EaseUS backup error mystery...

[This Wreckage]

I have a Dell Optiplex 3020 PC with a 1TB SSD. I bought a Toshiba 1TB external HDD to back up my files and apps. I've never used a backup system before. I set up EaseUS Todo Backup Free to perform a backup of my files which total around 600GB. I noticed in File Explorer that my internal SSD totals 953GB capacity of which 799 GB is used. The external drive has 931 GB capacity (not sure why the difference). After spending six hours backing up my files and reaching about 76%, EaseUS stopped and requested more backup space.

There should be a simple way to backup 799 GB into 931 GB. Why does EaseUS not like the notional incapacity of the external drive, a space which is not required?

 

[ChatGPT]

It seems like you are experiencing an issue with EaseUS Todo Backup Free while trying to back up your files to your external HDD. I'll try my best to help you understand the situation and find a solution.
Firstly, the discrepancy in capacity between your internal SSD and external HDD is due to the difference in how storage manufacturers measure storage. Internal drives are typically measured in base 10 (1GB = 1 billion bytes), while external drives are usually measured in base 2 (1GB = 1,073,741,824 bytes). Hence, the actual usable capacity of a 1TB external drive is lower than the advertised capacity.
Now, when it comes to the backup process, it's important to understand that the backup software needs extra space to process and store the backup files. This is because the backup process involves compressing and potentially encrypting the data, which can result in larger file sizes than the original data.
Additionally, EaseUS Todo Backup requires some free space on the destination drive to create temporary files during the backup process. This free space is essential to ensure smooth operation and avoid potential errors.
With 799GB used on your internal SSD, it's possible that the 931GB capacity of your external HDD is not sufficient to accommodate the compressed backup files and the required free space. Therefore, the software prompts you for more backup space.
To resolve this issue, you have a few options:
1. Check if there are any unnecessary files on your internal SSD that you can remove, temporarily reducing the amount of data you need to back up.
2. Consider using a larger external HDD with more capacity to ensure ample space for the backup process.
3. Adjust the backup settings in EaseUS Todo Backup to exclude certain files or folders that are not crucial for your backup. This way, you can potentially reduce the size of the backup files.
4. If you don't want to invest in a larger external HDD, you may consider backing up your critical files manually by copying them directly to the external drive instead of using backup software.
It's worth mentioning that while backing up your files is crucial for data protection, it's also recommended to have multiple backup locations or use cloud storage services for redundancy. This will further safeguard your data in case of hardware failures, theft, or other unforeseen events.
I hope this information helps you understand the situation better and provides some potential solutions. Let me know if you have any further questions!

 

[This Wreckage]

If I set EaseUS Todo Backup to use no compression when backing up, would that likely help avoid running out of space?

 

[This Wreckage]

Now, when it comes to the backup process, it's important to understand that the backup software needs extra space to process and store the backup files. This is because the backup process involves compressing and potentially encrypting the data, which can result in larger file sizes than the original data.

Additionally, EaseUS Todo Backup requires some free space on the destination drive to create temporary files during the backup process. This free space is essential to ensure smooth operation and avoid potential errors.

With 799GB used on your internal SSD, it's possible that the 931GB capacity of your external HDD is not sufficient to accommodate the compressed backup files and the required free space. Therefore, the software prompts you for more backup space.

To resolve this issue, you have a few options:

1. Check if there are any unnecessary files on your internal SSD that you can remove, temporarily reducing the amount of data you need to back up.
2. Consider using a larger external HDD with more capacity to ensure ample space for the backup process.
3. Adjust the backup settings in EaseUS Todo Backup to exclude certain files or folders that are not crucial for your backup. This way, you can potentially reduce the size of the backup files.
4. If you don't want to invest in a larger external HDD, you may consider backing up your critical files manually by copying them directly to the external drive instead of using backup software.

If I set EaseUS Todo Backup to use no compression when backing up, would that likely help avoid running out of space?

 

[MikeHawthorne]

Hi, I've used EaseUS backup free for years, but I don't use it to back up my files.

I use it to make images of my Windows drive.
I put Windows on its own partition of about 200 Gigabytes. This lets me fix virtually anything that goes wrong with Windows or my boot drive in a matter of minutes. Even a corrupt boot sector.

I back up all my files just by using copy and paste to my external drive. There's no real advantage that I can see to using other software to do it.
We used to do that to compress all the files and make them take less space on the external drive, but that's not really necessary any more.

Just make a backup folder on your external drive, select the file and copy and paste them to the drive. It's a lot less complicated, and it doesn't add the danger that you may have problems with retrieving them.

You can copy and paste the whole drive if you want to. But I always select the first folder at the top of the tree and do them one at a time.
I.E. all my photos are in a folder called Photos, It has many sub folders but all I have to do is copy that folder to my external drive and all my photos are backed up. Same with music files, etc. If you don't have enough space, you can buy a 2-terabyte drive for as little as $65.

It's a lot less complicated than using third-party software, and it has the advantage of being able to do it in smaller bits at a time. It will probably be a lot faster over all.

I am Not a Robot!!!