AutoVer 2.2.1

Overview

One of the most important things you should do in order to protect your files is backup your files regularly, so that even if a virus strikes, a system failure occurs or just an accidental file deletion happens, you can easily recover the lost data like the disaster never happened. AutoVer is a program that will help you create backups and keep them updated automatically. It includes a lot of features and options that change how it works, and is very lightweight taking up few system resources when running.

Installation

Installation doesn’t have any difficult steps. Follow the simple set of steps to carry out the process and start using the program. If you are upgrading the program or reinstalling it, make sure that it’s not running on the background (and its service is stopped) otherwise a reboot will be required to complete the process. AutoVer is clean from malware and additional software (see report).

The operating systems it supports are all versions from Windows 2000 to 7 (32 and 64-bit editions supported) and do note that it can run on portable media as well.

Interface

The interface of the program is extremely simple. It has a few buttons at the top that perform different actions and the main screen lists all the currently active watchers (watchers are basically the configured backup tasks). Next to the watcher name you can see its status; if it’s OK, the whole row is colored green, and if it’s Paused/Disabled, the whole row is colored orange. Watchers with Errors are colored red. Selecting a watcher and clicking the last button in the toolbar (the one with the magnifying glass) will open the Backup Explorer, which will show you the watcher’s files and versions in an explorer-style window.

Pros

Every time you add a new watcher you are actually picking a folder that you want the program to monitor and create a backup of, saving automatically any changes made to the folder’s files and sub-folders. The initial backup gets updated (meaning that an incremental backup is performed) to save time and disk space, although a new backup can be created too. Older backup versions can be automatically deleted or archived after a set period of time.

From the available settings you can configure the program to include/exclude certain types of files or particular sub-folders, as well as set a max file size on the included files. The backup created can be kept in a folder or uploaded to an FTP server.

The backups can be explored using the built-in Backup Explorer tool. If you have an external file comparison application installed (like WinMerge) you can use it to compare versions of the files within the backups.

It can backup anything from a folder, an entire drive (including removable sticks), a FTP, or a network drive.

Cons

AutoVer could use some improvement on its GUI.

Alternatives

Cobian Backup (free) is a fine alternative for creating backups of directories reliably and easy.  It shares many of AutoVer’s features and has no downsides. Other alternatives are Areca Backup (free), Uranium Backup (paid) and Comodo Backup (free).

Conclusion

Useful software for safeguarding your files and folders from unwated disasters by creating backups. It has several different options and features and can prove to be very helpful under many occasions.