Backing up your data is very important! Data should be backed up at least once a day and at least once a week a backup should be made and removed from your store for storage at another location.
This backup program compresses the files to use as little space on media as possible, but it is recommended that you use a mass storage device like a Zip drive, CDR's (see note below about backing up to CDR), external hard drive or other type of external drive to store your backups on. These devices hold much more data and are more reliable than 1.44 mb 3.5" floppy disk’s. You should NEVER use floppy disk's for backups, they are VERY unreliable.
Some tape backup drives cannot be accessed by this program. If your drive cannot be accessed through a drive letter or path then you must use the backup program that came with your tape drive to perform backups.
The backups made by this program are zip files and can be accessed by other programs like PKZip, Winzip and many others.
Data Backup:
The data backup button will perform a backup of RTO Pro Data files only. This is all that is needed for backups in most cases. In the event of hardware failure to restore a data backup on a new computer you would need to install the original setup for RTO Pro and the latest update you have installed for RTO Pro then restore the backup.
When you click on this button if you do not have a backup directory setup you will be prompted for one. You can backup to any directory or drive that is accessible through Windows Explorer, including USB hard drives or thumb drives etc.
Full Backup
The data backup button will perform a backup of all RTO Pro files that are in the program directory. The only files that are not backed up are the shared files for RTO Pro which are in the Windows System directory. In the event of hardware failure to restore a full backup on a new computer you would need to install the original setup for RTO Pro then restore the backup.
When you click on this button if you do not have a backup directory setup you will be prompted for one. You can backup to any directory or drive that is accessible through Windows Explorer, including USB hard drives or thumb drives etc.
Restore *See the note below.
This button will restore a backup set. This should only be used in case of hardware failure when data files are lost or inaccessible on your computer. This will restore data to the state it was at the time backed up. NOTE: ANY CHANGES MADE TO DATA AFTER THE BACKUP WAS MADE WILL BE LOST WHEN A RESORE IS DONE.
As a precaution before the backup is restored a Restore Backup is made and stored in the "c:\rtowin\backup" directory. This backs up the files in their current state before the restore takes place. Because of this feature a restore can be reversed returning data to it’s original state before the restore.
After pushing this button you will be prompted for the data file to restore. Backup files name include the data backed up the the job #. The job # will be 1 unless more than 1 backup was made the same day in the same directory, then they are numbered sequentially. Make sure you select the latest backup job when restoring.
Reverse Restore *See the note below.
This button will reverse a restore returning data to it’s original state before the restore was done.
After pushing this button you will be prompted for the restore file to use. Restore files name include the date backed up the the job #. The job # will be 1 unless more than 1 restore was made the same day, then they are numbered sequentially. Make sure you select the latest restore job when reversing a restore. This function will overwrite data with data that was on the hard drive when a restore was done, thus reversing a restore. Any changes made to data after this process took place will be lost.
NOTE: BE VERY CAREFUL WHEN PERFORMING A RESTORE AND A REVERSE RESTORE. THESE FUNCTIONS CAN CAUSE DATA TO BE LOST. FOR INSTANCE IF YOU DO A BACKUP ON MONDAY NIGHT AND RESTORE THAT BACKUP THURSDAY, TUESDAY’S AND WEDNESDAYS TRANSACTIONS WILL BE LOST. IF YOU DO A REVERSE RESTORE ANY DATA CHANGES MADE AFTER THE RESTORE IS DONE WILL BE LOST.
A RESTORE OR REVERSE RESTORE SHOULD ONLY BE PERFORMED AFTER CONSULTING WITH RTO Pro SUPPORT STAFF FIRST.
Command Line Options and Automating Backups
The RTO Pro Backup Program accepts command line arguments so the Windows Scheduler can start it. This gives you the ability to automatically do backups at any given time and on whichever days you want. You must set it up in the Windows Scheduler the command line options are as follows.
"full" means full backup
"data" means a data backup
After full or data put either "-a" for append or "-o" for overwrite. This is for your choice when using an external disk that is not empty.
the path to backup to if you wish, if you do not put in a path the path that is setup in backup will be used.
This is what the Run line should look like in the Scheduler
"C:\RTOWIN\RTO Backup.exe" data-a a:\ This would do a data backup to the A: drive and would append if the disk is not empty.
"C:\RTOWIN\RTO Backup.exe" full-o e:\ This would do a full backup to the E: drive and would overwrite if the disk is not empty.
Backing up to CDR
The easiest way to backup to CDR is through Packet Writing where the backup is written directly to the CDR disk through the drive letter of the CD. Using this method allows the backup to be completed in one step all through the RTO Pro Backup program. However to write directly to a CDR with Packet Writing you must have software installed on your computer that enables Packet Writing. See DirectCD & Packet Writing
If you have Windows XP and you do not have Packet Writing software the best way to backup to CDR is to use the Windows XP CD Writing Wizard. To use the Wizard click on the button that says "Set backup path to use Windows XP CD Writing Wizard for backup to CDR" and the backup path will be set to the CD Writing Wizards staging area. When files are written to this area a balloon will appear by the clock in the Windows Task Bar like below.
After the backup is completed you click on the balloon and the CD Staging Area will open. Click on "File > Write These Files to CD" to start the wizard which will guide you through burning them to CD.
If you don’t have Packet Writing software and you do not have Windows XP the only way to backup to CDR is to first backup to your hard drive then use regular CD recording software, such as Roxio Easy CD Creator or Nero, to burn the file to a CDR.
What is "Packet Writing?"
Packet writing is a term for software that lets you record data onto a CD-R or CD-RW disk directly from Windows Explorer, My Computer, or from the File/Save As section of any computer program.
Simply put, it lets you treat a CD as though it were a big floppy disk. Without packet writing software, you'd have to use regular CD recording software, such as Roxio Easy CD Creator or Nero, to create a disk.
What's the advantage of using packet writing software?
Packet writing makes it simpler to create disks, since don't have to learn how to use other CD recording software programs. As long as you know how to use Windows Explorer or My Computer, you can put data onto a disk. Also, if you know how to use any computer program's File/Open and File/Save As dialog boxes, you can open files and save files.
What, exactly, does the term "packet writing" mean?
Packet writing allows you to build a disk little by little, piece by piece, easily. Each time you record some data onto a disk from Windows Explorer, My Computer, or a program's File/Save As box, you're writing a "packet" of data onto the disk. Hence, the term "packet writing."
Can you name some popular packet writing software programs?
DirectCD is without a doubt the most popular and best-known packet writing software. Many major CD-RW drives come with DirectCD.
Other packet writing programs include Nero's InCD, NTI's FileCD, and B's Clip.
DirectCD has recently been phased out. Roxio Easy CD Creator 6.0, which was released in mid-February, 2003, now uses a packet writing program called Drag-To-Disc. It is almost identical to DirectCD; in fact, the only truly significant change is the utility's name.
Formatting a Disk
Important Note: Almost all packet writing programs require you to "format" the CD before you can use it. There are exceptions, however. For example, Windows XP has built-in packet writing software, which does not require the CD to be formatted. Also, there is a new type of packet writing system called Mt. Ranier, which is also known as Easy Write. Easy Write reduces the formatting time significantly.
Do I have to do anything special to a disk, if I want to use it with packet writing software?
Yes. You have to format the disk. Only disks formatted with packet writing software can be written to via Windows Explorer, My Computer, or a program's File/Save As box.
How do I format a CD-R disk?
Just stick a blank, unused disk into your CD-RW drive. In a moment, a screen will appear with a few options. Select the top option: "Click here to create a data disk that will be accessible through a drive letter, i.e. as you would use a floppy drive."
Formatting a CD-R disk takes just a few seconds. After the format process is done, you can record data onto the disk directly from Windows Explorer, My Computer, or any program's File/Save As box.
You can even use a file or folder's right-click menu's Send To option. There should be a menu option for the CD-RW drive there. Just select the folders and/or files you want recorded onto the disk. Right-click, select Send To, and then select the CD drive.
Do I have to format the disk each time I want to use it?
No. Once a CD-R disk is formatted, you do not have to format it again.
Can I use this disk in any CD-ROM drive? Can I share this disk with other people?
Not yet, no. In order to use the disk on any drive, or share it with friends, you have to close, or "finalize," the disk.
Format the disk. Close the disk. Finalize the disk. It seems so complicated. How do I know when to do this?
Closing/finalizing a formatted disk is much simpler than it sounds, and you'll see how easy it is the very first time you create a disk.
Here's what happens:
Whenever you eject the disk, you'll see a screen that asks you if you want to leave the disk as it is, so you can continue to record onto it, or close the disk.
If you want to keep recording data onto it in the future, just select the option to leave the disk as it is. The disk will be ejected.
If you want to close the disk, choose that option, and the packet writing software will take care of everything for you. It will take a minute or two, so don't do anything with your computer while the process is underway. When the disk is closed, then you can use it on virtually any CD drive, and can share it with people.
How, exactly, do I know when to close the disk?
A CD-R disk can hold approximately 700 megabytes of data. However, I recommend you don't fill it with more than 650 megabytes, because it needs some space to close the disk.
So, close the disk when it gets to roughly 650 megabytes full.
You can close the disk at anytime, however. It does not have to be full to be closed.