Review: SPB Backup: Disaster Averted.

Posted by: dgoldring on Dec 22 2006 - 1,062 views

If you are a regular user of a Pocket PC, you are probably familiar with that sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach.  You know the one.  It says, "Something bad just happened."  It is the one you feel when you turn on your device, and nothing happens.  Push it again. Nothing.  Nada.  Zip.  Zilch.  Oh-No.  Now you know what has to be done.  Gather your courage, close your eyes…it’s tme for the dreaded hard reset!  Now you are doing the calculations in your head.  What software did you have loaded?  Is your PIM information still saved on your desktop?  What about those pictures and files?  Does anyone know how much time it will take to recreate all of that data?  I can’t answer the first questions, but I can tell you the answer to the last one is a definitive "Yes".  SPB Software House knows exactly how long it will take you to recreate your data and if you have been using SPB Backup to protect all of your files and data, then the answer is not as long as you might think.

Installation and Registration: Download the file to your desktop and install it via ActiveSync.  If you want to test out the program before you purchase it, then install the trial version.  With that, you can perform up to five backups before the program will be disabled.  Register and you can perform unlimited scheduled and unscheduled backups of you Pocket PC.

Backup Modes: There are three backup modes in SPB Backup, offering you the option of as much or as little customization as you need. 

Full Backup:  Full Backup offers one stop backup shopping.  Just select Full Backup and tell the program where to store the backup file.  Nothing could be easier.  This option will automatically store all of your important PIM, Data, Documents, Settings, Emails, System Data, and more.

Custom Backup: Custom Backup is designed for an advanced user who wants to exhibit complete control over the backup process.  In this mode, you can select which items will be backed up.  Select to backup entire categories of data (such as My Documents) or fine tune it by selecting certain portions.  Additionally, once you have decided where to store your backup files, you may also choose to compress or password encrypt the backup files.  This is an extremely useful information if other people have access to the area in which you store your backup files.

Scheduled Backup: Scheduled Backup allows SPB Backup to automatically backup all of your important data at a predetermined time.  After selecting Scheduled Backup, just determine how many days per week you want to perform a backup and what time of day it should be done.  I tend to prefer a time in the middle of the night, so that it will not interfere with my use of my Pocket PC.  Additionally, you can select whether or not to do a soft reset after the backup, whether to turn off the device, and whether to skip the scheduled backup if it would be done on battery power.

Many of the remaining options mirror the custom backup screen.  You can decide what files are backed up, where the backup files will be stored, and whether to compress or encrypt the backup files.

One extremely useful option which is found only in Scheduled Backup is the ability to delete previous backup files.  You can determine how many old backup files will be maintained and automatically delete the others.  This is one of my favorite options in this program, however, I am not clear as to why they included it only in the Scheduled Backup setting instead of also including it the Full Backup and Custom Backup settings. 

Store Backups Anywhere: I really like all of the customization that SPB Backup offered.  It allows you to determine exactly who, what, where, when, how and why, any different files will be backed up.  This customization includes the ability to store the backup files anywhere on your Pocket PC, including storage cards.  This is a critical option.  It allows you to determine what storage area has the most space available or would be the most convenient to you, instead of just storing the backup files in the SPB Backup Directory.

Today Screen Plug-in: The developers of SPB Backup did a smart thing when they designed the Today Screen Plug-in for SPB Backup.  They kept it simple.  There is no unnecessary information to clutter up the Today Screen.  The plug in simply tells you when the last backup was performed and when the next one is scheduled. 

SPB Pocket Plus Integration: As I have said in the past, one of the things I really like about SPB products is the way they integrate together.  If you run SPB Pocket Plus, you can automatically create a separate tab for SBP Backup.  This tab will display the Backup Today Screen Plug-In, thus confining that plug-in to its own tab, and freeing valuable today screen real estate when it is not in use.

One feature I would like to see, however, would be further integration with SPB Diary.  It would be nice if my scheduled backups would appear as items on my calendar in Diary.

Restoring Data:  At its core, SPB Backup is a lot like car insurance.  It protects you against some unfortunate catastrophe.  You hope you never have to use it, but when you do, you are thrilled it is there to protect you.  The most important part of the program, therefore, is how hard will it be to restore data after an unfortunate catastrophe occurs.  The good news is that it could not be easier.  All of SPB Backup’s files are completely self-contained.  Just find where it was stored on your Pocket PC and select the desired backup file needed to restore.  SPB Backup will do the rest.  Conveniently, the necessary elements of SPB Backup are automatically stored with the backup files so it can restore all of your data, even if SPB Backup itself has been lost or corrupted.

Conclusion: Simply put, SPB Backup is the most important program you can purchase for your Pocket PC.  Its flexibility and ease of use make it the ideal utility for novice users and advanced users alike.  With just a few taps on your screen, you can backup your entire system providing you with complete protection from any Pocket PC catastrophe.

Vital Statistics:

Name: SPB Backup

Version: 1.5.1 Build 2432

Platform: WM 2003 SE

Also Available: WM5

Developer: SPB Software House

Available From:    SPB Software House

                             JAMM Store

Price: $19.95

 

Technorati Tags: backup - protection - data

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