Backup software is a computer program that copies your data, such as files, folders, or an entire system, and stores it in another location. The main purpose of backup software is to protect your data from loss due to hardware or software failure, cyberattacks, natural disasters, or power outages. Backup software can be free or purchased from a variety of vendors. It can also offer different types of backups, including:
- Full backup: Copies all data to another location
- Incremental backup: Copies only files that have changed since the last backup
- Differential backup: Copies only files that have changed since the last full backup
- Image backup: Creates a complete backup of the system, including the operating system, applications, settings, and data files
- Mirror backup: Creates an exact replica of selected files and folders without compressing or encrypting them
Each type of backup has its own advantages and disadvantages in terms of speed, storage space, and recovery time. For example, incremental backups are useful when there's too much data to back up every day, but differential backups can be restored faster than incremental backups
