At some point or another, we have all worried about losing everything on our PCs. Our hearts all do a little flutter when our systems are slow to boot or make an unhealthy noise. Thankfully, there’s lots you can do to back up your PC should the worst happen.
We’ve asked our team of tech experts here at Overclockers UK to step in with some helpful recommendations. Even better, they made sure these are all simple yet effective tricks. Whether you just want some basic security or peace of mind across the board, follow these tips to make sure you’re doing everything you can.
Create a Recovery Drive
The first and easiest thing you can do to backup your PC is to create a recovery drive. This means if your PC ever undergoes a major issue such as a hardware failure, you can use this to reinstall your OS complete with security and performance updates. You can do this on Windows 10 and Windows 11 by typing ‘create a recovery drive’ in the search box. When the tool opens, choose ‘backup system files to the recovery drive’ and then connect a USB drive to your PC. What this won’t do however is save your personal files and any apps that did not come with your PC. We have to do something else for those.
Kingston DataTraveler 80 32GB USB Type-C Flash Drive (DT80/32GB)
Available to buy for £5.99
Microsoft recommends that you use a USB drive that’s at least 16GB when creating a recovery drive. The process will also erase any data already on the drive, so grabbing yourself a new one sounds like a smart move. Kingston’s DataTraveler 80 is more than fit for purpose, having double the minimum storage at 32GB. What’s more, it’s a USB Type-C Flash Drive with read speeds of up to 200MB/s so you can complete your PC backup quickly. If your system does not feature the right connectors, there is a USB Type-A version also available.
Store Your Files in an External Drive
Now your OS is secure, it’s time to think about making sure your personal files are safe. One great option is to invest in an External HDD. With this you can routinely copy everything for peace of mind. This is made even simpler with some models, as they come with software to automate this process. If you wanted to, you could also permanently store these files on the drive, but that would not be a backup really, would it? An external drive can be stored separately from your PC so any damage does not happen to both at the same time.
WD Elements Portable 1TB External Hard Drive (WDBUZG0010BBK)
If you want a reliable external hard drive for PC backup or just for portable storage, the WD Elements HDD is a terrific choice. The small and lightweight design manages to pack a tremendous 1TB capacity. Not only that, but it uses ultra-fast USB 3.0 connectivity to help complete massive data transfers in unbelievable time. Speed like that turns backing up your PC from a chore into a cinch.
Available to buy for £49.99
Look to the Cloud Accounts
Arguably an even more secure option is to use Cloud storage for your files. Whether it’s for gaming, important documents, or precious family photos, there are plenty of services for you to choose from these days. Some offer free versions for you to store a small number of files, such as Google Drive, but you will need to pay a subscription fee to host large amounts of data. The convenience of this cannot be understated though, as you can save your PC from being bogged down in clutter and easily access information and photos wherever you are, on almost any device.
Seagate’s Recovery Service
Even if you take every one of these precautions, the unforeseen can still happen. That’s why it’s called the unforeseen after all. Luckily, even a damaged drive can still have its data salvaged. Seagate will take care of that for you with their Rescue Data Recovery Services. If you have purchased one of their qualifying drives, you can send the damaged hardware to their team for free for their team to attempt to recover the data on it within 15 working days. It’s not a guarantee, but it’s a terrific PC backup to have when all else fails.
Seagate FireCuda 2TB SSD (ZP2000GM3A013)
Available to buy for £289.99
Upgrade your internal storage and your data’s safety at once with this Seagate SSD. The FireCuda 530 not only qualifies for Seagate’s Rescue Data Recovery Services, but has several key advantages to add to your gaming PC. At up to 7,300 MB/s, you can harness the full power of PCIe Gen4 speeds and dominate next-generation games. With transfer rates twice as fast as Gen3, this SSD can take a lot without even mentioning a staggering 2TB capacity.
Did we miss any useful tips? Share your best trick for backing up your PC by putting them down in the comments for everyone to see!
- 5 min read
Jacob Smith
Author
Jacob is a passionate gamer, plus a noted Pokemon and LEGO nutjob, who emerges only when doing the words here at Overclockers UK. Since starting at the tail end of 2021, Jacob has gone on to write dozens of blogs on everything from the latest games to whimsical Dickens-inspired poetry. Outside of creating content and being the one person in the office daring to champion Nintendo, he is often found fawning over his Pokemon card collection and his trio of lovely doggos.
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