First Build: Some Questions.

[Carbo]

I'm in the process of putting together a new PC. This will be my first attempt at building my own system. I've got most everything selected, but a few questions remain.
This is for my home office, and the machine will be used as such. One of my concerns is backing up my data daily. Files change, new customers and orders, etc. One choice is to use a third party software program to back up all changes daily. I have always liked NTI's BackUp NOW!. (I'm open to hearing other choices).
But, what about installing a second hard drive? My first will be WD's Raptor 74B. Can I buy a second of the same and somehow have this second disk copy the first on a daily basis. In the event of a catastrophic crash with the first, my butt is covered. Whaddya think? And if this is a basic question, bear with me. I'm an old timer more comfortable under the hood of a '66 GTO than I am in the confines of my new Antec case . Thanks, guys.

 

[boomerang]

You have to consider what you are trying to protect against. Data loss due to a failed HD, fire, theft?

A second HD using the software you like will provide a backup to protect you against data loss.

Obviously to protect against fire or theft, you need a backup means that can be taken off site.

I have my wife's office set up with two HD's in RAID 1. If one drive fails, the system will run off of a single drive until a replacement can be installed. And it works. Within the last several weeks, that exact thing happened. They remained up and running with no downtime. One of the RAID drives is in a removable enclosure that is put in the safe at the end of the workday.

I have a tape backup that backs up all changed files that serves as the offsite backup. (This drive failed this past week and I am researching a replacement).

You don't have to use an expensive Raptor for your second drive, just one large enough to suit the need.

At home I have two Raptor's in RAID 0. I use Powerquest Drive Image 7.0 to back up the array to a third drive. One of the features I like about this software is that it will backup while I am still within Windows. I can continue doing what I am doing while it backs up my entire drive. However, there is a noticeable performance loss but it takes less than 6 minutes to back up my 10 GB.

I also like it because there is software included that will allow me to restore an individual file or folder from within the image that the software creates. And with an image, there are no problems associated with a cloned disk in regards to booting. No infighting over which drive is the boot drive.

I hope this helps.

 

[Carbo]

Yes, that does help. Thank you.
My primary concern is data loss from a failed hard drive. And I'm trying to streamline operations and save time by using a second HD as my emergency backup. I see that BackUp NOW! can backup individual files and folders, complete partitions, and even an entire drive. This can be scheduled to occur at night, for example, while I'm getting my beauty rest .
In the event I wake up one morning to find hard drive one a paperweight, I can simply boot off of hard drive 2 without any data loss or down time. Seems to me this is the way to go, versus needing to back up to CD's on a daily basis. Am I oversimplyfing this? It seems too sweet to be true. (You can tell I'm not a techie.)

 

[boomerang]

You are thinking correctly.

However, from what I have read at your Backup NOW! link, the software will create an Image. This is what you want. But, you cannot boot off of an Image. You will need a replacement drive or a partition on your backup drive to which you can restore your Image.

Just be aware of that and you are all set.

 

[boomerang]

You are thinking correctly.

However, from what I have read at your Backup NOW! link, the software will create an Image. This is what you want. But, you cannot boot off of an Image. You will need a replacement drive or a partition on your backup drive to which you can restore your Image.

Just be aware of that and you are all set.

 

[Carbo]

Whoa! That changes everything! Not being a high techie kind of guy, I was under the impression if hard drive one became a paperweight, HD2 would step right in and I wouldn't lose a minute of my time. But, you're telling me otherwise.
So, would I be better off going with a Raid 1 setup and mirroring the two disks? I have no idea how this is done, but I imagine I could find a tutorial online, or be walked through it by someone who is in the know.
Any downsides to the Raid 1 setup?

 

[boomerang]

To accomplish what you want, yes, a RAID 1 would do the trick.

The only downside I know of (besides that 2nd Raptor) is a supposed slight slowdown occuring during disk activity. Others here can expound on this with much more authority than myself. But with todays fast processors and such, I personally feel it is a non-issue. Especially if you want the benifits of it, which it sounds as if you do. The computer at the wife's office running RAID 1 is an 800 PIII and I notice no difference. We're talking office applications here, not the latest high-end game.

As far as implementation, you don't say what motherboard you're using, but most high end boards these days have it built right in. If not, you can get an add-in card to do it for you. It's easy to set up through the RAID BIOS. If you can read the manual and follow directions, you should have no problems. You can always post here with questions.