Creating a fresh backup image weekly - Macrium Reflect

tensone · 26 Nov 2019

Windows 10 Home v1909

Used MR to create a backup image a month or so ago.

Today I tried to create a fresh image backup, think it would overwrite the existing image with new files etc or wipe the Caddy HD clean to create a new image. But it told me I had run out of space creating a new image alongside the existing.

Tried googling how to create a fresh image of the OS partition.

Do I have to delete the previous image to create a fresh image and can I setup a auto weekly image backup.

thanks

ignatzatsonic · 26 Nov 2019

It doesn't typically overwrite.

Each image has a default unique file name.

You can manually delete the old one and then make a new one.

Or you could use an automated schedule to delete the old one before making a new one.

Or you might be able to use one full and then follow that up with differentials, assuming you have enough capacity for the differentials.

Or you can buy a larger target.

Or you can try high compression rather than the default medium compression to generate a smaller image file. My experience says this doesn't shrink the size very much.

Or you can delete as much as possible from the involved partitions to make the image file smaller.

You can use scheduling weekly, monthly, or not at all.

dalchina · 26 Nov 2019

Hi, when you initially create an image you can specify the parameters for the backup job and the retention rules.

First, note that with the free version, you can create a base image (first, largest, slowest) and then create differential images- the difference between the base image and 'now'. These are smaller files, because they represent the difference.

You can restore any of the base image, or the base image + any differential.

You may know all of that already- point is, base + n differentials, where the retention rules automatically delete the oldest differential image file once you have reached the maximum you set, is an efficient relatively 'no-brainer' way of using your disk, provided it never fills.

How the space on your backup disk is managed depends on your retention rules, and whether you start each backup job using the backup defintion file you created when you initially specified the backup job.

Here's one I use for this PC: you can see the retention rules.

Creating a fresh backup image weekly - Macrium Reflect-1.png

I start each backup task using that definition file (rt click and select differential backup).

Then, after each upgrade, when all system files change, for Windows image backups, I start again with a new base image and a new backup specification.

As necessary, I delete older backup sets.

Thus I have one folder on my backup disk for build 1809, then another for 1903 for my Windows images.

If you were to choose not to use the definition file at all, then managing your backup disk is your responsibility and you have to do that manually.

Macrium has a huge help file (Click Help) and supporting documentation, and there are lots of youtube guides.

ddelo · 26 Nov 2019

Each image created with MR, is saved as a separate file. It will not overwrite any other file and of course no previous image file.
If you want to free space, you need to delete previous image files. This can be done, either manually or by setting the minimum free space within MR, by altering the Free Space threshold.
And yes you can create weekly images, provided that you have adequate space on the drive you save your images.

RolandJS · 27 Nov 2019

Maybe it is best to think of Purge and Retention Rules operating on sets of images, and on individual images (stand-alone full images with no incremental or differential images attached).