Uncle Roger's Notebooks of Daily Life

March Challenge: Backup!

Dugh has already stated that he's not up for much in March, and Jason has been too busy of late to participate, so this month, we're taking it easy.

We're also taking it seriously. Here's the challenge: Backup every computer, handheld, phone, or other device that has any information whatsoever on it. Make a complete backup, such that if necessary, you could simply replace the hardware and be back where you were before the problem. Then, document what you did.

For me, this involves a number of computers and other devices:

• Tuareg
  My laptop and main computer, running Windows 98
• Victoria Falls
  My imaging system (with my photos on it), running Windows 98
• My Visor
  PalmOS handheld with a lot more than just phone numbers and appointments.
• Ladysmith
  Rachel's Mac (OS 9) desktop with all her school files and such.
• Camel
  Rachel's laptop, running OS 9 -- not much on it, except the web browser and IM client.
• Rachel's visor
  She doesn't use her handheld that much, but it's still got enough that it's a pain when she lets her batteries die.

In addition to the data on each, a complete backup needs to save settings and such as well. For the windows boxes, at the very least, this includes:

• Windows Registry
  This needs to be exported and saved.
• Initialization (.ini) files
  Some programs use .ini files rather than saving settings in the registry (a much better solution, too.)
• Program Settings
  For programs like Programmer's File Editor or NetSwitcher, settings should be exported into files which can be restored and reloaded.
• Boot Files
  Autoexec.bat, for example.
• Program Installation Files
  The Zip's for all that freeware and shareware I've downloaded.
• License and Registration Keys
  It can be a pain to find the registration e-mail to set these up again; better to have a simple text file containing all of them.

For the visors, I have backup modules which make that easy, although for mine, I need to backup my compactflash card as well. I'm not sure what needs to be done for the macs, but I can at least backup all of Rachel's data files and e-mail. Luckily, she doesn't have a lot of additional software installed.

So, there you have it. Yes, it's a pain. But not as much of a pain as when something fails and you don't have a backup. Trust me, I know.