Background

The issue exists with the Windows operating system where it makes a  backup over the network less than optimal. The reason for this is that busy files and most of the operating system cannot be backed up in this manner. Critical files such as the system registry cannot be backed up as well.  You can experience this same issue by having two windows machines on a network and attempt to back up one "completely" to the other. You would be surprised by want you "Don't" get.

This make us and should make you very concerned about recovery in case of a drive failure. Many of you may not realize that if the hard drive failed in your machine, it would take a great deal of work to get you back online. You may be down for a day or longer. 

Many dedicated server providers take the approach that you have to get your own tape drive or there is no backup at all. We would like to think that we can try a little harder than that.  We will do our part but it will require some attention from you.

When you follow these guidelines you will have a backup of critical files and you would be able to get back online much faster. Remember that it depends on you to keep your stuff current. If you have a failure and backed up your registry two months ago, you will get a two month old copy of your registry when we restore the files. You will get out of the system exactly what you put in.

What we outline here takes us 3 minutes to do but can save many hours in getting a system back online. We recommend that you do it once each week.

The backup server will backup your \webserver directory two times a week. See below to make sure you have copies of critical files.

The Backup Plan

First create a folder in your \webserver directory called backup. This is where you will place copies of your critical files.

The System registry:

Go to the system prompt and type "regedit", this will bring up the registry editor. As shown below Export the system registry. Save it in the backup directory you created above. Give the backup file some name, so you can tell its creation date. 

As shown below open your IIS console.  Right click on the computer name. And select Backup/Restore.  Select a name for the backup. The backup will be stored in, c:\winnt\system32\inetsrv\Metaback.  Copy the file to your backup directory in webserver. Note that you should back this up each time you change your IIS setup such as adding domains. 

Next under \program files\Serv-U, find the file called "SERV-U.INI". Copy this file to your backup directory. It has all of your FTP settings.

Select the mail applet from the tool bar Select any domain from the list. When the window opens select the file menu and then select Backup as shown below. Choose a name for the backup file. The file will be placed in the c:\imail directory. Copy the file to your backup directory. Again, give the backup file some name, so you can tell its creation date. 

These few steps will save many hours in getting your system back online. A back up is just like a spare tire.  When you don't need it, it's just an extra expense taking up space. But when you need it, you REALLY need it.