Win7HP - USB drives - only 30% used?!!???!!!!

[ChrisGreaves]

I am examining specifically Windows System Backup, not System Restore, and backup to USB drives, not DVD RW disks.

Win7HP Help files for Control Panel, Backup state that “By default, Windows automatically saves as many system images as it has space for without taking up more than 30 percent of space on the backup disk”.
This must mean that only 30GB of my 100 GB USB drive are being used by Windows System Backup.
This must mean that 70% of my 100 GB USB drive is available for user data.

(1) Is it possible to coerce Windows System Backup to use significantly more than 30% of the drive?
(2) Is it possible to squeeze 100% out of Windows System Backup?
(3) If so, how am I to do it?
(4) If I purchase a 30GB flash drive, will Win7HP sulk if I try to place a Windows System Backup of 27 GB on that drive?

Another fragment of Windows System Backup Help states that “Periodically, Windows creates a new, full backup.”, so I should expect to see a folder named other than “BACKUP 2017-05-25 060005” appearing on my USB drive after – One? Two? Four? Weeks.
(5) Is it possible to change the period, or is this one of those cast-in-stone figures of which MS is so fond?

Thanks for each and every elucidation
Chris

[Argus]

Chris. See this blogpost for some input on the subject. Specifically the heading "System image".
https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/fil ... isk-space/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

(I'll be away from the computer for an hour or so, so if you are in dire need of assistance, ?!!???!!!!, maybe fellow Loungers can jump in. )

[ChrisGreaves]

Chris. See this blogpost for some input on the subject. Specifically the heading "System image". https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/fil ... isk-space/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; (I'll be away from the computer for an hour or so, so if you are in dire need of assistance, ?!!???!!!!, maybe fellow Loungers can jump in. )

Thanks Argus; I saw this reponse then lost it. Now I'm back, too.

I note that:
This default behavior is shown above as the pre-selected option “Let Windows manage the space used for backup history”. In this example, 30% of the backup disk space amounts to 81.13GB. The reason that not the entire disk space is utilized for storing older system images is so that there will be space left for storing your file backup as well. If you do wish to adjust the size of the shadow copy storage area (though not recommended), you can accomplish this by following these steps:

Since I posted my query, i have re-installed Windows7 from the DVD(again), installed all the updates(again), torn out all my hair (again), but this time around invested in about a dozen pairs of DVD-RW to take snapshots, and assigned a 100GB USB drive for nightly backups during my "shakedown" phase.

It's early days, yet, but my 100GB drive is now 50% used, so clearly Windows Backup will use more than 30% of the disk; probably fill it up over time.

I will read up more about the "Shadow" area.
For now I can't see the point of setting aside a fixed portion of the drive for stuff that is deleted-but-not-really-deleted.
To me it would make more sense to allocate the entire disk, then prompt the user (me!) to delete stale backups (or to switch to a new drive).

Further, my initial reading of the Win7HP help files did not alert me to this "shadow" area. I got the impression that Backup would never use more than 30% of the space for backups.

Time for me to go back and re-re-re-read the help files (grin!)

Thanks again.
Chris

[John Gray]

What I do with Windows Backups of a Windows 7 PC to a USB external hard drive is:
1) if "WindowsImageBackup" folder exists, delete it
2) use WBADMIN to perform backup of relevant partitions of the PC to this drive
3) create folder of form Images\PCname_yyyymmdd
4) move "WindowsImageBackup" folder below this folder

If, heavens to Betsy, a restore is required, it's necessary to move the relevant "WindowsImageBackup" folder to the root of the USB external hard drive, and restore it from there.

I did things this way because you can only put one folder called WindowsImageBackup in the root of the USB external hard drive (not surprisingly...).

This mechanism might solve your 30% problem - which I've never encountered, by the way.

[ChrisGreaves]

What I do with Windows Backups of a Windows 7 PC to a USB external hard drive is: .... I did things this way because you can only put one folder called WindowsImageBackup in the root of the USB external hard drive (not surprisingly...).

Thank you, John. I remember working this out a year or so ago, and getting caught up in something else. I could see a batch file that did the trick.
I might go back there in a week or so.

This mechanism might solve your 30% problem - which I've never encountered, by the way.

I could not find that reference to 30% in my (admittedly cursory) look at the help files.
FWIW this morning I am at about 60% use of my 100GB drive this morning. I continue to log the figures each morning (attached)

Cheers
Chris

[ChrisGreaves]

Well, a preliminary report shows the Win7 Backup drive filling up at the rate of about 2GB per night.
Each night I run my data backup drive, which includes a batch job to purge unwanted data. I don’t say I get rid of all unwanted data, but that I run a consistent batch file each night to get rid of stuff that I know about.
Thanks John Gray!
After a couple of misses, I now am in the habit of plugging the 100GB USB drive in at the time I unplug my data backup drives.

MSI_100GB.png

I appear to be coasting quite easily towards the 100% occupancy figure.

MSI_100GB002.png

That “some files were skipped” last night (well, this morning at 02:00) causes me a little concern. I see that TWO chunks are assigned to my new user/installation Chris069, while three chunks are assigned to my previous installation Chris068. In theory, if I really need an applications settings from the old installation of Win7HP, I can make a System Image of my current stste, restore from Chris068, obtain the data, and then restore from the recent System Image.
I’d be really ticked off if making the current System Image caused a much-needed stale version to be eliminated.

MSI_100GB003.png

I *think* that this shows that from the most recent System Image shown in the second graphic, there are eight different states of my system from which I could choose.
I have no idea why there are two periods for June shown in the second graphic, but all eight dates appear in the first System Image. (but see next post ...)
I *think* that by selecting the “Last 12 months” in the drop-down list box I have caused Win7HP to scan the catalogue of all System Images related to Chris069, which is to say, the first two shown in the second graphic.
(signed) “More deeply confused” of Toronto

[ChrisGreaves]

That “some files were skipped” last night (well, this morning at 02:00) causes me a little concern.

Code: Select all

Backup encountered a problem while backing up file C:\Users\Chris069\Contacts. Error:(The system cannot find the file specified. (0x80070002))
Backup encountered a problem while backing up file C:\Users\Chris069\Downloads. Error:(The system cannot find the file specified. (0x80070002))
Backup encountered a problem while backing up file C:\Users\Chris069\Links. Error:(The system cannot find the file specified. (0x80070002))
Backup encountered a problem while backing up file C:\Users\Chris069\Saved Games. Error:(The system cannot find the file specified. (0x80070002))

These are folders I deleted at some stage between June 1st and June 9th. Apparently Win7BU expects all original folders to be in place.
Chris