SpB Backup

SpB Software House have long been renowned for their extensive range of utility and gaming software for Pocket PC and Windows Mobile Devices.

One gap in their portfolio to date has been a backup program. The advent of Windows Mobile 5, which lacks any built-in backup functionality may have been a prompt for SpB to fill this gap, and in doing so provide some competition for the two other players in this market.

So, have SpB produced another "Killer app" ? Read on, and I'll try and answer that question!



Why do I need a Backup Program?

I cannot emphasise strongly enough the importance of owning a backup program which is easy to use and encourages a regular backup strategy.

Although WM5 uses "Persistent Storage" for application and data storage, which preserves files in case of a flat battery, this does not give any protection against device crashes due to corrupt installation routines or memory conflicts etc. If any of these scenarios leads to a complete lockup, a hard reset may be needed, which wipes both RAM (Program Memory) and Persistent Storage (Storage Memory), consequently requiring all your applications and data to be reinstalled.

Earlier operating systems are even more vulnerable, as a flat battery will quickly result in all RAM contents being erased, in addition to the above risks.


A securely stored backup will also give some comfort in the case of your Pocket PC being lost or stolen.


SpB Backup




Supplier: SpB Software House
Product: SpB Backup
Cost: $19.95 (-20% discount for existing SpB users)

With thanks to Nicholas Tsipanov at SpB for the review program



Installation
SpB Backup is a 480KB file which downloads as a PC executable file, and installs via Activesync. The file size on the Mobile Device is about 800KB, which for most people will allow it to be installed to device memory, though it will install and run from an expansion card without any problem.

There is a Trial Version available from the SpB Website address as above. This allows a maximum of five backups before a registration code is required. Backup files created during the Trial Period can be restored even after the Trial has expired, as the files are self contained.

The installer places a shortcut into the standard Program Files folder. It also creates a Today Screen plug-in which shows the interval since the last backup, and the date and time of the next scheduled backup, if set. Tapping the Today item launches the program.




Backing Up Using SpB Backup


When the program is opened, from either the Today Plug-in or Programs, you see a simple screen offering a Full Backup, Custom Backup or Scheduled Backups. Switching between these is very fast, so if you change your mind, you can go back and alter your selection.

A Full Backup uses the program defaults of all system and user data, with compression but no encryption. Custom Backups can include any selectable data or system files, and can be performed without without encryption or compression. In practice this means that SpB Backup includes everything in "Storage Memory" on WM5 devices, and everything in RAM on WM2003 devices.

There is currently no option to include "File Store" or other ROM based Storages in the Backup sets. This does mean that there is a reduced functionality for "disaster recovery" though I understand that this is being reconsidered for future releases.


Scheduled Backup


Selecting Scheduled Backup opens the scheduling window. This allows the on/off selection of each day of the week, plus a scheduled backup time. It also gives options for automating the reset process, turn off after reset, or backup only on A/C power, so preserving battery power in critical situations.

Tapping "Next" takes you to the backup file management screen. This allows you to set the location for your backup archives, and also lets you select the number of backup files to keep, so preserving space on storage cards.




Tapping "Next" takes you through the same item selection, and then compression and encryption selection screens as outlined in Custom Backups below. From here, the next screen gives a summary of the selected schedule and backup file location.

Tapping "Finish" takes you back to the Today screen, where the next scheduled backup will be listed, if the SpB Backup Today Plug-in is enabled.

Custom Backup

Selecting Custom Backup allows the user to select the type of data to backup, or the compression and encryption options for the backup file. The selection options screen has four items, and some of these have sub-options screens which present a file "tree" for selecting the required files. Once the selections are made, you proceed to the options screen which has checkboxes for encryption and compression, from where you go on to the File Management screen common to Custom or Full Backups.






Any system files, or User Files can be selected for backup using the file tree choosers from the Options Screen in Custom Backup.




Once all the desired files are selected, you proceed to the first Backup File options screen, where you can choose Compression and Encryption settings.

Custom Backup options are not remembered between backups, so if you have a complicated custom requirement, then you will need to re-enter the selections each time.

From here, the next steps are common to the Custom and Full Backup operations



Full Backup

Selecting Full Backup takes you straight to the File Management screen, from where you can choose a Backup File name, and storage location. The file name defaults to Backup_[todays date].exe, but can be edited if required. Once these options are accepted, the program gathers the necessary information from the system, then presents a screen showing the file parameters. Tapping "Next" progresses to a warning screen saying all processes will be halted, and prompting to save any open files; tapping next initiates the backup process.

All backup files are self-running executables, so it is not necessary to reinstall SpB Backup after a hard reset, or to restore data. In addition to the backup file, a small text file is also written to the target location specifying any errors during the process, and the time taken to process the backup file.

A full backup is always compressed, with no encryption. I would have preferred to have some global options to allow this to be selectable.







Restoring Using SpB Backup


To restore data, simply locate the required backup file using File Explorer. As the file is self executing, simply tapping the file name will initiate the Restore Process. The first screen is very similar to the Backup screen, asking if you want a Full or Custom Restoration.

A Full Restore will restore the complete contents of the file to the device, after stopping any currently running processes.

A Custom Restore will show the same Options Screens as the Custom Backup process, allowing the user to select individual files, files types or classes of data.

The Custom restore options will obviously reflect the data in the Backup file, so if you only backed up Emails, then you will only get the option to restore Emails.


After tapping Full Restore, or selecting a Custom Restoration, tap Next, and you will be presented with another warning screen giving the date of the Backup File you are restoring. Tapping Next again, takes you to a further warning about ensuring the device is currently set for the correct date and time. The current date and time is displayed alongside a Button allowing you to access the system Date and Time control panel, to adjust if necessary.

Tapping Next initiates the Restore process, which, once complete, will prompt the User to select OK to do a soft reset, to ensure that the restored files are correctly opened.




Statistics and Results

I have used SpB Backup to perform a few test Backups and a Restoration

A Full (compressed, unencrypted) backup of my Exec was 8MB in size and took 3m 15s to complete

A Custom Backup, selecting all files (as for a Full Backup), unencrypted and uncompressed, was 20MB in size, and took 1m 50s to complete.

A Full Restore of the uncompressed backup file took 2m 21s to complete (I didn't test the compressed file but would assume a similar difference to the backup process)

As the Restores are self extracting, the program itself is not needed and you can restore data immediately after a hard reset without the need to load the parent application itself. This also means that backups made during the Trial period will be available to restore after expiry of the Trial, so if you experience a device problem immediately after your 5th Trial Backup, you can still recover your system.

Both the Backup operations were performed without any file errors being logged.

To test the Restore operation, I hard reset my Exec, then performed the Restoration. All the previous functionality was restored correctly, including Emails and SMS messages, and ActiveSync did not protest about any conflicts, completing as if nothing had changed (as one would hope!).

There is no option to have a backup saved to the PC while docked. I can understand this, as it would involve the USB/Activesync processes to remain active, which might interfere with the backup process. The provision of the PC Utility to extract files from the Backup archives is a welcome addition.


PC Utility to Extract Backup Archives
SpB have a utility file available which allows backup archives to be extracted to a PC. This may be useful for isolating individual document or data files if you don't want to do a restore on the Mobile Device.

On running the application, you are given a simple imterface from which you can select the Backup archive to extract, and the location of the extracted files, including New Folder creation if necessary. There is no option to extract individual files- once initiated, all the backed up files are copied to the target folder. However, the process is fairly quick, so that should not present any problems.

I did a test extraction, and all the files appeared to be sound- documents files opened in Microsoft Office applications, and an Acrobat file opened correctly.

This may not be a frequently used utility, but its presence is welcome. Just remember to copy your Backup archives to the PC from time to time (a good policy anyway!)






Pro's

Ease of Use
Configurability
Reliability
Speed of Operation
Scheduled Backups
Trial Available
Self extracting Backup Files
Date/Time setting prior to Restores
PC Utility to extract backup files



Con's

No global options for Full Backup
No saving of "Datasets" for Custom Backups
No Backup of File Store, or ROM Storage





4WM Rating

95%




Conclusion

SpB Backup is an excellent utility program, which on the whole makes keeping backups of your data a simple process. The lack of PC backups puts the obligation onto the user, to make sure that backup files are copied to an alternative location to ensure a restoration can be performed on a new device in the case of loss, theft or irreparable damage. The lack of FileStore backups might be more af a problem for users of devices with ROM based additional storage for similar reasons.

At $19.95, SpB Backup is $10 less than its main competitor, at the expense of the loss of a little functionality but SpB have indicated that they will consider adding File Store backup in the next release.

SpB Backup has impressed me, and it will remain on my device as my backup program of choice.