Windows 8 Upgrading From Windows 8 to 8.1 Safe?

[Thornax22]

I have been thinking about updating from Windows 8 to 8.1 for a long while now, but I do not know if it is safe. I have heard of so many people who lost their files after updating, but that was a long time ago. Do you still lose your files? If so, I am not updating, because I have Battlefield 4, with all DLCs, so it will be near to impossible to make a backup of my personal files. I also make minecraft videos, and I have over 50 Gigabytes of videos on my computer that I don't want to lose. I want to be sure that it is 100% safe before I update, can anyone help me out?

 

[patcooke]

It's not just about Windows 8.1 - you should never make any updates or major changes to your system without have secure backups of any important files (either system files of user files). You should maintain up to date images of your entire system drive using an imaging application such as Macrium Reflect (free! so there's no excuse!) and individual data files should be backed up to external storage (500gb external usb hard drive for about £30 or less). It's not only system upgrades that put your system at risk - any changes, installs, updates, malware infections and especially a hard drive failure can lead to loss of everything at a stroke. System imaging would also enable full recovery in a matter of minutes if your upgrade to 8.1 did cause a problem.

 

[Thornax22]

It's not just about Windows 8.1 - you should never make any updates or major changes to your system without have secure backups of any important files (either system files of user files). You should maintain up to date images of your entire system drive using an imaging application such as Macrium Reflect (free! so there's no excuse!) and individual data files should be backed up to external storage (500gb external usb hard drive for about £30 or less). It's not only system upgrades that put your system at risk - any changes, installs, updates, malware infections and especially a hard drive failure can lead to loss of everything at a stroke. System imaging would also enable full recovery in a matter of minutes if your upgrade to 8.1 did cause a problem.

Thank you for the help! I don't really feel like spending money on an external drive, so I don't think I'm going to update. I would like the update because I saw it on my friend's system, and it looks like there are a lot of advantages. I think it looks nicer too, and easier to navigate

 

[Trouble]

I am not updating, because I have Battlefield 4, with all DLCs, so it will be near to impossible to make a backup of my personal files

I also make minecraft videos, and I have over 50 Gigabytes of videos on my computer that I don't want to lose

I want to be sure that it is 100% safe before I update

I don't really feel like spending money on an external drive

Had to smile.
Pat does a good job of explaining that, nothing is "safe" when it comes to computing
You do a good job of explaining how important and critical your files are to you.
But evidently, not important enough.

 

[Jimbo22]

Failing patcooke's excellent advice....you can still update 8 to 8.1 from the MS store and keep all your files. It's how all of us with OEM systems upgraded to 8.1.

 

[patcooke]

I don't really feel like spending money on an external drive,

Less than £40? What did your system cost you? How much is your system worth to you now? What would it cost you to replace it? How much time and money would it cost to replace all your data files (assuming it's even possible). How much time would you prefer to commit to recover your entire system - twenty minutes or twenty hours? Backing up and updating are an essential part of operating a computer (or else we'd all still be running Windows 3.11)! It's like refusing to spend £100 on insuring a house worth £100,000. I just hope you don't become one of the very many posting to these forums desperately asking for help to recover an entire system or important data which had never been backed up.

 

[Thornax22]

Failing patcooke's excellent advice....you can still update 8 to 8.1 from the MS store and keep all your files. It's how all of us with OEM systems upgraded to 8.1.

I know it claims to keep all your files, but I have heard of people who lost their files even that way. I found a 500gb usb drive for $80, that was the cheapest one, and that's a lot of money to spend for a usb.

 

[Trouble]

You should be able to do better than that price.
http://smile.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=external+usb+drive
AND
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100029226 4026&IsNodeId=1&name=$50 - $75

 

[patcooke]

Just googled similar:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_n...arch-alias=aps&field-keywords=500gb+usb+drive

 

[Thornax22]

I found a 500 gb for $60. I'm going to think about this one, but Pat, you made a good point when you said nothing with computing is secure. I might have wanted to invest in one of these a while ago.

 

[patcooke]

Sound thinking. If you go down this route do consult further with is to help arrange your system to minimise the space and time needed to secure your system and user data.