Backup Roadmap – Finding Everything To Back Up

Now that we’ve made the case for backing up the important data that’s stored on your computer, the next step is knowing exactly where to find that data. Windows makes it easy by including a set of built-in folders and subfolders to store important “user data.” Time for a new concept: the “default” folder. Default means what the computer does automatically, unless you tell it otherwise. In the case of storing documents, pictures, music and other user data, Windows has set up folders for each type of data file, and generally does a good job of putting that information into the correct folder automatically.

Where does Windows keep all these folders? All of them – and a few more – are “sub” folders stored under the main User Account folder. Each “user” on your computer has their own account. For example, when you first boot up the computer each morning, you may see several different user names listed. At this point, you click on your user name to go to your account. That way, you see only your documents, your music and your pictures. Similarly, another user who logs on with their user account, even if it’s the same computer, we’ll see a completely different set of documents, pictures, music and everything else.

Now let’s zero in on the important folders you’ll need to back up. Click on the Windows start button. The Windows start menu is divided into left and right columns. At the top of the right-hand column is either your user name or that “generic” name. A single click on that button will open the user account folder. Inside, you’ll see all the important subfolders, Documents, Music, Pictures and others. (“Documents” may also be named “My Documents”) It’s those folders that need to be backed up on a regular basis to save your important business information. Now the question is, how much “space” will you need to back up all your “stuff?” Of course were not talking about physical space, like in your closet, or garage. We’re talking about folders and files on the computer, which take up bytes and megabytes of space. To get a rough idea of the amount of storage space you’ll need, go back to your particular user folder, the one where you can see the subfolders for Documents, Music, Pictures and the others. Point your mouse, but don’t click, on the documents folder. With your mouse hovering over the My Documents folder single click the right mouse button. A small menu will pop open, and at the very bottom of the menu should be an item that says “Properties.” Now, roll your mouse down to the word Properties, and give it a single left click. That will open a new box that will show the number of subfolders and individual files inside the documents folder, along with the total amount of storage space all those folders and files are using on your computer. The important number you’re looking for is “Size.” That will show you the total amount of megabytes or gigabytes all the information in that particular folder takes up on the PC hard drive, and how much it will take to store it on an external device.

The Documents folder is the most important one to back up, but you may also want to back up folders containing pictures and music. You can repeat the process of right clicking on each of those folders, and then left clicking on the Properties item to show the space those folders will require for backing up as well. Here’s where you need to start thinking about the hardware needed to back up and store all of this information. If the number is relatively small, meaning less than 16 GB (gigabytes) of total information, it could all easily be stored on a USB thumb drive or flash memory drive (two terms for the same type of device). If the number is larger, you’ll want to consider an external hard drive device which can easily store hundreds of gigabytes of information.