Home Storage Guides, Tricks and Tips

Re-initializing the backup system of files (differential mode)

Hi,
I have started a daily backup in the differential mode and it works perfectly. From the beginning on, each new daily file representing the difference between the first backup and the present status gets growing in size.

Without erasing this system of files, I would like from time to time to restart from the beginning the daily differential backup, ie. creating first the "full" backup and every day after, a file with the differences between this starting file and the status of files on this day.
Is there a solution, again without erasing the previous system of files ?
thank you for your answers.

Comments

  • You could manually run a full backup and followed by differential backups.
  • Yes, but next differential backups keep writing differences from the initial full backup and ignore the new full backup. The only mean to start again from scratch seems to be by deleting all previous backups, including the first full one and then creating a new differential backup.
    But what about a crash during this very time when backups are no longer available and the new one is not completed yet ?
    Thank you for your answer.
  • How do you know it keep writing differences from the initial full backup, not the new full backup?
  • Simply because the difference file is growing in size every day. If it would start from the new full backup, the difference files would be much smaller.
  • If it's a system backup, the differential backup will be large, I think it's normal.
  • No sir. It is a multiple file backup and the difference between the initial file image and the further ones is growing day after day. This is quite normal. And this is the reason why, at a certain point, I would like to restart from a new initial file image and then save the new differences in regard to this new initial image.
    And the only way I see to do this is to delete the existing save files and to create a new save file system. But in the meantime (between the delete and the new initial file), there will be no saved file and this can be quite hazardous, can't it.
  • Hello,
    I think I've got the solution...
    I've defined a new differential backup (same parameters, without deleting the existing one) and started it yesterday.
    This first backup was of course a full one so I had :
    - a full backup A  and differential files since this full backup A until yesterday (the task is scheduled every day at 10:00am)
    - a full backup B as of yesterday (the task is now scheduled every day at 10;30am)

    Today AOMEI started at 10:00am and created a new file for differences between the full A and today. Then it started again at 10:30am and created a new file for differences between the full B and today.

    When I have at least 3 generations of difference files, I will delete the old backup procedure and files and will keep only the new one going.
Sign In or Register to comment.