Table of contents
TL;DR / [Geek Summary]:
- Data Redundancy: Build automated local/offsite backup arrays with FreeFileSync to ensure “zero-loss” of data assets.
- Disaster Recovery: Configure one-way sync with “Historical Versions” and use file fingerprinting for incremental updates.
- Automation Hack: Use RealTimeSync for directory change monitoring and batch scripts for auto-start, creating an unattended backup hub.
# Easy-to-use automatic synchronization software: FreeFileSync
Recently, I studied how to automatically back up files from a computer to a mobile hard disk, and found that many people are recommending FreeFileSync (official website: FreeFileSync ).
This is a free software, and installation packages are provided in various systems. The software installation process is very simple. At present, I have installed it directly to the C drive. After installation, you can see two software: the green FreeFileSync and the red RealTimeSync. The method we use is: first use the green one to set the synchronization options, and then use the red one to execute and monitor the automatic synchronization of the directory.
Note:
**1. Please confirm whether the path is correct before synchronization! Do not write the two paths in reverse! ! ! **
**2. This software is equivalent to automatic copy and paste. It is recommended to select [Historical Version] in [Synchronization Settings] - [Synchronization] - [Delete Files] to save the historical versions of the files that will be overwritten and deleted to avoid file loss! ! ! **
3. At present, some people have used this software to cause file loss (I did not find this situation during use, which may be caused by using a cloud disk). Please test it before formal use and download the software from the official website ( FreeFileSync )
# Synchronization options
Open the green software, click the gear-shaped settings button above, and the synchronization configuration menu will pop up:
My usage scenario is: I want to back up multiple versions of data, so I will put all files in the mobile hard disk but will not copy the files in the mobile hard disk back, that is, I need to perform one-way synchronization**(Note: In this configuration, the redundant files/historical versions of files in the mobile hard disk will be deleted, not two-way synchronization!)**; and I want to save the historical versions of files to another folder, so my settings are as shown in the figure:
The folder here for historical versions is similar to the Recycle Bin, which will record the historical versions of each file. **Note: It is best not to select [Permanent], otherwise the historical versions of the overwritten/deleted files cannot be restored! **
The left side is the source path of the file to be copied, and the right side is the target path (folder in the mobile hard disk). **Note: Do not write the paths of the two folders in reverse! **
After configuration, you can save this file. File-Save As can save this configuration as a normal synchronization file, which can be synchronized by clicking the mouse in the green software; and File-Save as Batch Job can save it as a ffs_batch file, which can be used for automatic synchronization.
# Automatic synchronization settings
Open the red software, File-Open Select the ffs_batch file just created, and you can perform automatic synchronization. You can set the time interval for automatic synchronization (the default is 10 seconds).
If the folder is on a mobile hard disk, the software will detect whether there is such a drive letter. If not, j will not act rashly. Therefore, synchronization can be performed every time the hard disk is plugged in.
# Drive letter setting
Since the drive letter on Windows may change, we can use the name of the disk instead of the drive letter. For example, my mobile hard disk is called HenryFox (right-click and rename to change the name):
When setting the drive letter, we can use the name of the disk instead of the drive letter, such as:
In this way, there will be no error caused by different drive letters due to different insertion order of the mobile hard disk.
# Automatically start synchronization on Windows
First, we need to find the location of the RealTimeSync we installed, and just right-click on the shortcut and open the file location**.
After opening, click the address bar and you can copy the directory where the file is located. For example, mine is C:\Program Files\FreeFileSync
Next, write a txt text file with the following content:
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The first half of C:\Program Files\FreeFileSync needs to be replaced with your FreeFileSync directory, and the path to your ffs_batch file is after the space. Note: If the path has spaces, it needs to be enclosed in double quotes
Next, use File-Save As to save, and set the encoding to ANSI
Finally, open the startup folder and copy the bat file just now! (The steps to open the startup folder are: press win+R on the keyboard, enter shell:startup and press Enter)