• Backup For Workgroups v2.0

    by  • August 1, 2009 • Product Reviews

    Rating four

    The Bottom Line

    If you are in need of a relatively inexpensive, yet fast and reliable backup program for your network you should take a look at Backup For Workgroups. BFW will automatically backup data from all of your workstations and servers to one central location. After the initial backup it performs incremental backups of only the data that is new or changed in order to speed up the backup process. BFW is easy to configure, it is fast and it is reliable.
    Pros
    • Easy automatic scheduled backups for your whole network
    • Backup data is encrypted to protect it from unauthorized access
    • Incremental backups are fast with less impact on the network
    Cons
    • None

    Description

    • Version 2.0 works to backup Active Directory and Exchange servers
    • Fast and reliable backups. Automated backups are easy to configure and schedule
    • Create a mirror of the data repository for added safety to ensure your data is available
    • Files that are common to multiple workstations are only backed up once to conserve space
    • Generate a custom report to walk step-by-step through a complete restore on a bare computer system
    • Automatically turns off programs such as Outlook so that the PST data file can be backed up

    Guide Review – Product Review: Bakcup For Workgroups

    Late last year I reviewed a product from Lockstep Systems called Backup For One. Backup For One is an excellent program- easy to configure and perform automated backups of your data. It had one significant drawback though- it is “For One”.Fortunately for those looking for a network solution rather than a single computer backup solution Lockstep also offers Backup For Workgroups. With the recent release of Version 2.0 this program has added functionality that makes it ideal for many small to medium sized networks.

    After setting up the data repository and installing agents on the workstations, it is simple to create customized backup sets and schedule automated backups. BFW can be set to automatically shut down programs like Outlook so that the PST file can be backed up, and then restart them when the backup is complete.

    I configured BFW to automatically email me a report after each backup so that I would have a record that the backup completed successfully. The report also lists any files that may have been skipped due to being in use or locked by another process so you can make sure that all of your data is backed up. I also set up a data repository mirror on a separate hard drive for increased safety.

    The program isn’t cheap, but its not as expensive as some others and is worth the price if you need an easy and reliable network backup program. You can download a 30-day trial version from Lockstep’s web site.

    I recommend this program for a network backup solution.

    About

    Tony has driven security policies and technologies for antivirus and incident response for Fortune 500 companies, and he has been network administrator and technical support for smaller companies. He has written for a variety of other Web sites and publications, including BizTech Magazine, PC World, SearchSecurity.com, WindowsNetworking.com, Smart Computing magazine, and Information Security magazine. Tony is a CISSP (Certified Information Systems Security Professional) and ISSAP (Information Systems Security Architecture Professional). He is Microsoft Certified as an MCSE (Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer) and MCSA (Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator) in Windows 2000 and an MCP (Microsoft Certified Professional) in Windows NT. Tony has been recognized by Microsoft as an MVP (Most Valuable Professional) in Windows security since 2006. In addition to his Web site and magazine contributions, Tony was also tech editor of PCI Compliance (ISBN: 1597491659 ) and author of Essential Computer Security: Everyone’s Guide to E-mail, Internet, and Wireless Security (ISBN: 1597491144), coauthor of Hacker’s Challenge 3 (ISBN: 0072263040) and a contributing author to Winternals: Defragmentation, Recovery, and Administration Field Guide (ISBN: 1597490792), Combating Spyware in the Enterprise (ISBN: 1597490644) Syngress Force 2006 Emerging Threat Analysis: From Mischief to Malicious (ISBN: 1597490563), Botnets: The Killer Web Applications (ISBN: 1597491357), and AVIEN Malware Defense Guide for the Enterprise (ISBN: 1597491640).

    http://www.tonybradley.com