IS Support - Backing Up Data

There are a number of reasons you may want to back up your data. You might be getting a new computer or your machine was reimaged, or you have noticed an issue with your hard drive and want to secure your data in another place, or you are receiving a new hard drive. The following instructions will cover a few methods for backing your data up (via an external flash or hard drive, or via the U: drive [staff/faculty only]) and how these methods differ between Windows and Mac.

Windows

Back Up to U: Drive (Drive Mapped)

(Note: The U: drive will only appear on a DePaul-owned computer that is either on campus or connected to the Pulse Secure VPN.)

1. Open the File Explorer.

2. Select your U: drive in the left hand panel. If you do not immediately see it, make sure that "This PC" is expanded. The U: drive will be labeled with your DePaul username (without the @depaul.edu).

3. Right click within the U: drive window and select "New" then "Folder" and name the new Folder "Backup". You can also hit control+shift+n to create a new folder. You may want to include a date as well so you know when the backup is from. If this is the case, do not use periods or slashes; instead, format the date as mm-dd-yy or something similar.

4. Double click the "Backup" folder.

5. Open another File Explorer window. You can do this by either clicking "File -> Open New Window," hitting control+n on your keyboard, or by right clicking on the manila folder icon on your desktop or task bar and clicking "File Explorer". You should now have two windows open. You can then rearrange the windows so they are side by side by either dragging and dropping the windows or by selecting the File Explorer window, holding down the Windows key, and clicking the left or right arrows (this will align the window on the left or right side of the screen respectively).

6. In the File Explorer window containing the files and folders on your computer that you would like to save, select the file or files you wish to copy over by clicking one or holding down the Shift key to select multiple files that are in a row. If the files are not directly next to each other, you can use the Control key to select multiple files. If you wish to select all files within a folder, you can also use the keyboard shortcut control+A. You can also click and drag over multiple folders/files to select them. Right click on any of the files selected and select "Copy" from the drop down menu. In the "Backup" folder on the U: drive, right click and select "Paste". This will begin to copy over the selected files.

Please note that any system files (including but not limited to the actual "Desktop," "Documents," "Pictures," "Music," or "Videos") should never be copied directly as these folders. Instead, you should enter into the folder, select the file you wish to move, and copy that file over.

7. You may have multiple locations where data is stored, such as on the Desktop, in the Documents folder, or in a custom made folder. Make sure to select the files and folders you wish to back up, then copy/paste those items into the new Backup folder.

8. You can then either leave the data on the U: Drive or copy the individual files from within the folders in the U: Drive to their corresponding locations on your reimaged/new computer.

Back Up to U: Drive (Web)

Note: This method is not recommended for large amounts of data as the webdrive automatically logs out after a period of time and longer uploads could be disrupted by this.

1. In a web browser, navigate to webdrive.depaul.edu and log in with your username and password.

2. Select your U: drive on the left hand side. On the right hand side in the toolbar, select the small arrow next to "New" and click "Folder". Name the new Folder "Backup". You may want to include a date as well so you know when the backup is from. If this is the case, do not use periods or slashes; instead, format the date as mm-dd-yy or something similar.

3. Double click the "Backup" folder.

4. Select "Upload" in the top menu. This will pop open a box that will let you select what files you would like to upload. Use the method that would work best for your purposes. For instance, if you have a lot of folders of varying sizes, select the "Drag and Drop" tab may work better for you than the "Standard" tab.

5. Once you have selected the files you wish to upload, select the "Upload" button. This will begin uploading the files to the U: drive folder.

6. You will then need to wait for all files to finish uploading. You will be able to see the progress in the Upload window. Once all files finish uploading, you can close the browser tab/window.

7. Once you receive your new device or have the new location ready, you can either leave the data on the U: Drive or copy the individual files from within the folders in the U: Drive to their corresponding locations on your reimaged/new computer.

Back Up to Flash/External Drive

1. Plug an external drive into your computer. This may be an external hard drive, a flash drive, or some other removable media.

2. Open the File Explorer.

3. Select your external drive in the left hand panel. The name of it will depend on if you have named the drive yourself or if it is fresh from the manufacturer.

4. Right click within the U: drive window and select "New" then "Folder" and name the new Folder "Backup". You can also hit control+shift+n to create a new folder. You may want to include a date as well so you know when the backup is from. If this is the case, do not use periods or slashes; instead, format the date as mm-dd-yy or something similar.

5. Double click the "Backup" folder.

6. Open another File Explorer window. You can do this by either clicking "File -> Open New Window," hitting control+n on your keyboard, or by right clicking on the manila folder icon on your desktop or task bar and clicking "File Explorer". You should now have two windows open. You can then rearrange the windows so they are side by side by either dragging and dropping the windows or by selecting the File Explorer window, holding down the Windows key, and clicking the left or right arrows (this will align the window on the left or right side of the screen respectively).

7. In the File Explorer window containing the files and folders on your computer that you would like to save, select the file or files you wish to copy over by clicking one or holding down the Shift key to select multiple files that are in a row. If the files are not directly next to each other, you can use the Control key to select multiple files. If you wish to select all files within a folder, you can also use the keyboard shortcut control+A. You can also click and drag over multiple folders/files to select them. Right click on any of the files selected and select "Copy" from the drop down menu. In the "Backup" folder on the U: drive, right click and select "Paste". This will begin to copy over the selected files.

8. You may have multiple locations where data is stored, such as on the Desktop, in the Documents folder, or in a custom made folder. Make sure to select the files and folders you wish to back up, then copy/paste those items into the new Backup folder.

9. Once you have finished copying over all files from the hard drive to the external drive, go to the bottom right hand corner of your screen and locate the eject icon. Right click this icon and select the external drive you wish to eject.

10. Once you receive your reimaged/new computer, you can then plug the drive into the appropriate port on your new device and copy the files to the new device. As external devices can be lost, we do not recommend leaving the data on this drive permanently.

Mac

Back Up to U: Drive (Drive Mapped)

(Note: The U: drive will only appear on a DePaul-owned computer that is either on campus or connected to the Pulse Secure VPN. You will also need to follow the instructions here to map your U: drive to your DePaul-owned Mac. See the section "Accessing Network File Storage - On-campus Mac".)

1. Map your U: drive per the instructions found here to your DePaul-owned Mac.

2. Open a Finder window. In the menu at the very top of the screen, select "Go" then "Computer". There will be a list of items that appear in the Finder window. Select the drive labeled with a letter (the first letter of your username) as this is your U: drive then select the folder labeled as your username.

3. Right click or control+click (if right click is not enabled on your Mac) within the U: drive window and select "New Folder" and name the new Folder "Backup". You may want to include a date as well so you know when the backup is from. If this is the case, do not use periods or slashes; instead, format the date as mm-dd-yy or something similar.

4. Double click the "Backup" folder.

5. Open another Finder window. You can do this by either clicking "File -> New Finder Window" or right clicking (control+click) on the Finder icon in the system tray and selecting "New Finder Window". You should now have two windows open.

6. In this other Finder window, select the file or files you wish to copy over by clicking one or holding down the Shift key to select multiple files. You can also click and drag over multiple folders/files to select them. Right click (control+click) on any of the files selected and select "Copy" from the drop down menu. In the "Backup" folder on the U: drive, right click and select "Paste". This will begin to copy over the selected files.

Please note that any system files (including but not limited to the actual "Desktop," "Documents," "Applications," "Music," or "Movies") should never be copied directly as these folders. Instead, you should enter into the folder, select the file you wish to move, and copy that file over.

8. You can then either leave the data on the U: Drive or copy the individual files from within the folders in the U: Drive to their corresponding locations on your reimaged/new computer.

Back Up to U: Drive (Web)

Note: This method is not recommended for large amounts of data as the webdrive automatically logs out after a period of time and longer uploads could be disrupted by this.

1. In a web browser, navigate to webdrive.depaul.edu and log in with your username and password.

3. Double click the "Backup" folder.

5. Once you have selected the files you wish to upload, select the "Upload" button. This will begin uploading the files to the U: drive folder.

6. You will then need to wait for all files to finish uploading. You will be able to see the progress in the Upload window. Once all files finish uploading, you can close the browser tab/window.

Back Up to Flash/External Drive

1. Plug an external drive into your computer. This may be an external hard drive, a flash drive, or some other removable media.

2. Open a Finder window.

3. Select your external drive in the left hand panel. The name of it will depend on if you have named the drive yourself or if it is fresh from the manufacturer.

4. Right click within the external drive window and select "New" then "Folder" and name the new Folder "Backup". You may want to include a date as well so you know when the backup is from. If this is the case, do not use periods or slashes; instead, format the date as mm-dd-yy or something similar.

5. Double click the "Backup" folder.

6. Open another Finder window. You can do this by either clicking "File -> New Finder Window" or right clicking (control+click) on the Finder icon in the system tray and selecting "New Finder Window". You should now have two windows open.

7. In this other File Explorer window, select the file or files you wish to copy over by clicking one or holding down the Shift key to select multiple files. You can also click and drag over multiple folders/files to select them. Right click on any of the files selected and select "Copy" from the drop down menu. In the "Backup" folder on the external drive, right click and select "Paste". This will begin to copy over the selected files.

9. Once you have finished copying over all files from the hard drive to the external drive, go to the left hand side of the Finder window and select the eject button next to the external drive.