Backup Types

Backup4all stores a summary snapshot of the file information into a backup catalog file (".bkc") each time a backup is executed. For every file backed up, the snapshot contains the file name, size and attributes as well as the date and time of creation, latest modification and latest access.

Legacy backup applications inspect each file's archive flag to identify which files have been changed. Backup4all will not interfere with any other backup software, because it does not read or change the archive flag, it uses the catalog file to decide which files have to be backed up and which not.

Backup4all implements all four fundamental backup types: full backup, differential backup, incremental backup and mirror backup. Below you can find an overview of these types.

Full Backup

Full backup is the starting point for all other backups and contains all the data in the folders and files that are selected to be backed up. Because full backup stores all files and folders, frequent full backups result in faster and simpler restore operations. Remember that when you choose other backup types, restore jobs may take longer.

Differential Backup

A differential backup contains all files that have changed since the last full backup. The advantage of a differential backup is that it shortens restore time compared to an incremental backup. However, if you perform the differential backup too many times, the size of the differential backup might grow to be larger than the baseline full backup.

Incremental Backup

An incremental backup stores all files that have changed since the last full, differential or incremental backup. The advantage of an incremental backup is that it takes the least time to complete. However, during a restore operation, each incremental backup must be processed, which could result in a lengthy restore job.

Mirror Backup

A mirror backup is identical to a full backup, with the exception that the files are not compressed in zip files and they cannot be protected with a password. A mirror backup is most frequently used to create an exact copy of the backup data. It has the benefit that the backup files can also be readily accessed using tools like Windows Explorer.

Using the mirror backup type, you can also choose to zip each file individually, preserving the folder structure. This allows you to use the zip compression and encryption features.