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So many disks, so little time. Even if you diligently back up your data on removable media, do you take the time to properly label and catalog those disks so you can find your data again? Odds are, you have a stack of unlabeled media--be it CD-Recordable, LS-120, Zip, or something else--tucked into a desk drawer, waiting to be dealt with. 1Vision Software addressed that problem head-on with its 1Disk file management software; now, the company's 1Safe goes one step further by combining all of 1Disk's cross-media file cataloging capabilities with advanced backup and restore functionality. At $99, this easy-to-use package will prove integral to those who use removable media to archive and backup data.

We reviewed a late beta of 1Safe; the product will be available through 1Vision Software's Web site at the end of May.

It's a File Manager ...

1Safe is a relational database that essentially operates as a virtual drive that you can use to manage all of your backup media. During the installation process, 1Safe asks you to choose a drive letter from a list box to represent the virtual drive (the default is V:). That drive, labeled 1Safe, is then visible and accessible through Windows Explorer as if it were any other disk drive installed on the system. Since 1Safe is designed to operate seamlessly within Windows Explorer, you can search for files using the standard Windows Find tool, or open a file by clicking on it from within the virtual drive in Explorer. Alternatively, you can use the 1Safe Catalog window to browse all of the contents of your 1Safe Catalog, sorted by known and unknown file types, path, and media.

If you select automatic monitoring of your removable media, 1Safe does all of the file indexing for you, and keeps track of changes as backups are made. You can pick the removable media types you want to be cataloged automatically (for example, "yes" for your Iomega Zip disks, "no" for standard floppy disks). 1Safe prompts you to insert the correct disk, as designated by the unique volume name and corresponding physical label that you gave the disk when you first used it with 1Safe. The program even allows you to open catalog files with Windows apps, such as Word or Excel, and then tracks any changes you make. To be sure you have a backup of the database, you can use the 1Safe Catalog to back it up to a removable disk.