Backing up to Multiple External Drives

ATI allows for live backup while the machine is in use. So no, it doesn't compare data after it is written since the data can change while ati is backing up. Once a backup is written, it's committed; that's it. The data is written with checksums embedded and these checksums are used for Validating.

It's not clear if you are rotating drives or what. In any event, you should read the userguide on how to use ATI backup options and how to schedule backups and set up one or more schedules (tasks) to fit your needs. There's no magic right answer about what to do because diff folks have diff needs and tastes. If using my preferences, then figure out how much data you can afford to lose (one week's worth? one day? etc.) and then due a full disk back up at least that often and keep as many old backups as you have room for on your target disk. If you back up a wonky disk, the backup won't be much good to you and you'll wish you had an older pre-wonk backup.

All the documentation can be found here:

http://www.acronis.com/support/documentation/

We're looking to rotate between the two drives. I'm fairly certain that the method to use under this scenario is to configure a backup "set", schedule it for every other day and then copy that "set" and schedule it for the alternate days. What we want to ensure is that incrementals are complete on both drives. Will this strategy accomplish this? Thanks.

I do exactly what you are describing with two external drives. Two tasks, with schedules for alternating days. Be sure to assign unique drive letters to your external drives so that Acronis does not get confused.

You can't have the incs fro one data sets spread across diff drives, if that's what you're asking. If you want to do run a back every other day but to the same location each time, no prob. You could have two of these running one on even and the other on odd days and they could be set up to do incs, with x many incs before consolidating and how many backup files to allow before deletion occurs.

Suppose they ran on alternate days:
Day 1 1st Backup task 1(full)
Day 2 1st backup Task2 (full)
Day 3 2nd backup task 1 (inc)--On target 1 -- inc records changes since task last ran (i.e., since the Day 1 full)
Day 4 2nd backup task 2 (inc) On target 2 -- inc records changes since task 2 full
Day 5 3rd backup task 1 (inc) on target 1 -- inc records changes since task 1 last ran (i.e., since the day 3 inc)
Day 6 3rd backup task 2 (inc) on target 2 -- inc records changes since task 2 last ran (i.e., since the day 4 inc)
etc.

Note that these will be two different data sets and the chain in one will be independent of the other.

Also note that the more complicated you make it, the harder it will be to remember what contains what (especially when in the frantic my-hdisk-just-blew-up state of mind) and the greater the chance for fatal errors -- a bad bit in an inc can ruin a whole data set.

James F wrote:

I do exactly what you are describing with two external drives. Two tasks, with schedules for alternating days. Be sure to assign unique drive letters to your external drives so that Acronis does not get confused.

Amen, but not just drive names, but volume labels and different tasks names and backup file names that are easily distinguished.

And now for something completely different: I've been offered to take a survey on this forum 6 times today, so far, even though I've remained logged in. Sometimes "No" doesn't mean "No." ;)

I was hoping that I could pull off performing the same thing, but not having to create two drive letters. I was hoping Acronis would be able to detect the Drive name being different and not performing the backup because until the drive with the proper Drive name was in place. It was done with Tapes. It was done with CDs. Am I wrong to assume Acronis can not do it with Disks?

When TrueImage creates a backup task, it records the disk serial (among other things) about both the source and target disk.
When a backup is created, it looks for the recorded ID of the target disk. Of it finds something different, it will either fail with an error message, or it will begin a new ful backup regardless of what inc might be due.

While you do not HAVE TO HAVE different drive letters, you do need two different tasks and you do have to have a way of making sure the correct external is in place at time of a scheduled backup.

This may be of interest.
http://forum.acronis.com/forum/42887

You "might" be able to maniupulate the disk ID so hat both are the same (not rerferring o the mfg serial).
then possibly TI would not know the differnece and there could still be issues when TI and its data base of created backups is expecting a particular backup to be present and it is not.

GroverH wrote:

You "might" be able to maniupulate the disk ID so hat both are the same (not rerferring o the mfg serial).
then possibly TI would not know the differnece and there could still be issues when TI and its data base of created backups is expecting a particular backup to be present and it is not.

That may be possible. But, I warn that if you do that do not connect both drives at the same time. If you do, you would cause a Disk Signature Collision, and one of the drives would be rendered inaccessible and you would need to repair the problem to remove the collision.