How to backup a PC – A must do.

Don’t let your precious photos, documents, and personal data get trashed by computer melt-down. It happens.  So be prepared.  If you are like most of us who have files that are important to you, backup soon.  By that, I mean *zoinks* like yesterday.

While you can get backup software from other companies, Microsoft recommend that you use the software that comes with Windows XP and Windows Vista. Here are pointers to get you started.

Backing up a PC running Windows Vista To get an overview of back up options for Windows Vista, see this article: Methods for backing up your files. We recommend that you use the Windows Backup and Restore program. It comes with Windows Vista, and is the best and easiest option for backing up your PC. These articles show how to use it: Back up your files and Restore files from backup.

Backing up a PC running Windows XP We recommend that you use software we've provided, Windows XP Backup. If you have Windows XP Professional or Windows XP Media Center edition, the software is already installed. If you have Windows XP Home Edition, you'll need to install it. Here's how: Install Backup from the CD-ROM in Windows XP Home Edition. When you're ready to use Windows XP Backup, here are a couple articles to get you started: How to Use the Backup Utility to Back Up Files and Folder in Windows XP Home Edition How to use Backup to restore files and folders on your computer in Windows XP

Note: The backup methods described here do not preserve installed programs—only data. If you are using an Operating System that expire, (such as trials like Windows 7 Beta which expires on August 1,

2009,) you'll need to reinstall a prior version of Windows or a subsequent release of Windows 7 before the expiration date, as well as any previously-installed programs.

 

(The above is adapted from http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/beta-pc-backup.aspx)