a spin. Should you decide to buy, most are in the $50-$60 range, but you'll get at least a couple of weeks to check them out first.

If you have Vista, there is a built-in utility that will walk you through a backup. Go to the Backup and Restore Center in Control Panel under the System and Maintenance header. XP has no such option, but Windows 7, from what I've read, will.

I have had to tell clients that all of their data was lost — system files along with their documents and photos — because they had no recovery plan. Some computers ship with a rescue partition. It is a part of your hard drive that you can access in an emergency. Others ship with a CD or two with the important files on it. You boot with it in your drive to restore your system, should it be necessary.

If you don't have either system, you lost your discs or erased the partition, get another way to restore your computer because one day you will have to.

Sometimes it's just better to reformat your drive and reinstall everything, than to try to fix a dozen errors. There's nothing like having a fresh copy of Windows installed. By the time you're finished, you'll have a cleaner and faster computer than you've had in months or more.

Files get corrupt and hard drives fail. It's a part of computing. If you have a plan in place and have your system files, photos and documents backed up to a secondary drive, you'll be fine.

If you've added hardware or don't have a program that copies device drivers, you'll need a program that will do just that. Driver archivers and updaters are invaluable in system restoration. Without a driver for a new video or sound card, for example, that card won't work. It's just something else you'll need to back up. Look for Driver Max or Driver Genius while you're on those download sites.

If you don't use an image to restore Windows, you will also need to reinstall any programs that were added after Windows was installed, like Office or Photoshop. So if you have your Microsoft CD in a box somewhere, make sure you keep your program CDs in there as well. Then there are the keys and passwords.

I have a little black book with vital computing information in it. I keep things like CD keys, those long numbers you need to activate a program, as well as e-mail log-on information and any passwords I might need. It beats having sticky notes all over your monitor.

If you choose not to back up your system (it's your headache), at least determine if you have a rescue partition and how to use it. Or if you have a set of recovery discs, know where they are and how to use them. You'll be in panic mode. Short of that, have the number of your tech handy.

Files will get corrupt. Hard drives have fast moving parts and will only last 4 to 5 years. And photos, the digital kind anyway, are not forever — not if you don't back them up.

Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly. Arthur welcomes your computer questions and ideas for future columns.