Automate Backup

A thorough backup strategy should include automating your backups. Just as your antivirus program updates itself automatically, so too should your backups be automated.

You do this by creating a Scheduled Job. You have two options: 1) Use the Backup or Restore Wizard, and on the summary screen click the Advanced button. 2) Use the Schedule Jobs tab when running the Backup Utility in Advanced mode.

If you use the wizard interface, it will continue the interview, asking you first about what kind of backup to create and the backup options to use.

The Schedule Jobs tab brings up a calendar interface. To get started with a scheduled backup, click the Add Job button in the lower-right corner.

This Add Job button launches a wizard, and once again you will be prompted about what to backup and where to store the file. The key to the scheduled backup job, naturally, is the "When to Backup" portion of the wizard's interrogation. As shown in Figure 13-6, you configure the backup schedule by making sure the "Later" radio button is selected, and then using the Set Schedule button.

Figure 13-6. Scheduling the backup job for automated data safety.

As shown, you get the Schedule Job dialog box, and the options here depend on your selection in the Schedule Task drop-down menu. For example, if you select "Monthly," you then have the ability to set which day of the month the backup runs.

Let's say, though, that you want the backup job to run on eight consecutive Sundays, at which time you will revisit your backup strategy. The Advanced Schedule Options lets you configure schedules such as this. Just click the Advanced button to display the Advanced Schedule Options dialog box, shown in Figure 13-7.

Figure 13-7. Using the Advanced scheduling options.

Finally, you'll be prompted for a user name and password that will be used when the backup runs. Since some other yokel might be using your computer at the time the backup runs, the Utility needs to run in the context of a user account with permission to do so. This account should be part of either the Administrators or Backup Operators group.