Timing results of some Backup runs in the particular environment of my PC

• Question

• 

  

  0

  Sign in to vote

   

  Introduction

  In this Post, I share the timing results on my particular PC of a couple of different Backup runs (both "System Image Backups" and "Folder/File Backups") of  "Windows Backup". The measurements have been done under Windows-7, in the first half of February 2010, before the availability of any Windows 7 SP.

   

  Timing results depend heavily on one's particular PC configuration; e.g. the speed of processor, the disk configuration (type, speed and number of disks, whether they are internal disks or external disks attached via USB 2.0,  eSATA, USB 3, …..),….. Therefore do not count-on to see in your particular environment results that are similar to those that I have observed on my particular PC.
  
  But I nevertheless think, that publishing my results, will help one or another user to get an approximate idea of the performance results he might expect on his own PC. And my results might help one or another user to understand whether his results in his particular environment fit with the results of what another user (=me) has seen.

  Myself will appreciate it, if somebody could point me to performance results published by Microsoft; this would allow me to verify, whether my results fit with what Microsoft has measured and expects.

   

  The Backup runs that I describe in this post, are my most important backup runs that I am performing in my particular PC desktop environment and in my real-life backup environment. These are:
  1) a System Image Backup (created every 4-8 weeks) of my C: partition/volume, of my  H: partition/volume, and of my large F: volume.
  2) a weekly backup of the many Folders/Files (among other 120 GB of Photo files) located on my H: partition and on my large F: Volume, combined with a System-Image Backup of my C: partition.  I call this backup, not very precisely,  a "Folder/File Backup", since the performance-relevant part of this backup is the large Folder/File backup of my 120 GB of photo files.
  
  

  Since I perform all my backups to disks and I am personally not interested at all in any backups to DVDs, all the reported Backups were written to disks. For my backups, I use both an internal disk and external disks connected via USB 2.0 (i.e. I do not have measurements for backups written to network attached disks, to RAID configurations, to Servers,…….)..
  
  Some observations

  1)       On my PC, the Full File/Folders Backups run much faster (2h15 vs.  3h45) when the backups are written to an internal disk instead of an external disk attached via the relatively slow USB 2.0 interface. Therefore, when I will need to buy larger external disks for my backups, I will probably buy disks attached either via faster USB 3 or eSATA interfaces.

   

  2)       Based on my measurements, I have the impression that Full "System Image Backups" created by "Windows Backup" are quite fast. For me their performance characteristics are surely not a reason to prefer a Backup Software from another Software company.
  
  Notice that I do not have any performance experience with Incremental Backup runs of Backup Software from other Software companies and can therefore not comment on the relative performance of "Windows Backup" for incremental backup runs.

   

  3)       On my PC, when backing up a large amount of data,

  a)       "Full Backup" runs of "System Image Backup" were substantially faster than "Full Backup" runs of "Folder/File Backups". This fits well with the recommendation of Christine Fok to use rather "System Image Backups" than "Folder/File Backups" for backing up a large amount of data.
  
  But because "Folder/File backups" offers me much more flexibility (i.e. offers me many more "backup-point-in-times" for a Restore) for the Restore of individual folders/files, I will never the less continue to use "Folder/File" backups when this is feasible.
  
  

  b)       "Incremental" runs of "System Image Backup" were substantially slower than "Incremental" runs of "Folder/File Backups". This does not fit well with the recommendation of Christine Fok to use rather "System Image Backups" than "Folder/File Backups" for backing up a large amount of data.
  
  But:

  i)         Does my observation, fits with what Microsoft has observed and expects? Also, I can not exclude that something in my environment is not correct or not appropriate:  bugs in the HW, drivers or SW? Inadequate set-up/options?

  ii)       I do not know, whether my environment is representative of "typical environments" or not.

  iii)      For  "Folder/File Backups", what I measured was the first incremental Backup that comes after a Full Backup. I can imagine (depending on how Windows Backup works) that for Folder/File Backups (probably in contrast to System Image Backups) the 2ns incremental Backup will be slower than the first one, the 3rd incremental backup will be slower than the second one,…… and that therefore the relative advantage of File/Folder Backup will shrink when I will already have a large number of incremental backups after the previous Full backup.
  

              iv)  probably also (but I have not tested it and do not really know): when the proportion of changed data
                  increases,  the difference between the performance of both types of incremental backups will decrease.
    

  c)     At this time, before learning more from Microsoft or from other users, based on items a) and b) above, it is my impression that it is in the following areas, that Performance improvements for the backup of a large amount of data seems desirable:

  i)      Performance improvements for Full Backup runs of "Folder/File" backups (this is something that Microsoft is well aware of)

  ii)     Performance improvements for Incremental Backups of "System Image Backups" (this will become important, if Microsoft believes that also in future large amount of data should preferably be backed-up with "System Image Backups" as opposed to "Folder/File backups". It will be less important, if System Image Backups will mainly be used to backup System partitions that are typically not very large).

  1         My PC configuration

  Since Performance measurements of Backup-Jobs depend on the PC configuration, let me provide below a description of my PC Environment:

   

  1)       Windows 7, Ultimate, 64 bit (German language Version)

  2)       Intel Quad Core i7 CPU 950 @ 3.07 GHz

  3)       12 GB of RAM
  
  
  

  4)       First internal Disk: a relatively fast Western Digital VelociRaptor of advertised 300 GB with 10'000 rpm

  a)       C:  System Partition  of 170 GB.
  Approximately 47.3 GB of the C: partition are used

  b)       H:  Partition of 108 GB used to store my  "data files" and containing among other "My Documents"
  Approximately 11.1 GB of the H: partitions are used.
  
  
  

  5)       F:  internal Disk: Western Digital Caviar Green of 2 TB with 5'400 rpm
  This is a large Disk, but not one of the fastest Disks; but I believe that it is OK for my purposes.
  This internal Disk is more or less reserved for my photo-files
  
  At this time, I have 122 GB worth of photo Files stored on that disk. I expect that the total size of my photo files will increase substantially.
  
  
  

  6)       X:  Internal Disk: Western Digital Caviar Green of 2 TB with 5'400 rpm.
  This is a large but not one of the fastest Disks; but I believe that it is OK for my purposes.
  This internal Disk is more or less reserved for my Backup Files.
  
  On that disk, I intend to create weekly incremental backups consisting of

  a)       the system Image Backup of my C: partition

  b)       File/folder Backups of most files located on the H: partition

  c)       File/Folder backup of most photo files located on the F: volume
   

  7)       E: external Disk attached via USB 2.0: a Maxtor Basic drive of 1 TB with 7200 rpm and 60MB/sec.
  
  I bought this disk around 2 years ago for my backup Files (recently, I encountered too many problems with it, and I surely do not recommend  any Maxtor Basic disk).  
  
  After creating Backups on that disk, I go to my bank to store this disk in the Safe of my bank.

  
  Originally, I was planning to create on that disk around every 4-8 weeks the same incremental backups as on my X: disk.
  
  But because of the current (Jan 2010) lack (for File/Folder backups – not for System Image backups) of appropriate incremental backup support by Windows Backup of the same data to multiple destinations, I will create on this disk System Image Backups of my C:, H: and F: volumes.
  
  
  

  8)       E. External Disk attached via USB 2.0: a "Iomega Prestige" "Desktop Hard Drive" of 1.5 TB that I bought around one year ago for my backup Files.
  
  I could not find its rpm figure. The Iomega Website just tells 480 Mbit/sec (as theoretical maximal transfer rate).
  
  This disk seems to have for my backups more or less the same performance characteristics as my Maxtor Basic disk.
  
  

  After creating Backups on that disk, I go to my bank to store this disk in the Safe of my bank.

   

  
  ------ Continuation in next Post -------------------------

  ---

  Windows 7 Ultimate, 64 bit, German Language Version

  • Edited by Eckerlin Monday, February 15, 2010 4:12 AM

  Sunday, February 14, 2010 2:06 PM