Syncronising for backup
Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2007 10:21 am
I have an external hard drive which I use for backup purposes. I have been evaluating several file sync programs to automate the process of copying my files from my main hard drive to the external one, and like Synchronize It! the best.
However, the problem with running backups in this way is that it's difficult to clear out old data. So, if I delete a file from my main drive (the source of the backup) then I can have Syncronize It! delete the file from my backup (target) drive, or just leave it there.
If I allow Synchronize It! to delete the file, and then it turns out that I'd deleted it inadvertently from my main drive, then I have no backup. If, on the other hand, Synchronize It! leaves the file on the Target, even though it's gone from the source, my backup drive quickly gets clogged up with files I deleted from my main drive intentionally, and it's difficult to ever delete them all.
So, I'd like to propose a feature which works as follows. Synchronize It! should copy the new files from the source to the target drive, and should "flag" (i.e. remember) which files on the target drive have gone from the source (i.e. which have been deleted from the backup source). Then, after a user-specified time period (e.g. 90 days) it should delete these from the backup drive.
In other words, it should be possible to set a time delay before files no longer on the source are deleted from the target.
I hope others will like this idea and see the value implementing it in a future release. In the meantime, if anyone knows of a way I can acheive this with Synchronize It! (or, dare I say, another program), I'd be grateful for advice.
Thanks,
Gary
However, the problem with running backups in this way is that it's difficult to clear out old data. So, if I delete a file from my main drive (the source of the backup) then I can have Syncronize It! delete the file from my backup (target) drive, or just leave it there.
If I allow Synchronize It! to delete the file, and then it turns out that I'd deleted it inadvertently from my main drive, then I have no backup. If, on the other hand, Synchronize It! leaves the file on the Target, even though it's gone from the source, my backup drive quickly gets clogged up with files I deleted from my main drive intentionally, and it's difficult to ever delete them all.
So, I'd like to propose a feature which works as follows. Synchronize It! should copy the new files from the source to the target drive, and should "flag" (i.e. remember) which files on the target drive have gone from the source (i.e. which have been deleted from the backup source). Then, after a user-specified time period (e.g. 90 days) it should delete these from the backup drive.
In other words, it should be possible to set a time delay before files no longer on the source are deleted from the target.
I hope others will like this idea and see the value implementing it in a future release. In the meantime, if anyone knows of a way I can acheive this with Synchronize It! (or, dare I say, another program), I'd be grateful for advice.
Thanks,
Gary