PDA

View Full Version : Best PC Backup Software


MikeD
06-02-2006, 06:17 AM
OK, so the Exec Team here has asked that we purchase backup software to ensure that we have the ability to backup user laptops/workstations. Quick and dirty: any suggestions on what the best choice would be? I'll listen to opensource stuff as well as stand-bys like Ghost.

This isn't for server or massive data backups, just the ability to snapshot a user workstation for disaster recovery purposes.

Let's hear 'em...
Jeffbx
06-02-2006, 06:44 AM
How many workstations & how much data?

We use Veritas NetBackup Professional, which is the workstation version of BackupExec. I think this has now been replaced with Symantec Livestate Recovery desktop (now that Symantec owns Veritas). Dunno how well the Symantec version works, but we're pretty happy with Netbackup Pro.
MikeD
06-02-2006, 07:29 AM
How many workstations & how much data?

My bad, thanks Jeff...

Ehh, probably 5-10 workstations. Data: no more than 5 gigs per station, tops.
zero2dash
06-02-2006, 07:33 AM
Paging Mr. Fury...paging Mr. Fury :D

-If you want Ghost - I'd recommend 2003 because it was the last DOS-based version and it will create backups when your OS isn't running. Ghost 9 and Ghost 10 (both came out after the 2003 version, which for the sake of argument could be called Ghost 8 I suppose) do not have DOS-based operations and therefore create backup images while the OS is running (they call it a "hot" backup I think). A lot of people on the net claim that Ghost 9/10 are not as good as 2003 and the hot backup feature gives them problems, but on the other side of the coin - I recently questioned Mr. Fury :) about this and he said that the hot backup has never failed for him.

-On the freeware side:
MechMike posted (http://forums.gotapex.com/showthread.php?t=98083) a link to a free open source backup program called DriveImage XML (http://www.runtime.org/dixml.htm)...and MechMike's a knowledgeable guy with some solid info so you could trust that option as well. :thumb:

I use Ghost 2003 myself and I've only had 2 problems with it, both on laptops (which for some reason did not want to be backed up, so they did not boot into Ghost like they were supposed to). But anytime I've used Ghost to backup a desktop, I've never had any problems.