I just cant understand instructions for deleting old files from my storage drive
I'm sorry, folks. I guess I'm just stupid. I have read this forum and I've read the instructions for deleting old backup files from my storage drive, and I simply can't understand them.
I back up to a Toshiba 1TB drive that's plugged into my computer with a USB cord. It's so full that the latest ATI backup failed because there's no more room. Some of the files on the Toshiba now are even from an older desktop unit that I no longer even own! Surely I can delete them safely! But I don't know how. I know I cannot use Windows/File Manager, and I won't. But I don't understand how to do what I'm supposed to do!
When I click "Backup" on the ATI starting page, the only backup that shows up in the "My backups" list is "Entire PC". The diagram on that screen shows "source: entire PC" to "destination custom", followed by the correct drive name for my Toshiba drive". My settings include: backup daily; "custom" scheme (I don't remember why I picked that); incremental method; create full version after every 5 incremental versions; delete version chains older than 7 days; and automatic cleanup is turned on.
I simply cannot figure out what the instructions to delete old backups or their settings mean. I've only got one backup on my whole list, but I've got nearly 100 old backup files on my Toshiba and I don't need any that are any older than the last complete set of full + 5 incrementals, do I?
So how do I clean up the Toshiba? Do I really just click on the one and only backup in my "My backups" list and then choose "remove"? I'm afraid to do that without first being sure that's the right thing to do! If I do do that, do I then have to recreate any backup at all, from scratch, in order for ATI to have anything to do the next time I want it to make any sort of backup? If so, what settings shoudl I be using to do what I want to do, which is to NOT keep anything older than the most recent full + incrementals?
Can anyone please--PLEASE--tell me this in simple English, with a minimum of jargon?!
Sorry to be so stupid, but that's just what I am, I guess!
Steve, thank you! This is the kind of simple English help I was looking for! I'd like to continue the dialogue if that's ok, since you asked some quesitons and also added a few things I'm not quite clear on.
To the best of my recollection, my "Entire PC" backup is the only one I've ever had. When I look at the Toshiba contents in Win/File Mgr, all the file names are variations of Entire PC (OUR PC)_full_b9_s1_v1 or Entire PC (OUR PC)_inc_b9_s2_v1, and so forth. [The OUR PC part of that name comes from what we called the whole Dell puter when we first bought it and set it up, so I'm certainly not wedded to that name!] So that suggests to me that every file on the Tosh is from the Entire PC backup. Therefore, if I understand your first point correctly, I cannot use File Mgr to delete any of them because they all are based on the same ATI backup. Right?
I'm still not quite clear of the steps you refer to in your 3rd paragraph. How do I run a validation? I don't recall seeing that choice pop up anywhere on the ATI screens when I've only partially tried some of the "delete" type tasks before. I've probably just missed it.
Finally, I understand most of your 4th paragraph about just starting over completely, including building a totally new backup task with a new name, but since I'm a literalist when it comes to language, I want to be sure. By "completely new backup task with a new name", do you mean naming the new task something different from Entire PC (OUR PC)?
And your "point this to a new folder on the Toshiba drive" raises a different question. In File Mgr, all my ATI backups at the moment are in a folder called D:/Acronic Backups. There are several other folders also, but I honestly don't know what they all are! I must have used the Toshiba for other things in the past. A couple of them refer to my old defunct deader than a doornail HP, so I KNOW I can delete those folders with File Mgr and it won't affect ATI at all. The rest, I'll just leave, for safety's sake, since they don't take up much space. But with respect to your instruction about a new folder for the new ATI backup, are you saying I need to create a new folder on the Toshiba myself, with some other folder name besides Acronis Backups, for your instruction to create a new backup task to work correctly?
Sorry to be so pedantic, or anal, or literalist, but this is just who I am! When I read "open here" on a box of Cherrios in the supermarket, I go "but I don't want to open it here! I want to wait till I'm home!"
Tom Seeley
ps. taking this off line would be ok with me if you think that'd be better. I'm at gtomseeley at gmail dot com
Tom, to keep things simple, let me take one point at a time:
When I look at the Toshiba contents in Win/File Mgr, all the file names are variations of Entire PC (OUR PC)_full_b9_s1_v1 or Entire PC (OUR PC)_inc_b9_s2_v1, and so forth.
The key point with the file names is that for Acronis a version chain is all the files which have the same _b?_ number, i.e. from above, all the files with _b9_s?_v? are all part of the same version chain, so if you are going to remove files, you should remove only those with the same _b?_ number in the name.
So, in your Toshiba contents, how many different _b?_ numbers do you have, i.e. do you have b1 through to b9 or higher? If you do, then the automatic cleanup rule isn't working correctly as you said it should delete version chains older than 7 days.
You can manually delete old version chains, i.e. those with _b1_ to _b8_ using Windows Explorer, then click on the (V) button to the right of your task name and click on the option to Validate from the drop-down list shown. See screen shot attached below.
Thanks again.
OK. One thing at a time. I do have chains b1 - b13, dating back to 2015, but I am positive that's because I only learned of turning on "delete older than..." a couple weeks ago! So by definition I was never telling ATI to delete anything till I first realize i was running out of space on the toshiba! And by then it was too late! The very next time ATI tried a new entire backup there was no room for it!
At the moment, I will assume that now that I've turned on the automatic cleanup rule, it's working correctly. It's just too soon after turning it on at all to see logical results.
So I'm going to use File Mgr now to delete everything in the D:/Acronis Backups folder called ...._b1_... through ...._b12_... and see what happens.
See what happens means that at the moment, before deleting anything by any means, the validate option does not appear in the drop down list next to my backup name. All I can assume till I try deleting something is that it will, once ATI needs it to!
OK. I"m back. I've deleted all files on the tosh drive from ..._b1_... through ..._b11_... I've left the complete chains b12 and b13, which contain a full plus 5 incrementals, as recent as yesterday. So it has been the newest attempts to do full _b14_ that have failed due to insufficient space.
But my problem now is that when I click on the down arrow next to the name of my only backup, Entire PC (OURPC), the choice of Validate does not appear. All I get in my drop down list are Edit, Clone settings, Remove from list, and Delete. What am I doing wrong? What do I need to try next?
Tom, thanks for the update on your actions so far.
From the ATIH 2015 User Guide: Validating backups - states:
Validating backups
The validation procedure checks whether you will be able to recover data from a backup.
Validating backups in Windows
To validate an entire backup:
- Start Acronis True Image 2015, and then click Backup on the sidebar.
- From the backup list, select the backup to validate, click Operations, and then click Validate.
I'm sorry, Steve. I'm not trying to be rude or obstinate! But I can only repeat what I've said all along, to you and to myself when I RTFM! The Validate choice simply isn't there when I try to do what you say.
I've tried to capture a screen shot. I'll try to attach it to this reply. But at the moment I'm stumped. Thx for continuing to have patience with me!
Tom
Same result if I choose Operations first. The same four-item drop down menu appears, without Validate. Just in a different position on screen so I'm not sending it.
Tom, thanks for the screen shot. I think that I see what the problem is, which is that ATIH does not think that this backup task has been run and hence it doesn't offer you the option for Validate.
I would suggest clicking on the Backup Now button and let it run through to completion then see if you can see a Validate option then. You may also get pop-up messages about missing files doing this, take the Ignore option if so.
Hey! Presto! We have a winner!
I have completed a full backup successfully. Validate is now one of the options in the drop down list. So I'm good to go!
Thank you very much!
Tom
Tom, glad to hear you have it working again now.