Acronis Backup 2011 Backup Issue
I have Backup 2011 and I ran a backup today - using a backup setup that I have in the past. But the size count of today's back is way off (I did not change the Backup setup - just told it to "Start Backup". My last 3 backups using this Backup setup (backing up partitions C,D,E) are below as to size:
- 11/11/2011: 5,694,463KB
- 10/17/2011: 24,362,204KB
- 8/29/2011: 23,485,089KB
I was shocked at the reduction in backup size (no major changes to my system). So, I went to the Recovery process and use Files & Partitions to recovery a file from Drive E and the file was recovered successfully.
What would cause the change in backup size and what do I look for to ensure all my files/folders were backed up as requested.
I'm at a loss right now. Any insights are really appreciated.
Thanks
Charlie
Examine the settings inside the backup task for what type backup scheme you have selected.
It appears that the first two backups are full backups with the third being a differential or incremental type backup.
Have you edited the past anytime recently?
Tell us more about what type backup scheme you have and the retention rules or what type of backup you want to have or keep.
For example,
1. do you want all backups to be full type backup. If so, how many fulls do you want to keep. or
2. do you want a full with x number of diff or incs after the first full. How many full to keep and how many diff or incs to keep.
Ultimately, you will probably need to create a new task with revised settings point to a new target folder.
Here are some examples of how the backup scheme might look but would need to be adjusted for your number preference.
Full type backups only--Adjust the 4 to your number to retain.
Incremental type backups. First full plus 6 incrementals before another new full. Retain a revolving 4 backups chains.
Differential type backups. First full plus 6 differentials before another new full. Retain a revolving 4 backups chains.
Remember the rules relating to incremental backups. If one inc gets corrupt, all newer inc's are useless as the chain is broken by the corrupt link.
---------
If you kept the default settings, ATI created a version chain backup. The first one is a full to keep, then ATI creates a new full one, then differentials until a new full, etc.
Thanks, I will give that a look.
Thanks so much for your "detailed" help. I fixed the problem - went for full backups. Ran 1 and it did create a full backup. Great!
I am keeping your detailed note for future reference :)
One other little question - In the "settings" for the backup, under "Backup Scheme", I have it set to:
- Full backups
- Store no more then (3) recent versions
I had 2 full backups in the "backup to" folder on my External Harddrive and it overwrote the most recent one, leaving the older one and leaving 2 backups (the current one & and the older one) in the backup to folder. Why is it doing this and what am I missing? Thanks for any additional insights.
gumboman
If you have been tweaking settings, ATI might be lost. It is better to create a new task whenever you change the backup scheme, retention rules or settings, backup name or destination.
You can:
- move the backups you want to keep (even temporarily) to another directory on the same disk,
- delete the backup tasks. ATI will complain it couldn't delete all files, Insist.
- create a new task.
Also remember that ATI will always create a new full backup before erasing an older backup. So you need space for 4 full backups.