Grace, Good Question! Despite backups being an essential safety net, over the years I have seen great confusion and actual loss of data because of the way in which backups have been handled. The steps that I teach and advocate are as follows: 1. In Tools > Preferences > Folders set up a specific folder for your back-up files. This would be somewhere on your hard drive - mine are kept in C:\........\My Documents\PAF\Backup. 2. When selecting or requested to do a backup - the suggested name of the zipped backup is your PAF database name - this should be changed to include the date of your backup - for example, my database is millar.paf, which for a backup (today) I would change the suggested name to millar-2005-07-21 (the .zip extension will be added automatically for you) This example of course is using the reverse European date system (Y-M-D) which is recommended for keeping a series of files in date sequence. For any time where you have multiple backups on the same day - for instance, where you create a backup to take to a FHC or on a research trip - add some data at the FHC - then create a backup at the FHC to take home - simply add an additional version number at the end of the second backup file name, for example: Millar-2005-07-21-2 3. The backed-up file should then - for security reasons - either - be burned onto a CD - copied to a floppy disc (if your PC still has a floppy disc) - copied to a USB memory stick - attached and emailed to a friend - uploaded (ftp) to a secure internet site. Whatever suits your off-site storage arrangements. Using this approach you will then have a series of past backups - all date marked. Periodically you would delete the older backup versions. This way, any restored backup will create a PAF file with the same name that has the date incorporated in it. From any restored backup, you can then make the deliberate choice to rename the restored backup as your main file (using Save-As). Backups are not only a safety net for restoring a lost file but used in this way can allow you to open up (restore) a past back for a specific date and compare it with your current database to track any changes that you may have made. Good luck, Stewart -----Original Message----- From: Grace Inman [mailto:Grace@eufaula.rr.com] Sent: 21 July 2005 04:03 To: PAF-5-USERS-L@rootsweb.com Subject: [PAF-5] Backup files Could someone please explain to me in real simple baby steps how to make the best kind of backup files? When I click "Backup" on the File menu of PAF.5, I always tell it to overwrite the current file. Is that the way I should do it, or not? If not, how should I be doing it to provide the maximum protection for my file(s)? Please and thank you very much. Grace in Georgia, USA In God we trust. ==== PAF-5-USERS Mailing List ==== PAF @ FamilySearch Internet Genealogy Service http://www.familysearch.org/eng/paf/

Hi Stewart. Your method looks good. It's easy to do and seems to cover all the bases. As mentioned in another email, I'm waiting for a tech to replace my CD and DVD drives, which should happen in a few days. Right now, they're both unusable. After they're replaced, I plan to do the CD backups you describe, plus send my PAF file to my husband's PC for additional protection (if he'll let me. :^ ) That thought occurs to me, though ... you've gotta have a friend or relative who has the available space on their PC, and is willing to use it for you. Thank you so much. I really appreciate the help I get from this list. God bless you folks in the U.K. Many prayers and petitions have gone up for you. Grace in Georgia, USA ----- Original Message ----- From: "Stewart Millar" <sm999@tiscali.co.uk> To: <PAF-5-USERS-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Thursday, July 21, 2005 4:27 AM Subject: RE: [PAF-5] Backup files > Grace, > > Good Question! Despite backups being an essential safety net, over the > years > I have seen great confusion and actual loss of data because of the way in > which backups have been handled. > > The steps that I teach and advocate are as follows: > > 1. In Tools > Preferences > Folders set up a specific folder for your > back-up files. This would be somewhere on your hard drive - mine are kept > in > C:\........\My Documents\PAF\Backup. > > 2. When selecting or requested to do a backup - the suggested name of > the zipped backup is your PAF database name - this should be changed to > include the date of your backup - for example, my database is millar.paf, > which for a backup (today) I would change the suggested name to > > millar-2005-07-21 (the .zip extension will be added automatically for > you) > > This example of course is using the reverse European date system (Y-M-D) > which is recommended for keeping a series of files in date sequence. > > For any time where you have multiple backups on the same day - for > instance, > where you create a backup to take to a FHC or on a research trip - add > some > data at the FHC - then create a backup at the FHC to take home - simply > add > an additional version number at the end of the second backup file name, > for > example: > > Millar-2005-07-21-2 > > 3. The backed-up file should then - for security reasons - either - be > burned onto a CD - copied to a floppy disc (if your PC still has a floppy > disc) - copied to a USB memory stick - attached and emailed to a friend - > uploaded (ftp) to a secure internet site. Whatever suits your off-site > storage arrangements. > > Using this approach you will then have a series of past backups - all date > marked. > > Periodically you would delete the older backup versions. > > This way, any restored backup will create a PAF file with the same name > that > has the date incorporated in it. From any restored backup, you can then > make > the deliberate choice to rename the restored backup as your main file > (using > Save-As). > > Backups are not only a safety net for restoring a lost file but used in > this > way can allow you to open up (restore) a past back for a specific date and > compare it with your current database to track any changes that you may > have > made. > > Good luck, > > Stewart > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Grace Inman [mailto:Grace@eufaula.rr.com] > Sent: 21 July 2005 04:03 > To: PAF-5-USERS-L@rootsweb.com > Subject: [PAF-5] Backup files > > Could someone please explain to me in real simple baby steps how to make > the > best kind of backup files? When I click "Backup" on the File menu of > PAF.5, > I always tell it to overwrite the current file. Is that the way I should > do > it, or not? If not, how should I be doing it to provide the maximum > protection for my file(s)? Please and thank you very much. > Grace in Georgia, USA > > In God we trust. > > > ==== PAF-5-USERS Mailing List ==== > PAF @ FamilySearch Internet Genealogy Service > http://www.familysearch.org/eng/paf/ > > > > > ==== PAF-5-USERS Mailing List ==== > FreeBMD - Free Access to England and Wales Civil Registration Index > Volunteer as a Transcriber Today! > http://freebmd.rootsweb.com/ > >