What Backup Type Do I Want: Full, Incremental, or Differential?

✏️ Terms relating to what backup type you want can be confusing. Understanding them helps you make better decisions about backing up.

Backing up your computer means making a copy of what’s on it. A full backup (often called a full image) contains a copy of everything. An incremental backup contains a copy of only those things that have changed since the previous backup. A differential backup contains a copy of only those things that changed since the most recent full backup. Unless you know otherwise, monthly full plus daily incremental backups is a good place to start.

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[askleonotenboom]

Confusing terms for important concepts. Let me know. Did this help sort it out?

[kenm.]

Great explanation. The only caveat I might add concerning incremental backups is that restoring from an incremental backup relies on ALL previous incremental backups being valid. If any one is corrupted for some reason the restore will fail. I do follow your suggestion as to doing a full system backup once a month but then add a differential once each week. This is Macrium's Grandfather, Father, Son template. That way you also have the ability to go back to the last differential if you had a problem with an incremental. The question is: how often or likely is it to have an invalid incremental backup? I don't know if this is really something you should worry about.

[dashard]

Thank you so much, for explaining the differences between incremental and differential. It has been a term I been grappling with for many years, and never seem to find anyone who could explain it simply and understandably. Once again thank you so much for taking the time to make this video.

[dinkarraor]

Thanks a lot for the crystal clear explanation. It made me clearly understand between the different methods of backup. Great job

[petern.]

I like to make an image when the pc is fresh as a baseline. After that I use incrementals. This way I can use the first full instead of a new, clean reinstall.

[Budfrog]

This has really helped me - thanks.

I have now set a full backup monthly - keeping 2 backups plus and incremental backup daily keeping 62 backups. The only thing I find confusing is that on the day/time of the full backup and incremental backup is also scheduled when it's not really needed - I'm asuming as it is at the same time as the full backup then it won't run.

[JM_Hansei]

Thank you sir. This was very useful and illustrative.

[johnnyz]

Using your examples, if you create a full backup on Sunday, and an incremental pack up on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, then, to restore all of that data, you have to restore from the full back up, and each incremental back up, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. If you use the differential back up method, then to restore your computer, you only have to restore from the full back up from Sunday, and the most recent differential back up. You don’t have to restore from each of the individual days. That sounds easier to me.

[acreguy]

Thanks, Leo! I'm not confused anymore👍.

[ngptl]

It's complete understanding of backups

[JimE]

Thanks Leo. The free version of Macrium Reflect will only do differential backups from what it tells me. So I do differential backups once a week. Keep in mind I use my computer for basically information and research so it is not a work tool. Been retired for 20 years.
The question is, am I missing something by doing this? What I really need a backup for is my system, pictures, email and the like. Thanks. JimE

[NoEggu]

I am assuming that the backup software keeps a database (of sorts) in some file that is part of the backup?

Consider the following scenario:
After Sunday night's full backup, I then, on Monday morning, intentionally delete file "dangerous-file.txt", and I then do an incremental backup on Monday night.

On Tuesday, my storage drive fails. I replace it with a new drive.
I then do a restore from my full+incremental backup.

Will the "dangerous-file.txt" get restored?
That file was present during the full backup, but was absent during the subsequent incremental backup. So if the backup software restores everything form the full backup, and then restores and overwrites files that have been added or modified in the incremental backup, then it would seem that the "dangerous-file.txt" would be mistakenly resurrected.

But that would be a major issue with all kinds of files getting restored that should not get restored, because the user deleted them.
So the backup software must be maintaining a database on what files disappeared from the time the full backup was run, to now when the incremental backup is run?

And that database would have to be implanted into the backup archive file(s), itself.

I have never run a test to see if a restore would mistakenly restore files.
And I have never seen any reports or reviews or anything that mentions that backup software handles this circumstance properly.

Has anyone tested this?

[julianmanjarres]

If i delete files and a backup is performed, will an incremental backup exclude the files I deleted on that backup?

[NickCassimon]

So can a full backup be used to copy to a new bigger hard disk to replace the old one ? Like a clone disk ? Thanks

[HoundDogMech]

I'll bet U won't answer this because this video is over 1 year old but:
Does the full backup do the same thing as a Clone where I can just remove the corrupt drive and replace it with the clone?

[Referee]

Leo, what is the difference between a clone copy and an image copy?

[username]

Hi Leo. I'm coming from a mac and trying to get something similar to Time Machine. I just bought an external 1TB hdd that I would like to basically clone my 1TB OS drive to, adding to it every day. Do you know any software that does this? I'm guessing I would need to do a full backup and then daily incremental backups? On mac that's all I would have to do but on Windows, do I need to a full backup again at some point? Do I overwrite my old full+incremental backups with the new full? I just want a clone of my internal system drive without doing a full backup every day, possible?! Thanks

[marioselva]

Hi Leo, I just got new with two 20 TB Hard drives from Seagate. I am planning to move all my flash drives, old external drives to one of the new Seagate drive and make the other new Seagate drive hold a copy of it . However since my procedure is incremental ones I get date in any of the flash or external drive, I move it to the Seagate drive and the copy drive or image. I thought of incremental software backup and I schedule it in Dailey or hourly base that it will make a copy of the new stuff not the whole thing . One option is to buy 3rd party software like Acronis or maybe there is a free software that do it . Can you help me on that

[cowsgoloka]

What kind of the three back-ups1 the OS supplied with the system comes with like windows 7 basic ? Can we tweak it or it's fixed to one kind

[Referee]

Leo, if I want to have a complete backup of my computer including the files and the apps that I have added on my computer how can I do that? In other words, how can I create a mirror image of my computer in a backup? Thanks.