For this month's chart we looked at six applications that let you schedule regular backups as well as compress and encrypt the data. Three of the programs also have disaster-recovery functions that can help restore your system to a previous healthy state should you encounter a debilitating problem. Our Best Buy, NovaBackup 7.3, and the fourth-ranked Retrospect 7.5 Professional each allow you to create bootable CDs to restore your computer, while the second-place BackUp MyPC Deluxe 2006 provides a similar feature that unfortunately requires floppy disks.

Another increasingly common feature is the ability to back up open files, which means that even files in use by an application or the operating system are safely copied in the state they were in when the backup started. Each program in our chart offers open-file backup features--but note that the third-place Genie Backup Manager Professional 7.0 and the fifth-ranked WinBackup Standard 2.0 both require $40 add-ons for this.

Also convenient is native backup support, which lets you use Windows Explorer, instead of the app itself, to browse through your backups. Of the programs we looked at, only the Genie one offers the feature. Retrospect 7.5 has something akin to native backup support, but it works only with whole drives, not hand-picked folders or files.

Finally, all of the programs that made our chart back up to hard disk or CD/DVD, and all but WinBackup also support tape, a feature typically more of interest to small businesses. Only the Genie app currently works with Blu-ray Disc media; however, NovaStor and Roxio have both confirmed plans to introduce Blu-ray support in future revisions of their respective programs.

 

Rank

Backup software

Comments

1
BEST
BUY

NovaStor NovaBackup 7.3

• Price when rated: $50
• Documentation: Superior
• Ease of backup creation: Very Good
• Ease of backup restoration: Very Good
• Full Specs
• Check latest prices

PCW Rating: 86 VERY GOOD 


Affordable app is particularly easy to use, includes a wide range of features, and supports most current media types.
Full Review | Test Report | Photo Gallery

 

2

Roxio BackUp MyPC Deluxe 2006 83 rating

• Price when rated: $50
• Documentation: Very Good
• Ease of backup creation: Very Good
• Ease of backup restoration: Very Good
• Check latest prices

PCW Rating: 83 VERY GOOD 


Though unchanged since its last incarnation, BackUp MyPC is still a highly capable backup program.
Full Review | Test Report | Photo Gallery

 

3

Genie-Soft Genie Backup Manager Professional 7.0

• Price when rated: $70
• Documentation: Fair
• Ease of backup creation: Very Good
• Ease of backup restoration: Very Good
• Vendor's Web site

PCW Rating: 76 GOOD 


Simple-to-use package offers exceptional media support and some great features, but it lacks disaster-recovery tools.
Full Review | Test Report | Photo Gallery

 

4

EMC Retrospect 7.5 Professional

• Price when rated: $119
• Documentation: Superior
• Ease of backup creation: Good
• Ease of backup restoration: Very Good
• Full Specs
• Check latest prices

PCW Rating: 75   Good


Powerful software provides numerous advanced features, but its complex interface makes it better suited to IS pros.
Full Review | Test Report | Photo Gallery

 

5

Uniblue WinBackup 2.0 Standard

• Price when rated: $50
• Documentation: Fair
• Ease of backup creation : Very Good
• Ease of backup restoration: Very Good
• Manufacturer's Pricing

PCW  RATING  74 GOOD