2023-05-29 11:01:18
In a blog post that outlines what’s new in a future version of Windows 11 for ” Insider (the equivalent of a public beta version at Apple), Microsoft finally shows something that was sorely lacking in Windows: a simple backup tool.
It’s not Time Machine
Don’t expect the equivalent of a Time Machine under macOS, Windows Backup does not target the same as Apple’s tool. This is an application that allows you to back up the contents of a PC – personal folders, applications, settings, etc. — on OneDrive (Microsoft’s cloud storage offer).
Microsoft puts it forward for two uses: for a change of PC or for a reset of a PC (the famous clean install which no longer makes sense under macOS). The presentation shows two important differences between Windows Backup and Time Machine. The first is that the program is not automatic: you obviously have to explicitly launch a backup. Time Machine, opposite, is fully automated and therefore protects you in case of unexpected worries. The second difference obviously comes from the cloud: Time Machine saves on external hard drives, locally or on volumes shared on the network, but not on iCloud. Windows Backup is limited to OneDrive.
This point is obviously important: it provides flexibility in a sense — there is no need for hardware — but can be blocking. First, because OneDrive (like iCloud) only offers 5 GB for free. Then because the backup will therefore depend on the capacities of your connection: with an ADSL line, for example, Windows Backup risks being unusable because of the speed in upload. Even on fiber-based connections, throughput upload is often significantly lower than that in download.
However, for Windows users, the appearance of a simple and integrated tool is always a good thing, even if it is based on already existing bases and cannot really be seen as a modern backup application.
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