Compressing the Backup

Step 1. Create a backup task as documented in section 2.3 How to Create a Backup File containing the backup files you want to archive.

Step 2. Select the Archive Screen option from the menu on the left to activate the Properties for: screen as follows:

Figure 8: The Properties for: screen displaying the Compression and Strong Encryption panes

3.1 How to Compress Your Backup

The Compression pane is used to specify the method for compressing your backup.

Note: Compression is used to reduce the amount of space for file storage. Let's say you have a bunch of old files that you use only occasionally, but you still want to keep. It would make sense to store them in a format where they take up as little space as possible. Compression works by removing a lot of unnecessary coding out of our documents, whilst leaving important information intact. Compression does not damage your original data. The files are not viewable when compressed. The process must be reversed and your files 'decompressed' when you want to view the files again.

The three sub-options in the Compression method drop-down list are:

No Compression: As you would expect, this option does not perform any compression.

Zip Compression: This is the standard compression technique for Windows systems. Archives once created can be opened with standard Windows tools (or you can download the ZipGenius program to access them). This is the most convenient option.

SQX Compression: SQX compression is slower than Zip compression. It does however give a better data recovery rate, should the archive become corrupted.

If you have selected one of the compression options listed above, then you also can also choose:

Split Options from the drop-down list. These are most relevant for storage on removable media, for example CDs, DVDs, floppy disks and USB memory sticks. This will split the archive into chunks of a size that will fit onto your storage device of choice. Let's say that you are backing up a large number of files and you want to put them on a CD. However, when you look at the archive size, you see it is larger than 700MB (the size of a CD). The splitting function will split the archive into pieces smaller than or equal to 700MB that you can then burn on to your CDs. If you are planning to back up onto your computer's hard disk, or the files that you want to back up are smaller than the device you plan to store them on, you can skip this section.

The following options are available to you when you click on the Split Options drop-down list. Your choice will depend on the type of removable storage device available to you.

Figure 9: The Split Options drop-down list

• 3,5" - Floppy disk. This option is big enough to perform backup of a small number of documents
• Zip - Zip Disk (check the capacity of the one you are using). You will need a special Zip Drive in your computer and the custom-made disks
• CD-R - CD disk (check the capacity of the one you are using). You will need a CD Writer in your computer and a CD writing program (see DeepBurner Pro).
• DVD - DVD disk (check the capacity of the one you are using). You will need a DVD Writer in your computer and a DVD writing program (see DeepBurner Pro).

If you are backing up onto several USB memory sticks you may want to set a custom size.

To do this, perform the following steps:

Step 1. Select the Custom size (bytes) option, then type the size of the archive in bytes into the text field as follows:

Figure 10: The Custom size text field

To give you an idea of sizes

• 1KB (kilobyte) = 1024 bytes - a one-page text document made in Open Office is approximately 20kb
• 1MB (megabyte) = 1024 KB - a photo taken on a digital camera is usually between 1 - 3 MB
• 1GB (gigabyte) = 1024 MB - approximately half hour of a DVD quality movie

Note: When choosing a custom size to split your backup for a CD or DVD disk, Cobian Backup will not copy the backup to your removable device automatically. Rather, it will create your archive in those files on the computer and you will need to burn them to the CD or DVD disk yourself.

Password Protection: This option lets you enter a password to protect the archive. Simply type, then re-type a password into the two boxes provided. When you try to decompress the archive, you will be asked for the password before the task commences.

Note: If you want to secure your archive, you should think about using another method than a password. Cobian Backup lets you encrypt your archive. This will be covered in section, 4. Encrypting the Backup. Alternatively, you may also refer to the Truecrypt hands-on guide to find out how to create an encrypted storage space on your computer or removable device.

Comment: This option lets you write something descriptive about the archive, but it is not a requirementÂ

3.2 How to Decompress Your Backup

To decompress your backup, follow these steps:

Step 1. Select: Tools > Decompressor

Figure 16: The The Tools menu displaying the Decompressor option

The Decompressor screen appears as follows:

Figure 17: The Cobian 8 Backup - Decompressor screen

Step 2. Click:

This opens a browse window enabling you to select the archive you want to decompress.

Step 3. Select the archive (.zip or .sqx file)

Step 4. Click the OK button.

Step 5. Select a directory in which you will unpack (output) the archived file.

Step 6. Click:

This will open another window that lets you select the folder in which to unpack the archive.

Step 7. Select a directory.

Step 8. Click the OK button.

Use Windows Explorer to view the files that go to that folder.