[Nick B]

I have 3 drives (C, G & F) on my PC. Some time ago, I used a demo version of Nero which did a backup of the C & G drives to F. Can't get  Nero to work any longer, so am looking for simple, very user friendly   (not geeky) software to backup my drives. Doing an occasional complete overwrite is fine with me. Don't need to sync or just update new files. I have looked at Cobian and K Replicator and they don't appear to be user-friendly. Any recommendations on simple to use backup software (and preferably free) would be appreciated.

[BradJudy]

It sounds like you're on Windows.  Have you tried SyncToy? - http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/digitalphotography/prophoto/synctoy.mspx

It's pretty easy to use and free. 

I also like SyncBack, but the interface which not be as easy as you're looking for. 

You can also check out some of the other options here: http://www.snapfiles.com/Freeware

It's a great site for finding free Windows software in various categories.

[WGH]

Try the Replicator from Karenware
http://www.karenware.com/

Her site has some really cool programs she wrote.
And they are all free.

[EchiDna]

Depends on your O/S - if you are on Vista or XP, then the solution is either already installed or on your CD/DVD waiting for you to install it.

For XP, there is a utility called windows XP backup which is not part of the generic,automatic install. You can use this by 'add windows components' on the control panel.

For Vista, there is similar, called (of all things) Windows Backup and Restore (original name huh?  ) see here: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/windowsvista/features/details/backup.mspx

Mac? sorry can't help...

[skchow]

I like syncback.  It's free, I can schedule regular backups, and I can set up which directories and apply filters to what I want to include or exclude in my backups.
link : http://www.2brightsparks.com/downloads.html
tutorial: http://lifehacker.com/software/geek-to-live/geek-to-live-automatically-back-up-your-hard-drive-147855.php

[Nick B]

Guys, thanks for the replies. I looked at the various companies and tried the Karenware stuff last night. Unfortunately, I may have checked some boxes by mistake and all my favorites are gone. Who knows what else is missing. This computer stuff can drive ya nuts..... Maybe some data recovery is possible.
 

[WGH]

Guys, thanks for the replies. I looked at the various companies and tried the Karenware stuff last night. Unfortunately, I may have checked some boxes by mistake and all my favorites are gone. Who knows what else is missing. This computer stuff can drive ya nuts..... Maybe some data recovery is possible.
 

Email Karen, maybe all the favorites are in your backup and she can help you get them back.

[davidldl]

Sorry to hear about the data loss.   If the data was important to me the first thing I would do is stop using the drive.  Remove it so that file areas don't get overwritten, mount it as a secondary drive on another pc or as a usb drive in an external enclosure.  Then run something like 'getdataback for NTFS' to scan the drive recover the deleted files.

http://www.runtime.org/
http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file/fid,22383-order,1-page,1-c,alldownloads/description.html

I've used this to recover files from corrupted drives so I think it should be able to handle deleted files.

--Good luck,
--David

[davidldl]

Here is a free undelete/recovery program.  It probably doesn't go into a deep scan like getdataback, but it may work.   

Again, it would be wise to not to mount the drive as a boot drive for best results.  That way you are less likely to overwrite any files.

http://www.filedudes.com/recover_files-download-45883.html

--David

[Nick B]

Thanks for the tips. Right now, I'm somewhat hesitant to try any more programs  Here's what I think happened. Last night, I opened Goodsync and Karen's program and tried some settings on both. The last program I worked on was Karen's and I did set up a job, but do not believe I gave it authority to run. This morning, when I opened Mozilla Firefox, the opening page was different as if in default or initial setup and all my bookmarks were gone. All the desktop items, My Documents, etc are still apparently OK. G drive (which contains my music files) and F which is the backup for C and G appears to be OK. When I go to F and open a file?..I am able to get Nero backup to start and indeed there is a restore button. I am hesitant to push that button....I may just haul this oversized case down to the local shop and have them check everything. There have been recent high readings regarding CPU usage. I probably have way too many programs running unnecessarily. I am able to do a system restore in XP, but only in safe mode. My Kaspersky firewall/antivirus is also very quirky. Bottom line, it's a bit too much for me, so maybe best to call in the pros. Thanks     

[Thump553]

If you are still willing to try, and if you have a Seagate or Maxtor hard drive in your system, download and install MaxBlast.  It's backup system is basically a relabeled Acronis one, which is one of the top names in backup software.  The only downside I see is no incremental backups.  I backed up my hard drive to an external one without a hitch.

PS-on losing your favorites, check your Recycle bin.  Also, what operating system are you using?