Backing up your documents

When it comes to backing up your documents, this should be at the top of your computer tasks. Your precious photos and documents just can’t be easily replaced, and if lost would cause you major grief.

Backing up can be done easily and simply, you may already have the necessary software installed. Norton 360 comes with a backup option included within the software and can be configured to backup automatically with little effort.

We would recommend using a piece of removable hardware like a USB memory stick or an external hard dive to store your backup data.

If you don’t have Norton 360 don’t worry, did you know that you computer already has a backup program included with Windows XP Professional if you have the home edition then follow these steps to get it installed.

  1. Put your Windows XP Home edition CD in your CD drive.
  2. Double-click the Ntbackup.msi file in the following location to start a wizard that installs Backup:
  • Example D:\VALUEADD\MSFT\NTBACKUP
  1. When the installation wizard is finished, click Finish

Once you have installed the backup utility it can be found in the following location.

  • Start -> All Programs
  • Accessories -> System Tools
  • Then click on backup to start the wizard

Setting up a backup with the wizard is very easy there three main steps.

  1. Step 1 – What do you want to backup
  2. Step 2 – Where do you want to store it
  3. Step 3 – Click Finish to make it happen

You may notice a button called “Advanced” under here you can setup a schedule of when the backup should be processed and how often. If you do use this area then make sure you stick to the backup schedule. If you don’t want to use this button then put a reminder in your outlook calendar to remind yourself say once a week on a day you know you can commit to setting up a backup.