USB Back-up

tnbtaylor · November 03, 2009, 10:19:57 AM

The PDF user manual is very weak for the Buffalo Limitations Pro Duo. Does Buffalo know this?

Anyway, I completed my first backup to a USB drive. I did the "normal backup" selection. All went well.

Now, if I do another backup in the future (which I will), I want any and all changes to be backed up. So if a file changed or was added to the Linkstation, I want it to appear on the USB drive, but keep all the other unchanged files "as is". The choices are VERY CONFUSING and the PDF file is of no help. Can someone tell me specifically which back up option to select to accomplish this next backup? I need the specific one as there are four choices (2 are the same for some reason). I don't want an additional copy on the USB (not enough space), but only changed/added files in addition to the files that were not changed. and previously on the USB.

Please help!! The other forum answers were as confusing as the PDF manual...

Tom

Kameran · November 03, 2009, 10:35:48 AM

I think you want:

Overwrite Backup (Differential):

Saves as "_backups\sourcename\data". Does a complete backup the first time, subsequent backups only send the changes. If a file is on the destination that is not on the source, it will be deleted.

Other Option:

Overwrite Backup (Append):

Saves as "_backups\sourcename\data". Does a complete backup the first time, subsequent backups only send the changes. If a file is on the destination that is not on the source, it will not be deleted.

tnbtaylor · November 03, 2009, 12:47:07 PM

Overwrite (differential) seems correct given the description. Do I have to start over fresh, or can my next backup be Overwite Backup (differential)?

PCPiranha · November 03, 2009, 10:30:19 PM

It will do a complete backup the first time no matter what.

tnbtaylor · November 04, 2009, 05:59:55 AM

"It will do a complete backup the first time no matter what."

So, does that mean I have to delete all the files on the USB and start over fresh, or can my next backup be the Overwrite (differential)? That's what I'm confused about...I want my next backup to USB to change only the chanaged files, not complete yet another backup of the same data!

PCPiranha · November 04, 2009, 09:15:42 PM

The first backup will be a complete backup. So if you already have that dat stored and you don't want 2 copies on the drive you may want to delete the data on the drive.

tnbtaylor · November 05, 2009, 10:50:04 AM

PCPiranha wrote:
The first backup will be a complete backup. So if you already have that dat stored and you don't want 2 copies on the drive you may want to delete the data on the drive.

That seems inconvenient and inefficient. Why have a selection for "complete backup" if any other back up does a complete backup? Strange...

So now I must erase the USB drive and start over, otherwise, I will have two copies of the same data? I need to erase the USB drive and then complete the Overwrite/Differential back up, correct?

Please confirm since this will be the THIRD time I'm doing this due to the poorly written user manual.

PCPiranha · November 05, 2009, 02:56:26 PM

"Saves as "_backups\sourcename\data". Does a complete backup the first time, subsequent backups only send the changes. If a file is on the destination that is not on the source, it will be deleted."

Yes it does a complete backup the first time and only send the changes afterward. The complete backup first is to ensure that you have all of the original data. Let me know if theres any more confusion that I can clear up for you.

tnbtaylor · November 05, 2009, 03:54:24 PM

PCPiranha wrote:
"If a file is on the destination that is not on the source, it will be deleted."

So, if a file is on the USB drive (say a jpg or mp3 file), but not on the Linkstation, that particular jpg or mp3 file will be removed from the USB drive. Is that correct?

PCPiranha · November 05, 2009, 04:00:23 PM

Correct because that is a change (differentail). If you don't like that option you want to select append.

TedZeck · February 12, 2010, 01:37:29 PM

YES; Buffalo user manuals are the very worst I've ever not understood! Usually, in manuals, every other line is written in invisible ink. Buffalo's manuals include one printed line for every four or five they leave out. The user manual is fairly good if all you want is a general caption per every blurry screen capture, but rarely does the text explain what should be entered, which options should be chosen for different scenarios, what the ramifications are for each option AND, ABOVE ALL, what CANNOT be done...like Active Directory user names for Web Access or Active Directory anywhere (just on the TeraStation in general) with FTP. Then, the support guys each have their own opinions of what works with what, what doesn't work with what and what is going to be fixed with future firmware versus "that's just the way Linux is and will always be." (If that's the way Linux is and will always be, Bill Gates and Company isn't very worried."

Dustrega · February 12, 2010, 03:20:59 PM

Thank you for being clear on what your particular problem is. No model or firmware or even an explanation of the problem. Perhaps if you told us what model of NAS you have we can address the manual situation and improve upon it. This is not a place to just rant and rave, it's a community that (when addressed correctly with proper information) is more than willing to help. We're a lot less responsive to posts such as this. If you would be kind enough to post your model and firmware with a specific on what your particular problem is (besides the aforementioned) we can proceed from there.

studio121 · February 27, 2010, 09:22:20 AM

So, If I am backing up my files that are on TS-XL/R5 to an external USB device in XFS format...I would first do a Complete Backup (so I have all my info..exactly as on the TS)

Monday at work I make changes to my files on the TS

Monday night - I would want to do an "Overwrite Backup Differential" Now I would still have an exact replica of the TS

Tuesday at work I make changes to my files on the TS

Tuesday night, I would do the "Overwrite Backup Differential" Again to have an exact replica of the TS

And so on.

Okay, so now, if for whatever reason (Lets Hope Not), But something happens to my TS-XL/R5. How do I get my files

recovered from my External USB device? Is it one easy step or do I have to go back an up from my original full backup and do each day seperately, monday, tuesday etc.?

Dustrega · April 08, 2010, 04:24:15 PM

Sorry, getting caught up on a backlog. To answer your question you'll need to connect the USB drive to a machine running Linux. This is not as bad as it sounds since the Ubuntu Live CD should be able to not only boot to a Linux environment without installing anything but can also read/write XFS/NTFS. We do not support all of this directly but to get your own Live CD created you can go to their website http://www.ubuntu.com/" target="_self" rel="nofollow">here. This is merely an alternative to sending the device off to data recovery, which will most likely yield better results than attempting to integrate XFS capability into Windows (shudders) although I'm told it's possible.

drew · August 20, 2010, 02:27:19 PM

Related to this thread. I would love to be able to use my linkstation with automatic backup software Mozy. Mozy provides a functionality to do this via USB (local attached drive) but I tried to plug the linkstation and it doesn't recognize as a drive.

Any Suggestions?

Gear:

Linkstation Live 500gb

Windows XP sp3

News:

USB Back-up

Overwrite Backup (Differential):

Overwrite Backup (Append):