[SOLVED] App to automatically back up older versions of files on Windows 10 (other than the built-in File History feature)?

[QuantumField]

I need an alternative to the built-in File History feature in Windows 10 for several reasons:

1. I've used File History for a while, and I noticed that even though it is set to save files every 10 minutes, it doesn't actually do that. If I work on a file for a few hours, it only saves the version of the file before I started working on it - and sometimes not even that!

2. I recently started using Cryptomator to encrypt my files locally before they are uploaded to OneDrive. This had two undesired effects:
* First, Office products no longer save older versions of documents automatically (since that requires saving the file unencrypted to OneDrive), which was a good alternative to the File History feature - that actually did what I wanted, until now.
* Second, Cryptomator works using a virtual drive, and for some reason File History doesn't want to save old versions of files that are on this virtual drive - I just get an error when I try to add it to the list.

Even if these problems can be fixed somehow, I would still like to know about possible alternatives to File History. Basically I just need an app that runs on the background, and every X minutes autosaves old versions of any files that have been modified. Obviously I would prefer a free app, but I'm also willing to pay if the app is good. A Google search has not yielded any helpful results.

PS: If possible, I would prefer an app that only does this particular function, not as part of a larger (bulky and/or expensive) backup solution with other features I don't need.

Any suggestions?

 

[Ralston18]

As I read your post you are saying that even if set for 10 minutes File History does not save the file - correct?

Just out of curiosity if you change the frequency do the saves occur?

Is Automatically backup my files on?

Reference:

https://www.digitalcitizen.life/how-work-file-history-windows-10-settings-app

Note the 4th "window down.

============

Consider PowerShell:

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/po...ehistoryconfiguration?view=winserver2012r2-ps

More specifically:

Set-WssGlobalClientBackupPolicy

 

[QuantumField]

Thanks for your reply, but this doesn't matter anyway since File History just doesn't work at all for the virtual drive created by Cryptomator. It doesn't let me add the virtual drive as a folder to back up. So I am looking for another app without this limitation.

 

[QuantumField]

Update: After trying out around 15 (!) different backup apps, I found that GoodSync does what I want very well. The only downside is that it has to mirror all of the files in order for this to work, which is useless to me since my files are already backed up on the cloud. But I guess it never hurts to have another local backup.

Once the files are mirrored, there is an option to save old versions of files whenever they change. Every time I change a file it is saved automatically with a timestamp. This works much more reliably than File History, and it is also much more transparent, with the files simply saved with a new timestamp every time I make a change, so I can easily view previous versions simply by going to the appropriate folder and opening them. Also, it doesn't work on a timer like File History, but simply executes every time a file changes (and I did not notice any performance loss). Finally, there are lots of different ways to customize it, which File History doesn't have, and it works on a virtual drive, which File History doesn't.

It's a paid app - I'm currently using the 30-day trial version and if I'm still satisfied by the end of the month I'm happy to buy it!