How To Backup Windows 10 & 11 For Free!!

Many people in a previous video claimed file history wasn't a real backup. In this video I explain why that position is wrong and show how to setup file history as a real and effective free backup solution.
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#Windows #Backup #Tech

[@Joe-SoftwareEngineer]

Excellent points. Especially when you said "you can never have too many backups", I agree 100%

[@computer9485]

That's just plain silly. 1 million back ups is too many. But even if you have a handful but that starts causing you to run into confusion about version control or location of files, that may be too many. I used to think like you but after having spent untold hours trying to unwind what I was thinking when I backed stuff up or accidentally deleting what I thought was a redundant back up

[@surferdudemi]

It's a lot easier if you assign the NAS to a drive letter. Then you can just select it whenever / wherever you want to use it.

[@ajosepi1976]

I have been manually backing up for 35+ years. I have used those backups hundreds of times, but never for hardware failures. I have been lucky with storage drives. Video cards, not so much. I think I have only had one hard drive fail, and it was before I ever put anything on it. I have had about a dozen video cards die though. Two motherboards, and some RAM. I think that's about it. Backups have mostly come in handy from accidental deletions and software not saving different versions of a file. I think the most important thing I do is buy good quality storage. Good video and I turned it on.

[@JohnDlugosz]

I agree, one scenario to plan for is MS Word trashing your file. Accidental software issues can make you lose files, without anything being wrong with the drive. There is a hierarchy of things to protect from. The Offsite backup kept at a friend or relative's house won't help if a tornado or flood hits the entire area.

[@CherokezPittman]

Hey there! It's awesome to hear about your experience with manual backups. It sounds like you've been through quite a journey with hardware failures. By investing in good quality storage, like the Segway Portable PowerStation Cube Series, you can ensure that your important files and devices are protected. With its massive capacity, fast recharging, and waterproof technology, it's definitely worth considering for outdoor adventures and ensuring uninterrupted power supply. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

[@b9bot148]

Agree with you, just because you don't use cloud storage it's not a backup. An external drive is more efficient than cloud storage. Especially to upload your data too. Can take weeks if you don't have a gigabit connection. Restoring from the cloud is also very slow. I prefer the old fashioned external hard drive for my backups.

[@ErvigHenry]

Thank you for sharing your thoughts! I completely agree with you that an external hard drive is a great option for backing up data. It's always important to have multiple backup solutions in case one fails. Have you considered the Segway Portable PowerStation Cube Series for your outdoor adventures? It offers a massive capacity, fast recharging, and comprehensive protections. It could be a reliable option to power your devices and keep your data safe while enjoying the great outdoors.

[@davinp]

The reason Microsoft removed File History from the Settings app in Windows 11 is because the feature has been deprecated for years (i.e. no development on it, and no mending it if it breaks).

[@CyberCPU]

I've heard that. It's funny how Microsoft always gets rid of the "good" features.

[@user-ue6zx2do2f]

Same with the file explorer. Apple had tags since 2011 The Only Use for Feature Left is powertoys

[@davidkroft]

Meanwhile the fax service is still a thing...

[@techbio]

Because they want you to use their cloud. Just part of pushing everyone onto the cloud which if they have their way (though I'm sceptical it will ever happen, at least not in the next 20 years) would result on Windows itself being run from the cloud ie you will boot directly into the cloud and have nothing stored locally, no data, no settings, no os, nothing except the boot loader.

[@davinp]

@@techbio There is a cloud version of Windows - Windows 365

[@leecarr2650]

Wow I got that rebuilt pc to boot one more time and BACK IT UP WITH EXTERNAL HARD DRIVE. I was freekin out. then I thought " My main man has a fix find it." Thank you much for all the info you produce on these videos and your channel!

[@davinp]

There is also File History in the old Control Panel. The only disadvantage is the you need to keep your external drive plugged in all the time

[@CyberCPU]

Yes, this is the biggest issue with file history. I've had a few customers Velcro external hard drives to the back of their monitor on their laptop for this reason.

[@user-ue6zx2do2f]

⁠

[@AnthonyManzio]

@@CyberCPU I have 2 drives. One for backup. But this doesn't create a windows system file if needed to do a restore?

[@techbio]

Great thorough video on File History. It's a shame MS seem to be deprecating File History as it's a great option for average non tech users which unfortunately MS are making less and less intuitive with each iteration of Windows. Something you don't seem to have covered though which I think is worth covering is the "Backup and Restore (Windows 7)" backup system. It's still present and 100% working in Windows 11 and offers some advantages over File History (and some disadvantages). Used in conjunction with File History, or even used weekly or monthly with another drive (not your File History drive), can provide the user with a full system backup of their Windows install, that can be used as a bare metal restore in the case of a main drive failure, or as a full system backup on to completely new hardware (but not from bare metal - must install windows first then do the system restore). [edit: for clarity here; you can restore to bare metal if you made a recovery disc or using an installation media recovery console, otherwise you install windows first then perform the restore from within the freshly installed windows]. For some who might have assumed the "Windows 7 backup" system on Windows 10 and 11 is only for restoring data from an old Windows 7 backup, I can confirm from extensive experience that the Windows 7 backup system included in Win 10 and 11 can fully backup a Windows 10 or 11 installation and restore it to bare metal or from within Windows. It's the primary method I use for moving a Windows installation from one drive to a other or one computer to another. One of the issues with this old Windows 7 backup system is that it has no gui controls for incremental backup frequency, so it does a full backup on every scheduled backup which if done nightly can end up filling the backup disc very quickly. And no ability to delete older backups automatically when full. There are however registry settings to force a full backup only every so many days (up to 365), and an incremental backup only at the usual scheduled backup times. I wouldn't recommend the Windows 7 backup system for anyone who wasn't prepared to keep an eye on the backup disk capacity (though Windows WILL warn you when it's full). Of the two File History is still the best option for set and forget data backup.

[@ran2wild370]

Question to the US guys: how are those key-sites legal? So many US people advertising them without hesitation. And on the Reddit mods warning that keys aren't verified by MS or illegal. But how? The first thing is that MS may approach those who advertise those key-sites, because people are real US residents and it is easy to reach them and question or ask to stop such kind of activity.

[@damian-795]

That picture of the ice cream on the side walk sums up my life 😁😂

[@srvuk]

This isn't actually backing up Windows 10 or 11, just the data and selected folders. Imaging is backing up Windows. But aside from the misleading title, the process is still of use.

[@KNIGHTJUMPS]

I am the guy who would take a fillet knife and cut the the top of the ice cream off in order to salvage the majority of the ice cream. You cannot just let mint chip ice cream go to waste. It's fundamentally wrong.

[@yourpcmd]

Another way to do it is what I do. Use File History and set it for 30 days. Get Mountain Duck and connect it to a Backblaze B2 bucket. Mountain Duck adds the bucket as a network drive. You could do a follow-up video on that. Just a thought. To add, in Windows 11, just hit the Start button and type File History, and it will pop up without going to the Control Panel.

[@oldwizzy]

This version of Backup Win7 has NEVER been further developed and so staying still is under Win10 and so it is for Win11, its old software that is standing still. Urgent advice, DO NOT USE IT, use an external Backup tool with of course a rescue stick, with usually fifteen minutes later your IMAGE is back on the C-drive, this from the external HD or even from a Network drive (a bit slower then). To do this, use the 3-2-1 backup strategy and test it as well. I myself have been using AOMEI backupper for more than 6 years and it has helped me out many times, is completely Freeware.

[@davidoreisinger]

Just like you described the NAS, agreed! You can easily stream/sync the file history directory on the external drive (if you assign it a specific letter) or if using a second SSD or HDD in your pc to your Google drive or other cloud storage service.

[@fbushphone]

Comprehensive and elegant thank you for sharing

[@lint2023]

You have peeked a little interest for me with file history. I previously thought file history only went to the cloud. I partition my hard drive into operating system and personal files. File history would do the C drive (operating system) and adding a folder would capture my F drive (personal files), correct? I do backups and I keep copies of my personal files but it sounds like file history might make it a little easier. As for adding a folder in Windows 11, is that a link or an actual copy? If it is only a link then it would not be making a copy of my F drive (partition) on C. A link would be the obvious choice but I don't suspect is it selectable.

[@gerritvisser]

Thanks for this clear description. Can you also add an explanation of how this handles deleted fiels? e.g I delete a file on my PC, run File History backup. Will the deleted file still be on the backup?

[@CyberCPU]

It should be.

[@iCANT_BELIEVE_YOU_SAID_THAT]

Saul didn't have the nerve to pick his ice cream? What a waste. 5:45

[@Van-zf9iw]

This comes at a good time. Chrome is bugging me to update the browser again. I never trust those without copying everything somewhere eelse. The Win10-to-Win11 upgrade got me good last year.

[@thisoldminer]

Wouldn't a cloned backup be best?

[@DIPPY16]

Perhaps a silly question or a problem but I need your support. I have a fresh Windows 10 installed, removed all unnecessary stuff, installed all necessary Apps and updates. And I want to make an image of this windows, an installation so that I can use it on further computer without wasting time on doing it over and over again. Can you advise me how to?

[@glock21guy]

I've got backup laptops. 3 laptops with data syncthinging between them all the time. One goes where I go. One stays at home. One stays at work. They're never all in the same place at the same time. Because they're all Linux, and have the BTRFS filesystem with snapshots (file history), there's an extra layer of protection as well. Of course they're all luks encrypted as well.

[@trevormangus7832]

I just change the path for all directory’s that files are stored in to a different drive than the OS that way if os gets corrupted or killed by a crappy update your files are in tact reload and point to location

[@CyberCPU]

That doesn't protect against hardware failure. To be a true backup that absolute minimum you need a second copy of your data on a different drive.

[@broderp]

Can you select another internal drive as the target drive? Windows 11 is terrible! I am not looking forward to it, but my new PC came with 11 Pro. All I want to do is not have to rely on OneDrive (THAT is a nightmare if you have more than one PC like I do. It keeps trying to add all the files from my old PC to my new, I don't want my old files hence the new PC! ) What a shame.

[@CyberCPU]

Yes, you can.

[@broderp]

@@CyberCPU Thank you for the responce. I will be trying File Backup. Subscribed. Thanks!

[@Savereddeadin2023]

im leaving google and im done there and going to rumble and please make your videos' there 🥰🤩🤩

[@CyberCPU]

My channel is mirrored on Rumble.

[@JohnDlugosz]

Uses a single location: too bad; on the Mac, "Time Machine" will use local storage and copy that to another drive or network location later, when available. Takes a while / 'hourly' not recommended: Under ZFS, making a checkpoint is instantaneous. I have set checkpointing to hourly for a directory(*) I was working in when I was using a tool that was sometimes crashing on me and did not make versioned autosaves. * ZFS checkpoints operate on whole filesystems. But, you can make a filesystem and mount it where you want, specifically a directory you want treated differently.

[@blender_face]

Better call saul wallpaper, nice

[@kv-p1639]

Hey Rich, Did you, or do you work (ed) for Microsoft Engineering Groups?

[@CyberCPU]

Nope. Never worked for Microsoft. I'm just an independent technician.

[@kreaweb-be]

I would be interested in the best way to create an automated weekly "full system backup" on NAS. This would create disk images of all computers in my LAN and store them on a NAS. This would solve restoring a PC after a disk crash in a matter of minutes.

[@earlt911]

Can I set a daily backup to a second "internal" SSD and another one for an external NAS at the same time? Great Video as always!! TY

[@jasonhawkins4528]

Have you noticed a bug in file history, when you clear it, it says element not found

[@jasonhawkins4528]

But it does work great

[@CyberCPU]

No, I haven't seen that.

[@TotalWarriorLegends]

@CyberCPU Tech, PLEASE PLEASE DO a Backup and Restore (Windows 7) video!!

[@michaeljavert4635]

I don't know what happened. My file history isn't where you said it is, and even though I found and set it up, as you suggested in your previous video from a few weeks ago, it kept saying that the mechanical hard drive inside my laptop is not connected, when it most definite is connected and formatted and I can use it just like any other drive. That's what I use for a "local copy" The computer itself is SSD but the second drive is mechanical, which is what is desired for file storage. But Windows cannot see it, so it is making all copies in the original folders, so it's doubling up my files and reducing capacity by half each time. So I have to turn off File History and Protection. Also, the You Tube Experts might me disagreeing about a back up parameters based on one back up is NO back up, two backups is one backup, and three backups are two. Ideally one of the backups should be to a cloud (Though I also disagree with clouds for security reasons) but consider you have a fire, or tornado, or something physically wrong with where your backups are. Maybe your back up device failed. It will be of no use if you cannot get those files back, so ideally, you want to have them somewhere not inside your home, and unless you can afford two homes in different parts of the world, a cloud is their only option. Yes, that is also expensive. But not as expensive as owning a server facility or second home in a different part of the world. As for Security, always encrypt on device before sending it to the cloud. Make up a password that is gibberish, and where the letters and numbers mean different letters and numbers to you, so if someone does see what you wrote, it will not be of use to the person that saw it. This requires an Eidetic memory for most people though, so that's also not practical for people that do not posses an Eidetic memory. Great video and good for most people, but backups and the ways to do them are not a one size fits all. All I care about is the content I download and create. Everything else is just noise and viruses, worms, Trojan horses, etc can hide in that noise and also be backed up. I suggest to everyone just back up your own content that you download and create, and only install what you actually need to use. Back in the days of the Windows 10, before the final incarnation, I was blowing out the hard drive and doing a windows reinstall from scratch every six months. Luckily, I haven't had to do that (Knock on wood) anymore, at least I haven't for a while yet. (Knock on wood X 3 because of silly superstitious and idiosyncratic compulsions I have) I don't want to jinx anything.

[@josephmonlouis1073]

To who are you backup in cloud i will backup to another drive but not on cloud its not my cloud and my information in the cloud is not secure

[@itzpsychodebeatzgod3959]

Please anytime I plugged in USB into my laptop it doesn't show like how normal USB use to show in my PC manager It looks like it has been attack by virus I would like to send some pictures so that you can see what am talking about but I can send here Can someone help me?

[@ioangeor6094]

very helpful video... would that restore things like chrome bookmarks as well?

[@CyberCPU]

It should

[@enginerd80]

I wish Windows would still allow using the file history the way it could be used with Windows 7 -- having the history stored on the same drive. Apparently Microsoft is trying to keep its conscience (hah!) clear from users losing files after drive failures, but I never used file history for backups. I used it, as the name suggests (at least to me) -- for having a few earlier versions of documents to revert to when I afterwards regret an edit. And since I've only used laptops since about 2005, having extra drives to satisfy the current Windows's requirements to use file history is a problem.

[@TooLooseLeTrek]

QUESTION ABOUT YOUR SPONSOR: I have a WIndows 11 machine, brand new - not set up. How can I install Windows 10 instead? I can purchase a Windows 10 license and what is the procedure for switching OS? Thanks.

[@Robert-cb8nr]

Hi! Can I use a USB stick as a backup drive?

[@waynejohn8]

Thanks for the great video. Help please. When I ADD folders, I see them there, but the next day the folder/s is/are not listed, and I have to re-ADD them. This used to work fine, but recently it no longer 'saves' my requested folders to backup. What can I do, please, thanks.

[@CyberCPU]

I haven't had that issue. I'm not sure what could be causing it.

[@waynejohn8]

Ok, thanks. I will just have to add the few folders each and every day, like for the last months. I am a backup OCD. Thanks for the reply, though. Great channel, btw.

[@Dutch-linux]

try to backup 10TB to cloud you know how exspensive that is ... if you can find A host that gives you 10tb and I still rather do a full backup with software that can boot in its own recovery mode

[@akquicksilver]

My Win 10 pro looks different than yours in Settings, I have "files backup" rather than backup and when I click files backup I don't get the option to select a drive.

[@mikazuki135]

Ello so i have an issue where we had a power outage when i was downloading windows and was selecting the time and language on the setup and now it's just a blank screen with "_" flashing on the top left of the screen

[@fbifido2]

@11:43 1. When adding the network location can you save the password at that point or does the user or system need full access all the time?

[@CR_eric2.0]

can you make a video about installing chrome on any computer? plz

[@4kAustralia]

since windows 10 install and now 11 when i start my pc it starts then stops for 30 seconds has if turned off then it boots up and every thing is fine. I think some where it sees an old boot when i has linux and windows on windows 8 together. How can i find this and remove it ?

[@fbifido2]

2. Can you enable file-history and network file location via the registry or/and group-policy?

[@mjktrash]

"Until space is needed" doesn't seem to actually work when using a network location. Any ideas on what the issue is?

[@CyberCPU]

Not sure. It should delete the oldest file versions to make space for new.

[@CAESAR_IS_GOD_mohammadisaloser]

Can I backup multiple images at seperate different times on the same drive ? I imaged my pc when it was fresh (93 gb of data on 1TB drive) but I want to image it again after installing other programs while still having the older fresh image on the same drive. the external drive is 2TB. when I go to image again it says any previous images may be overwritten, will this overwrite the original fresh image I previously saved or is that only if the drive doesn't have enough space?

[@lca49-yh7mc]

Can you please explain how to create a folder in the network?

[@Ibeliever4ever]

This may seem like a very basic question but on Windows 10 Pro with TWO users, do we need to set this up on each user?

[@AbouAlHagag]

One problem I find it annoying in Win11 is when I'm trying to open a picture in normal way! (I can't organize my pictures properly by execute the (CUT) command not by (Ctrl+x) and not even appear in the right click menu! even so they give you (The copy command in the right click menu!)

[@AbouAlHagag]

Another thing I'm not comfortable with is (The toolbar in windows! The one it got (New - cut…etc!) it's empty! I think they should fill it with something useful to make our life easier!

[@AbouAlHagag]

This's a wish that I wanted very bad since the days of Windows Xp maybe! Sort Folders By Size To Work Good As It Should Be!

[@AbouAlHagag]

For Rich the maker of the video: I like to make my Windows looking tide and pretty! One of the things I do for that is to change the icon of some of my folders by a given suitable icon (an icon look like a picture, and it's accessible throw the Internet by searching of (ico) extension like (mp4) extension!) How to change folder icon: 1- get the (ico) or icon from the internet 2- put the (ico) inside the (same) folder you want to change its shape 3- right click on the folder you want to change and choose (Properties) 4- Customize 5- From the Folder icons in the bottom Choose (Change Icon...) 6- Choose (Browse...) 7- explore to the ico location and click it then press (OK) then next window (OK) again Why you put the icon or the (ico) file inside the same folder you want to change! It's a trick I'm sure no one know, and I do it for very long time! The reason is even if you moved the folder that got the shape of the icon from drive to drive or even from computer to computer the icon will never change! If you did not put it in the same folder! It will lose the icon shape!

[@AbouAlHagag]

The best thing they did in Win11 and I really like it! To control the sound of the audio system by the middle mouse (It became very fast to control the sound for someone like me hearing music a lot!)

[@microsoftsarker]

very nice video sir

[@defiik]

it's only free if you consider your storage space free

[@fbifido2]

3. Can file history be used with OneDrive for folders outside Documents, Pictures, Desktop?

[@avertry9529]

Hi, thanks for this, is the backup retained, after file deletion. Can I go to file history and restore deleted files?

[@jdevoz]

Honestly, I think I will use linux on USB to backup my Windows laptop. Windows lack of something like timemachine is making me look harder at Macs again.

[@CyberCPU]

File history is like time machine. In fact it works almost exactly the same.

[@Neolantis]

If I keep all My Files on an external raid, And my C drive is just windows system plus updates and programs, What would the recommendation be? If my system is on c and my installed programs are on d, (raid is X) Would you recommend cloning c if I ever lost it. Or reinstall a fresh OS if lost? Thanks

[@klatlap]

I use a server for storing movies and files but i don't have it running 24/7 if i set that as a back up location option and it is turned off will it backup once i turn it back on?

[@neccron9956]

This video is not valid for the current version of Windows 11

[@itzpsychodebeatzgod3959]

Hi boss Sorry to disturb Please 🙏 I have a laptop and anytime I plugged in an external or USB drive it doesn't appear like it used to Please 🙏 I need your help

[@virtual-adam]

Try going into Control panel then Device Manager. Now look for 'Universal Serial Bus Controllers' at the bottom, expand it then right click all the items one by one and select 'Uninstall device'. Now restart the laptop and they will be reinstalled, this 'may' fix it. Note: You may want to create a restore point before doing this just to be safe, but one may already be available that the system auto created. Probably no need to worry about this bit though, its a common thing to uninstall the USB drivers and usually works without an issue. Hope that helps.

[@itzpsychodebeatzgod3959]

@@virtual-adamif you can help me with any of your social media I would like to send you a pic so that you'll understand what am saying

[@Mjjohnson-df6fi]

Even if I do a backup from windows 11 can I wipe my os and do a fresh install of windows 10?

[@akquicksilver]

If you backup Win10 and upgrade to 11 can you still use the 10 backup in 11?

[@durrantsingh2435]

Can u use file history to backup outlook???

[@user-ph8oe2qu5o]

Microsoft no more support (update) File History I think. Also, don't hope, like 90% or more Backup commercial / free software, it will be able to back up path longer than 266 characters. Else, it's a good program. Just a shame that Microsoft let this very good software in the dust. But money must flow, of course. Capitalist rule...

[@saintpreferred9223]

Question: What is your opinion of MS extending the Windows 10 end of support date past October 2025? From what I have seen on 11, its not ready for prime time, and quite frankly, is very user un-friendly in many respects. Just your opinion. I have W11 on a new machine, and its forcing me to seriously consider the downgrade. Its just pathetic. (After October 14, 2025, Microsoft will no longer provide security updates or technical support for Windows 10.)

[@knoxduder]

Are you going to address OS and programs backup?

[@cpuuk]

My backups have backups.

[@alancrome3684]

You knows best, just not having data to back up q.q

[@Phill0old]

10 minutes in and a Windows 11 user has literally got nothing from this. Thanks for er nothing?

[@MrEd5733]

hISTORICAL FILE FOR pOSTEIRY

[@Daveyk021]

This is not backing up!! What do you use to back the machine and installed software?

[@CyberCPU]

The term backup is typically referring to data, not software. Software can typically be easily reinstalled but personal data is in many cases impossible to replace.

[@MrEd5733]

bACKUP FILES FOR ALL WHO lOVE OUR COUNRTY

[@maqarg]

usa file History

[@x3nior]

Hii first

[@milademjayyy]

*I lost my own personal XX videos and pix.*

[@GeorgeGraves]

zz top

[@padders1068]

🙂😎🤓

[@bufordmaddogtannen]

Ahhhhh file history. The Russian roulette of backup solutions...🙄

[@DanielPetre]

Fallen icecream cone is.. SAD..