Experience has taught me to Back Up, Back Up and Back Up, as recovery from major issues can be a long drawn out thing, losing all sorts of valuable Data etc.. Or it can be a simple as making a Back Up , in my case Macrium Reflect, which restores everything in around 8 minutes, up and running just like before any issues .
Absolutely. Can't even begin to count the number of times I've given this advice.
Hi Doc, hope you are well.
Would you believe before a couple of years ago, all my backups were on spare Hard Drives, nothing complicated just the the most important stuff or my personal stuff, Windows installations, i keep on several usb Pen drives, all Editions available. Then i took the leap of faith and tried something new or new to me, played about with various Backup apps to see what suited me best. Now i use Macruim Reflect, it is fast, reliable and does all i need it too, now i have all 4 SSDs fully backed up with full images and rescue Pen Drives just in case. Now i can experiment with anything i want in as many ways as i want. Do i recommend others do the same , Hell No, i consider myself an IT Pro who has been around the IT block a bit.
The Basics
Back Up after any important change depending on your usage (For me that will be weekly unless i am experimenting and if so before making those changes)
Never do something your skillset can not get you out of, we all have to start somewhere, so start small, read up on what you want to do taking info from several sources, then if you are happy have a go.
Never mess around with your everyday Computer or Hard Drive, if at all possible, use a spare PC or laptop, failing that consider buying a spare Hard Drive or SSD, the smaller sized Drives have become very cheap these days, add the second drive to your desktop or swap one for one in your laptop, keeping your "Use Daily Drive safe". If it all goes wrong, you still have your daily use Drive intact and fully functional.
In this forum as in others, we can not all agree on when to install updates, some like me install as they come in, others wait months until they are sure about how the update affects there system, there are ups and down in both ways, all we know for sure is MS gets it wrong often, yes they get it right too as Millions of peeps use Windows in one form or another without issues connected to updates.
Keep giving out that good advice Doc, even if you think you have said it over and over. Every newbie you tell is one less freaked out peep if the shite hits the fan.
