Backup to Windows Home Server | Configuration Guide
Automated Backups with Windows Home Server
A valuable capability of Windows Home Server is the ability to establish automated backups from other devices on your network directly to the server. This article details the steps involved in configuring a computer for automatic backups to your WHS installation. Backup to WHS begins by accessing the Windows Home Server Console and navigating to the Computers & Backup section.
Initiating the Backup Configuration
To begin, right-click on the computer you intend to back up within the console. From the context menu, select “Configure Backup.” This action will launch the Backup Configuration Wizard.
Allow the Configuration Wizard a moment to gather necessary information about the selected computer.
Selecting Disks for Backup
The next step involves choosing the disks you wish to include in the backup process. External drives can also be selected for backup if desired. It’s important to note that any disk selected must be formatted with the NTFS file system to be visible in the list.
Excluding Folders from the Backup
Subsequently, you’ll be presented with the opportunity to specify folders to exclude from the backup. Locations that are already grayed out are automatically excluded, but you can modify this list as needed. To add further exclusions, simply click the “Add” button.
Carefully select the folders you want to omit from the backup. Reducing backup size can be achieved by excluding large media files or less critical documents and images. However, ensure that essential data is not inadvertently excluded.
Once you have finished specifying folders for exclusion, proceed by clicking “Next.”
Reviewing Backup Settings
A Congratulations screen will then appear, providing a summary of the backup size, the scheduled backup time, and the backup frequency, which is set to daily by default.
Upon completion of the backup process, you can verify the backup status of each computer within the WHS Console.
Adjusting Backup Schedules
To modify the backup schedule, navigate to Settings within the WHS Console, then select Backup. Under “Backup Time,” you can adjust the start and end times to align with your preferred schedule.
Viewing Existing Backups
To access existing backups, right-click on the computer in the console and select “View Backups.”
This will open the View Backups window, allowing you to verify and manage the backups for that computer.
Concluding Remarks
This guide provides a starting point for implementing backups. Having your computer’s data backed up to the server offers significant peace of mind. It’s crucial to ensure backups aren’t inflated by unnecessary files, such as large multimedia content. Further administration options are available, and we will explore detailed backup management in future articles. Don’t forget that a 30-day trial of Windows Home Server is available for download, allowing you to test its capabilities on a dedicated machine.