Nero Backitup Enhancement Suggestion

[Brett]

I've been lurking here for a long time, and never had much to say, but now I do.

I just upgraded to Nero 6 and was playing with Backitup. I have two enhancement suggestions.

I would like to do weekly unattended backups onto a CD-RW. Could you add an option that enables Backitup to automatically erase the disk if there isn't enough space? Right now since I'm writing over the same disk each week, I have to manually tell it to erase the disk, which defeats the purpose of scheduling an unattended session.

Also, could you add an option to not eject the disk at the end of the Backitup session as well, so I don't have to keep manually closing the tray?

With these two additions, Backitup could be a completely automatic process.

I did send this suggestion to tech support but all I got back was a standard reply that frankly didn't answer my question.

Thanks

[CCampbell]

The problem with your suggestion is what if the CDRW or DVDRW media has data on the media, that you need. And unknowingly you left it in the drive. When the system automatically backs up, you will then loose that data as it erased it without first asking if you really wanted to do this.

We would be flooded with Emails from various customers with complaints of lost data due to our software. So it's not likely we would implement this. Sorry.

As for ejecting at the end of the process, this I can add as a feature request.

Regards,

Craig

[Brett]

I used Instant CD/DVD before Pinnacle got their hands on VOB, and their backup software would automatically overwrite existing data, which made me think of how nice it would be if Backitup had the ability to perform in the same manner. Sometimes I'm away for days, so I can't be there to tell the program to go ahead and erase the CD-RW.

Could I do it if I used IN-CD in combination with Backitup? Once upon a time I used a simple batch file with IN-CD and the task scheduler to make unattended backups, but then I wasn't able to utilize any sort of compression.

Understood about the support emails, but if it were an option that the user had to turn on and off (and it was off by default), wouldn't it be their own fault for leaving the option on? It would kind of like a customer blaming the manufacturer of a faucet if they left the water on too long and overflowed the bathtub.

Thanks again!

[CCampbell]

Yes, you and I would think so.

Unfortuneately, not everyone agrees with us.

To give you an Example, we did run into a slightly related issue with Nero BackItUp just a few months back. Where we allowed the Customer to have full control as to where we allowed the customer to change the TEMP directory for Nero BackItUP. The issue was that we had it set to the C:\Windows\Temp directory by default, and before any new backup occured, all files were deleted in the C:\Windows\Temp directory before a new backup occurs. And I mean all files.

The user could select their own temp directory instead of the default one we provided. And some customers did just that. THey selected their C:\ drive as the temp directory. And when they went to do a backup, our software would ask them 3 times if they were sure they wanted all files in the C:\ directory deleted. After the final confirmation, we deleted all files in the C:\ directory. Unfortuneately, this includes the OS and everything else.

We allowed them to have control, we told them what we would do, and we requested confirmation 3 times. But it's still our fault that all their files were deleted from the C:\ drive.

So we had to create a fix so that if a Customer did happen to select the C:\ root directory, that we did not delete any system files, etc.

I know this is extreme and it's not exactly the same issue, but they are related. As the data on the DVDRW or CDRW could be just as critical or even more so.

We could put an option in there so they can choose if they want to erase the CDRW or DVDRW media without prompting. But what if they forget they had set this? Or if you are in a company and one user sets this, and another users is unaware of it and ends up losing vital information.

We have to take all of this into consideration.

But it's not a bad idea to have an option to allow this to be erased by default. Maybe we can bury it so it's not likely to be done by mistake, or something. We have to look at it from all angles and see if the benifit outways the risk.

I will suggest it as a feature non-the-less and let our Engineering Development team decide.

Regards,

Craig

[dodecahedron]

yeah, it's sad when idiotic bone-heads harm themselves, blame others and the upshot is that experienced users are denied being able to use the software in the manner they want.

Brett's request is extremely reasonable IMO.

just bury the settings 5 levels deep in sub-menus to keep the morons away.

a novel suggestion: why don't you set it up so if someone wants to change a setting that is potentially destructive, he has to manually enter some activation code to change that setting, and this code is hidden in the registry or some text file in Program Files/Ahead/Nero. if a person is competent enough to find this code, enter it and make the change, it can reasonably be assumed that he understands the ramifications of making these changes.

just my 2 cents.

[Brett]

I remember the whole C:\ root directory issue, and I couldn' believe the boneheads were blaming Ahead for what was clearly user error. I remember one time, along time ago, when I made a major goof in MS-DOS and managed to delete most of my hard disk rather than a directory. Do you think I turned around and blamed Microsoft?

Anyway, if would be great if you could make this enhancement while keeping sharp pointy things away from the people who don't know how to handle them.

[Brett]

One more thing, and then I'll be quiet...

Along the lines of dodecahedron's suggestion, how about an option that only becomes available after a manual change of the registry, sort of like the overclocking "Cool-Bits" function in Nvidia graphic drivers?

[Brett]

I installed 6.0.0.23 this morning. I go into BackItUp and I find under Preferences -> Expert Features an option "Do not eject the disc after the backup is complete" and another "Erase rewriteable disc with out confirmation." My hat's off to Ahead for listening to just one customer and responding so quickily to my request. Now I'll never go back to Roxio.

Thanks!

[dodecahedron]

well done Ahead!

[Brett]

I attempted to do an automated backup over an existing one on a CD-RW Wednesday. On the positive side, the disk didn't eject after the backup completed. On the negative side, even though the option to automatically erase the disk was checked under expert features, I was presented with a dialog box asking if I wanted to erase the disk.

If anyone has the time, I would really appreciate it if someone would give backitup a try with a CD-RW to confirm that the auto-erase feature doesn't work.

Thanks