Question What is the best and most reliable way to backup or clone a Windows 10 laptop?

[modeonoff]

Hello, I bought a new Thinkpad with Windows 10 Pro pre-installed. Should I backup or clone the system in case something bad happen? What is the best and most reliable way to do it?

Thanks.

 

[clutchc]

Using Win 10 backup (Win7) is about as easy as it gets to make a disk image. You are prompted to make a recovery disk at the end (if you have access to an optical drive). The disk image itself can be done to an external drive.

 

[modeonoff]

Using Win 10 backup (Win7) is about as easy as it gets to make a disk image. You are prompted to make a recovery disk at the end (if you have access to an optical drive). The disk image itself can be done to an external drive.

Thanks. I recall that in Windows 7, one could take a snapshot of the system. Sometimes Windows did it automatically but sometimes the users could do it anytime he likes. Is Win 10 backup an advanced version of that?

What is the different between making a disk image vs. a recovery disk? I think both of them just clone the SSD drive?

How is Win 10 backup compared with Acronis True Image?

 

[USAFRet]

Hello, I bought a new Thinkpad with Windows 10 Pro pre-installed. Should I backup or clone the system in case something bad happen? What is the best and most reliable way to do it?

Thanks.

Backups, not a full clone.
Automated, on a schedule, multiples (Incremental or Differential)...

Read more here:
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-3383768/backup-situation-home.html

 

[clutchc]

Using Win 10 backup (Win7) is about as easy as it gets to make a disk image. You are prompted to make a recovery disk at the end (if you have access to an optical drive). The disk image itself can be done to an external drive.

Thanks. I recall that in Windows 7, one could take a snapshot of the system. Sometimes Windows did it automatically but sometimes the users could do it anytime he likes. Is Win 10 backup an advanced version of that?

What is the different between making a disk image vs. a recovery disk? I think both of them just clone the SSD drive?

How is Win 10 backup compared with Acronis True Image?

Win 10 carried over the Win7 backup/Restore app in Control Panel. It is basically the same app used in Win7. But you're confusing making a backup with making a disk image. They are not the same. Backup simply keeps a running copy of your files for restoring if necessary. Disk image is basically a "clone" so-to-speak in as much as it makes an "image" of the system's drives as they are at that moment. The image can be saved to an external drive or DVDs. Maybe even a network drive, although I haven't done that. When the imaging is finished, you are offered the option of making a restore disk (CD) to use if your syem is totally botched and you can't enter the OS. But you would need access to an optical drive, of course.

Restoring the image is pretty straight forward:
https://www.howtogeek.com/239312/how-to-restore-system-image-backups-on-windows-7-8-and-10/

 

[modeonoff]

I mainly used Mac for the past 15 years. I used TimeMachine to do backup and Carbon Copy Cloner to clone the drive. Looking for similar or better solutions for my new Windows 10 laptop.

I recall that I used Norton Ghost about 20 years ago but it failed to restore. It was too late for me to find out that the software did not work reliably and lost the entire drive of data.

 

[USAFRet]

I mainly used Mac for the past 15 years. I used TimeMachine to do backup and Carbon Copy Cloner to clone the drive. Looking for similar or better solutions for my new Windows 10 laptop.

Did you read through my link above?

 

[Peter Martin]

Acronis works great. I make full image is only

 

[modeonoff]

I mainly used Mac for the past 15 years. I used TimeMachine to do backup and Carbon Copy Cloner to clone the drive. Looking for similar or better solutions for my new Windows 10 laptop.

Did you read through my link above?

yes.

 

[modeonoff]

Is this the one to buy? The name is "Acronis True Image 2019 Cyber Protection" rather than just "Acronis True Image 2019".

Buy Acronis True Image (formerly Acronis Home Office)

Backup doesn’t need to be complicated. It should be comprehensive, reliable, easy to use and secure.

www.acronis.com

 

[USAFRet]

Is this the one to buy? The name is "Acronis True Image 2019 Cyber Protection" rather than just "Acronis True Image 2019".

Buy Acronis True Image (formerly Acronis Home Office)

Backup doesn’t need to be complicated. It should be comprehensive, reliable, easy to use and secure.

www.acronis.com

Macrium Reflect Free does this. $0

We went over this in October. All that text above.