Overview
A backup definition contains the data needed to perform a backup on a set of computers. Each definition contains the following information:
- A list of computers that should be backed up.
- A set of rules describing which partitions, disks, or files to backup on each computer
- A set of options and settings controlling how the backup files should be created and stored.
Backup definitions contain all the information on how and what to back up. A backup definition can be run manually to perform a single backup of each computer or used to schedule regular backups.
Creating a Definition
The 'Definitions' section of SiteBackup contains a list of existing definitions. If there are no existing definitions, a quick help page is shown instead:
Clicking on 'New Definition' will open the 'Add Backup Definition Wizard' wizard:
Definition Type
At the top of the first page of the backup definition, the type of backup definition that will be created can be selected. There are two different types of backup definition that can be created:
Disk Image - This definition type creates image backups of full disks or partitions. It is configured by selecting a set of rules which control which partitions or disks are included. This is the most efficient backup type for large amounts of data and provided the correct partitions have been backed up, these image files can be used to restore a fully bootable Windows operating system, including to different hardware. Read more about creating disk image definitions here.
File and Folder - File and folder backups only back up files on specific paths from a disk. This is a faster, more convenient backup type when only critical data from a disk needs to be backed up. e.g. C:\accounts\*.*.
Once the backup type has been selected, a name for the definition must be entered, this is for display purposes to help distinguish between existing definitions. An optional description can also be entered.
'Selection Type' controls how computers are selected to be added to the definition:
Computers
This option enables computers to be selected from a list. The selected computers will remain part of the backup definition unless removed manually:
Columns can be filtered and sorted in the computer list to aid in finding the right computers. If there are large numbers of computers they will be split into multiple pages.
Computers can be selected using the checkbox shown next to each computer. Once the relevant computers have been selected, select 'Next'.
Tags
Select a set of tags to associate with this backup group, read more about tags and groups here. Any changes to the membership of these tags will change the backup definition automatically, reducing management overhead when adding and removing computers from SiteBackup.
The interface allows multiple tags to be selected. Not all automatic tag groups are valid for use, only the following automatic groups can be used:
- Any user-created tag
- Computer Information (architecture, virtual machine status)
- Windows Version
- Domain
- Domain OU (organizational unit)
- Domain Groups (security and distribution groups)
Once the relevant computers have been selected, select 'Next'.
Files and Folders
On the 'File and Folders' page of the wizard, the files and folders can be specified, the files and folders specified here will be backed up from each computer defined in the previous step:
At least one folder must be added, using the 'Add Folder' button.
The 'Add Folder' dialog has the following options:
|
Option
|
Description
|
|---|---|
| Folder to Backup | The folder path on the specified computers which will be included in the backup. |
| Include subfolders | If checked, this option will cause any matching files in subfolders of the target folder to be included in the backup. |
| Exclude hidden files and folders | If checked, any files or folders with the 'hidden' file system attribute will be ignored. |
| Exclude system files and folders | If checked, any files or folders with the 'system' file system attribute will be ignored. |
| Files to include | A file mask for names of files to include within the selected folder/subfolder. e.g. *.docx will include only document files. |
| Files to exclude | A file mask for names of files to exclude within the selected folder/subfolder. e.g. *.docx will include only document files. This takes precedence over the include list. |
| Folders to exclude | This option is similar to 'Files to exclude', except it is used for subfolder names. This option is only relevant when 'Include subfolders' is used. |
After selecting 'OK' the specified rule will be shown in the 'Folders to backup' table:
Multiple rules can be added to one definition, any files matching any rule will be backed up. The rules can be changed using the 'Edit' button, or removed with the 'Remove' button.
Options
Additional options for how the backup is created can be specified on the final page of the wizard:
The available options are shown in the table below:
| Option | Description |
| Compression | The level of compression to use in any backup files created when using this Backup Definition. The default level is 'Medium'. |
| Encryption | The type of encryption to use on any backup files created from this definition. If AES encryption is used, a password must be entered using the 'Set Password' button. |
| Folder Structure |
This controls the folder structure for the backups in the repository. The backups can be separated per computer, with all backups for that computer being stored in the same folder regardless of the definition that created them, or they can be separated by computer and definition, with a subfolder being created per definition for each computer. Note: When 'Separate by computer' is selected, retention rules for any active backup using this definition will be applied to all backups in the destination folder. |
| Automatically verify the Image file directly after creation | If this option is selected, backup files will be reread and verified immediately after creation. Read more about verification here. |
| Retry for X minutes after connection failure | If this option is selected, the SiteBackup Agent will automatically retry writing to the destination for the number of specified minutes, on a disconnect to the destination. |
| CPU Priority | The CPU priority for the running backup process. Lower priorities may result in the backup taking longer if there is contention for CPU resources. The default priority is 'High'. |
| Bandwidth Rate Limit |
If enabled, a rate limit can be set for writing to the repository. This will limit the write rate to a specified number of MBit (megabits) per second. This can be used to help manage bandwidth when performing large numbers of backups. Note: In the backup progress, a higher transfer rate than the rate limit may be displayed. This is because the transfer limit counts the amount of data read from the source disk and saved into the backup file without including compression. After the backup is completed, the read and write rate is shown in the backup log. |
| Comment | If a comment is entered here it will be saved as part of any backup files created and be visible to any restore tools. |
Once the options are set appropriately, press 'Finish' to complete the wizard and save the backup definition. If there are any errors or issues with saving the backup definition, the wizard will not close and an error message will be displayed. If appropriate any affected fields will be highlighted in red.
The newly created definition file will then be shown in the list of existing definitions:
Read more about managing the existing definitions here.