avast! BackUp: FAQ - Backing up

• Which files should I back up?
  
  
• How to create Custom Backup Sets?
  
  
• Why has avast! BackUp stopped performing backups?
  
  
• How can I view backup status?
  
  
• How long does it take to back up?
  
  
• Will subsequent backups take as long as the first?
  
  
• What if I lose my connection to avast! BackUp during a backup?
  
  
• How do I back up Microsoft Outlook and Outlook Express files with avast! BackUp?
  
  
• How do I delete old backups?
  
  
• My backup stopped and when I restarted it, it started over again. Why?
  

• Related FAQ's
  
  
  
  

We recommend you back up data that is difficult to replace such as photos, e-mail, contact lists, financial records, and office documents. If you're not sure what you want to back up, avast! BackUp offers you several backup sets in the Backup Sets tab of the application. You can tell avast! BackUp to use the default backup sets, create custom backup sets, or select specific files or folders that you want to back up.

avast! BackUp allows you to create custom backup sets for your specific needs.

1. Right-click the avast! BackUp icon in your system tray, then select 'Settings'.
   
   
2. Right-click within the left panel of the 'Backup Sets' tab, then click 'Add Backup Set'. The Backup Sets window appears.
   
   
3. Specify a name for your new backup set in the Backup Set Name field.
   
   
4. In the right pane, select the locations where your files are stored.
   
   
5. To create rules for your backup set, click Add a rule, then use the drop-downs and text field to specify the rule criteria. The Rules wizard appears.
   
   
   Figure III.
   
   
6. To add another rule, click ' + '.
   
   
7. Click 'Save' to save your new backup set.
   
   
   

1. First, make sure that avast! BackUp is not suspended.
   Right-click on the avast! BackUp icon in the system tray (by the clock). If there is a checkmark by 'Suspend' in the menu entry, then click it again. This clears the checkmark and avast! BackUp should begin to work again.
   
   
2. Second, make sure that the Bandwidth Throttle is not set to 'Don't back up.
   Right-click on the avast! BackUp icon in the system tray (by the clock) and select 'Settings'. Go to the 'Options' tab and make sure that the slider bar under Bandwidth Throttle is not all the way to the left. If you change it, make sure you save your changes.
   
   
3. Finally, check the History from the 'Settings' or the Status Window, and look for errors.
   It may be that avast! BackUp tries to back up, but there is something wrong. If the history displays an error message, contact customer support via avast! Support Center.
   
   
   

In the system tray, double-click the avast! BackUp icon . The Status window appears, displaying the current backup status.

For a typical system on a typical broadband line, and if you continue working on your computer during the backup, avast! BackUp backs up data at the rate of about 2-4 GB per day. If left undisturbed on a fast connection, however, you can back up over 9 GB in a single day. You may experience faster or slower speeds depending on your connection.

During installation, avast! BackUp tests your bandwidth to ensure your Internet connection is fast enough. If you want to get an estimate of the transfer rate before you begin your initial backup, you may want to use a bandwidth meter to measure your broadband connection speed, for example Speakeasy or Speedtest.net.

After your initial backup, subsequent backups are relatively quick. Chances are that you won't even notice them. This is possible because avast! BackUp performs what are called differential backups, which means that it only backs up the portions of your files that have changed since the last time they were backed up. This saves lots of time, bandwidth and storage space.

After your initial backup, subsequent backups are relatively quick. Chances are that you won't even notice them. This is possible because avast! BackUp performs what are called differential backups, which means that it only backs up the portions of your files that have changed since the last time they were backed up, as well as any new files. This saves lots of time, bandwidth and storage space.

No problem. The next time you get online, avast! BackUp continues where it left off when you lost your connection.

avast! BackUp can back up e-mail and contacts stored in Microsoft Outlook and Outlook Express.

1. Right-click the avast! BackUp icon in your system tray, then select 'Settings'.
   
   
2. Click the 'Backup Sets' tab.
   
   
3. Select the check box next to 'e-mail and Contacts (Outlook)', for Outlook Express, select the check box next to 'e-mail and Contacts (Outlook Express)'.
   
   
4. Click the 'Save' button. avast! BackUp will now backup your Microsoft Outlook / Outlook Express e-mail and contacts.
   
   
   

The short answer is that you can't, but don't despair! You most likely don't need to delete anything because your quota is based on your current backup configuration. Your previous backups don't count against you, and they don't take up any of your quota. To illustrate further:

Let's say you have a 1000 MB quota. If you back up 300 MB of photos, then your available quota goes down to 700 MB, and you've got 300 MB of photos on our servers.

The next day, you change your mind and want to back up spreadsheets instead. So you tell avast! BackUp to only back up spreadsheets and not photos, and it goes ahead and backs up 100 MB of spreadsheets. So now, your available quota is 900 MB because you are only backing up 100 MB of spreadsheets now.

However, if you want to restore those photos, you still can for 30 days until the file versions expire.

It may appear as if avast! BackUp is starting over, however, it essentially picks up where it left off. Each time you start or restart a backup, avast! BackUp calculates what it has to back up and then commences from 0% of what it has left to complete the back up.

• avast! BackUp: FAQ - General
  
  
• avast! BackUp: FAQ - Configuration
  
  
• avast! BackUp: FAQ - Restoring
  
  
• avast! BackUp: FAQ - Performance
  
  
  

avast! BackUp

Operating systems:

Microsoft Windows 7 Home Basic / Home Premium / Professional / Enterprise / Ultimate
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Basic / Home Premium / Business / Enterprise / Ultimate
Microsoft Windows XP Home / Professional / Media Center Edition
Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional