Simple Backup for Customers

[ComputechTS]

For our clients, we have an external WD USB drive with an independent power supply plugged into a smart plug. Macrium is set to run the image backup at 3am on Wednesdays, and we have the smart plug set on a schedule to automatically turn on at 2:45am on Wednesdays, then automatically turn off at 6am on Wednesdays. This keeps the backup operation running on schedule, while keeping the drive itself offline during 99% of the off time with no additional human interaction needed. This is the only reasonable method I have found to remove the human interaction/failure element.

 

[Larry Sabo]

For our clients, we have an external WD USB drive with an independent power supply plugged into a smart plug.

Nice. Too bad it requires a 3.5" external drive in order to be powered off/on. Would be nice if we had a similar solution for use with 2.5" external drives.

 

[britechguy]

Would be nice if we had a similar solution for use with 2.5" external drives.

I haven't looked, and don't have time now, but it would not shock me if someone had a "smart cable" for just this instance where it contained its own smart switch and would only complete the connection to the 2.5" external drive at a set day and time for a set duration.

 

[Sky-Knight]

@britechguy

They're called USB Network Hubs, or USB Network Bridges. They're a little hard to find... but here's an example: https://www.amazon.com/Belkin-BELKIN-F5L009-NETWORK-USB/dp/B000WJP8FQ

You plug one of those into an IP power switch and off it goes.

You can also script windows to disable the selected USB port. And further can force windows to deactivate the device in question before you do it. Then you'd have to reconnect, and reactivate before the backup. It's not ideal... but most crypto isn't smart enough to reconnect devices disconnected in such a way.

But by the time you get done with the expense involved, you can easily afford a small Synology and assuming you configure it correctly, address all of the above in a much more comprehensive way.

 

[ZoeChris]

Unsure you know Vinchin. It is a really easy-to-use one. I just got its free edition recently. It doing well.

 

[NviGate Systems]

Just re reading through this thread and I was reminded about how Toshiba used to hide the recovery partition in Windows 7. They would give the partition an "invalid" ID. With an invalid ID (or one that would not trigger auto mount). I seem to recall an ID of 17 or 42 can't remember exactly.

You could do the same in a diskpart script. And to find the drive, you can assign it a GUID, that's how Windows does things. The GUID can be used as a token of sorts, with that you always know you have the right drive and you mount it as high as possible to avoid issues, but I would say drive R-U (Avoid Q as some editions of Office used Q as a Click to run).

Often utilities that format drives for bootable media use GUID or other tricks to identify the drives when repartitioned.

 

[John Kennedy]

Personally, I don't think it's a bad idea to require even home clients to have some sort of online backup. For them, the files are the most important anyway. Image backups to a local drive are really fast to recover everything if a drive fails, but you can't beat online backups for security and retention.
With business clients, I'll take an image and then remove the drive and let an online backup handle file backups daily. I'll only update the image when there's a major software update on the computer. Macrium free is excellent for that.
For online backups, I recommend either Backblaze ($8/month unlimited workstation backup for 60 day retention I believe) or Axcient (similar or cheaper price for full image backups and "unlimited retention", but you need to be the reseller). The cost isn't so high that people can't afford it.

 

[HCHTech]

I don't think it's a bad idea to require even home clients to have some sort of online backup.

I don't think you are going to have a good experience "requiring" anything from the average home customer - haha. You can recommend it, sure, but the relationship with any client at all stops well short of requiring anything, unless you are willing to sacrifice that relationship if they don't comply.

 

[Fred Claus]

I don't think you are going to have a good experience "requiring" anything from the average home customer - haha. You can recommend it, sure, but the relationship with any client at all stops well short of requiring anything, unless you are willing to sacrifice that relationship if they don't comply.

I don't require my home users to have a backup solutions, but if I am managing their machines it's roped into my cost. Some don't know why they need it but blame you when the do and they don't have it.

 

[britechguy]

I am managing their machines

Define what you mean here.

 

[Fred Claus]

For my residential clients I use my RMM to do weekly cleanings, patch management, and manage their antivirus program. Plus I offer a service where they can call me on the phone and I can remote in and fix their computer without having to go over there.

 

[britechguy]

For my residential clients I use my RMM to do weekly cleanings, patch management, and manage their antivirus program. Plus I offer a service where they can call me on the phone and I can remote in and fix their computer without having to go over there.

Well, it sounds like you have something much more like an MSP arrangement with your clients than most of us who do residential work will ever have with ours.

In that circumstance, you do have a bit more lattitude to "force the issue" by rolling online backup functionality into your package deal. And I hasten to say that this is great.

But for those of us who are break-fix, that's a non-starter. I have enough trouble (and it usually takes a catastrophic drive failure before certain clients will listen) getting folks to take regular, cyclic, full-system image backups to a local drive and I even set the whole thing up for them. I couldn't get most of them to buy cloud space and use it for backups any more than I could fly to the moon under the power of my own arms. Also, I live in an area where, very quickly, once you get outside any given city's limits (and those are small cities) you're in a situation where internet speeds are not such that online backup is really a practical option.

 

[John Kennedy]

Just re reading through this thread and I was reminded about how Toshiba used to hide the recovery partition in Windows 7. They would give the partition an "invalid" ID. With an invalid ID (or one that would not trigger auto mount). I seem to recall an ID of 17 or 42 can't remember exactly.

You could do the same in a diskpart script. And to find the drive, you can assign it a GUID, that's how Windows does things. The GUID can be used as a token of sorts, with that you always know you have the right drive and you mount it as high as possible to avoid issues, but I would say drive R-U (Avoid Q as some editions of Office used Q as a Click to run).

Often utilities that format drives for bootable media use GUID or other tricks to identify the drives when repartitioned.

I find this level of complexity inevitably leads to problems down the line. Sure an IT expert could understand everything and troubleshoot problems, but a normal user won't be able to. If anything goes wrong, would they notice? If they went to someone else for a fix later, would that someone else badmouth you because they don't understand your solution? Keep stuff like backups as simple as possible and you don't have such problems.