Image vs File
Newbie-type question. I selected full disc backup, which I understand is then an image. I also have it set to do four weekly incremental backups in between the full backups to save space on my external HDD.
So, then, do I have image backups or are the incrementals just file backups, so I have a hybrid? Or, is my full disc backup actually just an "all files" backup with four incremental file backups? I ask because in case of a needed restore, what do I restore? I do daily file backups with another program, so should I just do a weekly full disc image, but limit how many are kept?
Steve - a truly impressive and comprehensive answer to my specific situation. Thanks so much.
So, instead of what I'm doing, is there any benefit in doing a full disc image every week since Acronis 2019 will automatically take the last incremental image and work back to the last full in case of a restore?
I could do the weekly full, but, as you say, I would need to set it to delete images more often, get a bigger HDD or go to the cloud.
I would caution against creating very long / large incremental file chains as these expose a potential weakness!
As mentioned previously, all files in an incremental backup chain are required. Acronis provide an option that would allow you to create Incrementals only after the initial full backup, but this would then mean that you cannot afford for a single file to become corrupted, deleted, damaged etc, as this would break the backup chain at that point, rendering all subsequent following files useless for any recovery!
Personally, I tend to stick to the default settings for how many incremental files get created before starting over with a new Full backup, i.e. I use either 5 or 6 incremental files, so my chains are kept to either 6 or 7 files in length, then a new chain started.
The frequency of how often you make a new full disk backup should be determined in part by the degree of change that occurs on your computer. The Windows OS tends to have lots of small changes taking place constantly with regular Windows Updates, updates to security applications and virus / anti-malware definitions etc. What you need to consider when deciding on the backup interval is how much work will be involved should you have to recover back in time, which in turn depends on your backup scheme.
The other aspect here is to not put 'all your eggs in one basket', i.e. to make backups to different locations, so that you have multiple options for recovery. I make 3 different regular backups of my main Windows laptop, with 1 backup kept locally, 1 backup to my Synology NAS and the 3rd backup to the Acronis Cloud. These backups run twice a week to the different locations and use an Incremental backup scheme with 5 or 6 files before a new full is made, thus a new full is being created approximately once a month, and incrementals twice a week.
Note: backups to the Acronis Cloud are different in that a full backup is only uploaded once when the backup is created, after which a Delta comparison of changes is uploaded.
Again, very clear answer. Thank you, Steve.
Sage advice about keeping the number of increments low - I go for the default or fewer.
While I have some surprising success with a backup using ATI 2014 which is still creating working backups with 100+ increments. However I have a weekly backup with default used and the data is not critical. Moral: The fact that something can work does not mean that it will always work. Abundant caution is always the better approach
Ian