
Dantz EMC Retrospect for Windows Professional Edition (Full Product)
| Design and usability | Good: 77 |
| Documentation | Superior |
| Backup creation | Good |
| Backup restoration | Very Good |
| Performance and reliability | Very Good: 80 |
| Features | Very Good: 80 |
| Incremental backup: Application backs up all of the files that you have changed since the last incremental backup. The software keeps multiple backup sets, and each contains different files or different versions of files. | Yes |
| Differential backup: Application backs up all of the files that you have changed since the last full backup. The application keeps two backup sets: one for the full backup and one for all of the new files plus the last versions of any changed files. | Yes |
| Full backup: Application backs up the entire PC, including the operating system files. Some applications may perform a full backup without copying open system files. | Yes |
| Native backup: Application backs up files and folders in their original format so that you can view and open them in any file browser (such as Windows Explorer). | Yes (whole drives only, not single folders or files) |
| Imaging: Application performs a sector-level backup of an entire hard drive. Its main disadvantage is that generally you can't choose which files and folders to protect--you must image the entire disk. | No |
| Disaster recovery: Application examines system files, programs, user settings, and everything else on a hard drive and copies all of it to a bootable partition or disk. When your primary boot disk fails, you can use the copy to get back up and running quickly. | Yes |
| Open-file backup: Application has the ability to back up files another program is currently using. An option available only in Windows XP. | Yes |
| Compression | Yes |
| Verification: Application compares the backed-up files with the source files to ensure completeness and accuracy. | Yes |
| Encryption | Yes |
| Password protection | Yes |
| Scheduling | Yes |
| Push-button support: Software is compatible with an external hard drive that has one or more buttons on its enclosure for initiating a backup. | Yes |
| Media supported | Hard disk, CD/DVD, tape, Rev drive |
EMC Retrospect 7.5 Professional
EMC Retrospect for Windows Professional Edition (Full Product) Review, by Jon L. Jacobi June 9, 2006
When it comes to power and automation, EMC's Retrospect 7.5 is in a league of its own. This backup app's scripting and vast array of networking and enterprise features make it a good buy for IS pros, but perhaps a bit too complex for the average user.
The program's ease of use--or lack thereof--remains as it was in version 7.0. The $119 (as of 5/25/06) program offers passably friendly wizards that step you through the backup and restore process. Unfortunately, arcane language, concepts, and procedures such as selecting individual files and folders from under the Preview pane still abound. With this version I was hoping for an upgrade to a more user-friendly interface like the one the company uses in Retrospect HD, which ships only with backup hardware such as Maxtor's OneTouch III. Alas, that isn't the case, and new users--even technically advanced ones--should scrutinize the manual first.
Once you're up to speed, Retrospect's disaster-recovery features and support for a wide variety of media (including tape, magneto-optical disk, and Iomega's Rev) are impressive. I was a bit put off by the lack of support for Blu-ray Disc; Retrospect upgrades are rarely cheap, and EMC wouldn't confirm whether users will need to pay for an upgrade to get support for this technology in the future. I also deducted points for two nonfatal operational oddities: The restore pane listed files I had never asked to back up, and it also refused to overwrite existing files even though I told it to.
In the end, the average user will likely be better served by a less expensive program that's easier to learn. However, for IS staffs and for small businesses using a network, Retrospect 7.5 Professional is more than worthy of consideration.
Jon L. Jacobi
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