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Backup / Restore in Windows 7
Computers can be compromised in a terrifyingly vast number of ways. System backups
can be used to ward against this, and will allow you to save any necessary files on a
weekly basis to prevent as much data loss as possible in the event that your system is
compromised. This guide will cover creating backups and restoring files from them.
The device to be used for backing up your computers files will depend on the amount of
data to be backed up. If you desire to back up the entire contents of your computer, you
will need to use an external hard drive. Other options for full-computer backup include
subscription-based cloud services such as Carbonite, iDrive or CrashPlan.
However, if you only need to backup selected folders and files, a flash drive may be suffi-
cient. Also, if you are a Southeast student or employee, have access to 5TB of space us-
ing OneDrive (included with your Office 365 account). OneDrive can be synchronized with
desktops, laptops or mobile devices, allowing access to files wherever you are.
This guide will provide instruction on setting up a full-computer backup using built-in Win-
dows backup software and a WD (Western Digital) Elements 1TB External Drive.
Backup/Restore - Windows 7 Installing the External Drive
The following are instructions for installing the WD external drive. Follow the instructions
provided with your device for installation
Step 1: Open the package and connect the USB cable to the drive, then
plug it in to any USB port on your com-
puter. This will open a prompt on your
screen asking how you wish to use this
device. Select “Open folder to view
files.”
Step 2: On the drive already will be four items: an autorun folder, a WD
Smartware Pro Free Trial, an “autorun” file, and a readme (Adobe
PDF file).
Backup/Restore - Windows 7 Installing the External Drive
Step 3: You may receive a prompt asking if you wish to use a 30 day trial
of the Smartware Pro backup software. Since we will be utilizing
the backup software built into Windows for this tutorial, you can
delete all four of the files already in the drive by right clicking
them and selecting Delete.
Step 4: In order to locate the backup software included with Windows do
the following:
Backup/Restore - Windows 7 Backing Up Files
Step 4: <Continued>
Step 5: This may take a moment to load
1. Click on the Start button
2. Type the word “backup”
into the search bar
3. The Backup and Restore
utility appear listed under
Programs.
4. Click on this item.
3 & 4
2
1
Backup/Restore - Windows 7 Backing Up Files
Step 6: The first stage of the backup process will ask where you wish to
save your backup. Select the “Elements” drive, then click Next.
Ignore the warning at the bottom.
Step 7: In the next stage you will choose what to back up. Options are:
a. “Let Windows choose” option will save anything within your user libraries and
what is on your desktop. This includes your Pictures, Documents, Music, and
Videos folders. It should also include most of your program setup data such as
browser bookmarks, Outlook archives, etc. If you have important files that you
need backed up, ensure that you are saving them within these locations.
b. “Let me choose” will allow you to manually select any folders you want backed
up from anywhere on the computer. If your files ARE NOT saved in your librar-
ies, it is highly recommended you use this method to ensure that all of your im-
portant data is backed up. Check the box next to any folders you need backed
up. Consult with the Help Desk if you are unsure which backup option to choose
or need assistance locating your files.
Backup/Restore - Windows 7 Backing Up Files
Step 7: <Continued>
Step 8: Selecting “Let me choose” in Step 7 will display the following
screen allowing selection of files to be backed up.
Backup/Restore - Windows 7 Backing Up Files
Step 9: This stage will ask you to review your settings and set a sched-
ule. Setting a schedule will automatically run Backup and Re-
store at specific times. Choose a weekly time slot that you are
always available. During this time, every week, plug in your
backup drive and it will automatically find it and update the back-
up with all of the latest file changes within your folders.
Click here to set a
schedule.
Backup/Restore - Windows 7 Backing Up Files
Step 10: The window shown below is what you will see when setting or
changing the schedule. If you only wish to do manual backups,
uncheck the Run backup on a schedule box and click OK. Other-
wise, set the three options to a time frame, day, and time that
works best for you.
Important note: It is not recommended that users do daily backups, as
this is both time consuming and, if your system is compromised,
offers a much higher chance of the virus or issue being saved as
part of your backup. Weekly backups are the best middle ground
between safety and time usage.
Backup/Restore - Windows 7 Backing Up Files
Step 11: Before finishing this process and beginning the backup, close
any documents or programs you have open to ensure that they
do not get skipped during the backup. When you are ready, click
Save settings and run backup. This process can take over an
hour, but is fully automatic.
Step 12: Once your backup is completed, your external drive will have a
file named after your computer in it. In our example, the comput-
er name of the system being used was “HDFRONT”. As you can
see below, this is the system backup.
Backup/Restore - Windows 7 Restoring Files from Backup
Step 1: Double clicking on the backup file will open a prompt, asking
what you want to do with this backup.
Step 2: The first two options al-
low you to restore files,
while the third option
allows you to delete in-
dividual files from the
backup.
Backup/Restore - Windows 7 Restoring Files from Backup
Step 3: Selecting either of the first two options will bring up this window.
From here, you can search for individual files by typing their
names (which is very useful if you know the exact file you need),
browse for files, or browse for entire folders.
Backup/Restore - Windows 7 Restoring Files from Backup
Step 4: The figure below is the “Browse for files” dialog. You are given a
folder structure similar to the computer it was taken from. Re-
storing files using this prompt is exactly the same as finding
them on your own computer.
Backup/Restore - Windows 7 Restoring Files from Backup
Step 5: This is the search prompt. Using this, you can just type In the
name of the file you need, and it will appear in the list. Check off
the files you need, and click OK.
Backup/Restore - Windows 7 Restoring Files from Backup
Step 6: Once you have selected all of the files you wish to restore, click
OK and you will be asked where you want them restored to. You
can place them all back in their original folders (any folders that
are deleted will be recreated right where they were), or place all
of them in a new location of your choosing.
Important note: This tutorial is designed to take a user through
the steps required to setup a backup and restore files from a backup.
Of course your individual needs may vary. If you find you have addi-
tional questions not answered in this tutorial, please contact the Help
Desk at 573.651.4357 or at [email protected].