Multiple Base Folders

[davepacey]

Is there a way to have multiple base folders ? if not are there any plans to do this ?
At the moment, I have one session setup for each base folder, and run them one at a time, I dare say it is possible with scripts, but I have not yet explored that avenue at all.

[Pete]

Re: Multiple Base Folders

I would also really like this feature in the GUI.

[armsys]

Re: Multiple Base Folders

I've never encountered the needs for comparing more than 2 base folders. Definitely, it can be easily achieved by a simple script especially if you've already save the session defintion. Just look up the Script Reference in the online help.

[Zoë]

Re: Multiple Base Folders

It's not possible right now, but we do have plans to do it later.

[davepacey]

Re: Multiple Base Folders

Good, that will be very welcome Craig. I would certainly make good use of it.

[jdmarch]

Re: Multiple Base Folders

Dave, could you give an example of how you would use this?

Thanks!

[Guest]

Re: Multiple Base Folders

I would greatly appreciate this feature too.

[Pete]

Re: Multiple Base Folders

Dave, could you give an example of how you would use this?

While you're waiting for Dave to give you an example, I'll give you one.

I have two main folder structures that I backup everyday. The root folders are C:\Data and N:\. (Drive N: is a BestCrypt encrypted disk.)

I backup these two folder structures like this:

C:\Data --> D:\Data
N:\     --> O:\

Everyday, I have to load the session for the C: drive, visually compare the differences, and then sync. When that's done, I have to do the same thing for the N: drive.

Sometimes it can take a long time to sync the files on my C: drive, so I have to check my computer periodically to know when it finishes so that I can then start the compare & sync process for the N: drive.

Ideally, BC would allow me to visually compare the folders on the C:\Data path and on the N:\ path at the same time and then begin the sync operation for both of them at the same time. This way, I could compare everything before bedtime, for example, and then start the sync process for everything at once. The next morning, the sync process would be completed.

This cannot be done with a script because I need to visually compare the contents of each path before I sync them.

On the one hand, I understand that this could add more complexity to the GUI and the underlying algorithms. On the other hand, however, it seems like there "must" be an elegant way to add this functionality.

I think that it would "wreck" the current, easy-to-understand GUI if they changed it to allow us to specify multiple source & target paths in the same session.

However, I think that there could be ways to achieve this by letting us compare & sync multiple BC sessions at once. In my case, during the compare operation, the files in C:\Data would be listed, immediately followed by the files in N:\. When I start the sync operation, then C:\Data would be synced followed by N:\ without any interaction on my part.

Some possible ideas to achieve this:

1) Have a new BC session "group-type session" that merely contains a list of real sessions that you want to treat as a single session.

2) Or, add a new dropdown box to a session's properties that lets you specify a second session to join with this session. In the second session, you could specify a third session to join with the second session, etc.

[davepacey]

Re: Multiple Base Folders

I store all my music (mp3) files on drive D: I store all my other data on my C: drive in several different folders, I do not use the default My Documents folder for reasons I shall keep to myself. I wish to just set up a single session, and be able to add my folder off drive D and the several folders on drive C: and have them backed up to my DVD drive F: in one go. I would rather not use scripts, as I prefer the GUI interface of BC.
At the moment I have to run each of 7 sessions seperately, which is rather painful. I previously used Synchroniser Pro, which is rather basic in functionality, but you can add as many folders as you wish, and it works as I like it.

I know I can use multiple base folders on one drive if I select the route of C: and then exclude all folders not wanted for backup, but this, again, is painful.

[Pete]

Re: Multiple Base Folders

DaveP wrote:

I know I can use multiple base folders on one drive if I select the route of C: and then exclude all folders not wanted for backup, but this, again, is painful.

Not only is it painful, but it's impossible for people who use more than the C: drive (such as C: and N: in my case and C: and D: in your case). Now if BC let us choose "My Computer" as the Left base folder (which it doesn't), that would at least make it possible to include multiple Left base drives and folders (by including or excluding the appropriate drives and folders).

However, no matter how we select the Left base drives and folders, there are two potential show-stoppers if they try to cram everything into a single BC session:

1) What about the Right base folders? In DaveP's case, he's only using a single target folder (F:\), so that is the simplest possible case. Other people such as myself, on the other hand, use multiple Left folders AND multiple Right folders. How would we specify this using a single BC session? Would we separate the folders with a semi-colon like this:

(Left) C:\Data;N:\
(Right) D:\Data;O:\

and then the order that we specify the folders in the left and right fields would be important so that C:\Data is synced with D:\Data and N:\ is synced with O:\. While this is certainly possible, it doesn't seem like a very elegant solution for BC's GUI.

2) The other thing to think about is FTP sites. There are probably people besides myself who synchronize multiple FTP sites to/from hard drives. It could be very difficult and/or messy to specify all of the relevant information (userids, passwords, etc.) in a single session.

It's for all of these reasons that I suggested the multiple-session approach instead of the single-session approach. However, it's obvious to me now that there are pros and cons to either method.

[jdmarch]

Re: Multiple Base Folders

I think that both Dave and Pete can get pretty close to what you want with BC's current capabilities:

1. BC already permits multiple sessions to run simultaneously. (The setting is in Tools / Options / Startup / Allow Multiple Instances.)

If it seems too laborious to start up 2 or 7 different sessions manually, write a little batch file, which would look something like this:
BC2 "My session 1"
BC2 "My session 2"
etc.
Make a shortcut to your batchfile, and click it whenever you want to begin your backup procedure.

2. To Dave: it is actually very simple to exclude the majority of folders in C:\ from a session. In theory, you
just select the 7 folders that you want (clicking on each while holding down the Ctrl key), then chose Edit / Invert Selection, then Actions / Exclude, then save your session. Voila, you have your desired selection of 7 folders in C:, in one session.

BUT BEFORE YOU TRY THIS: right now there is a BUG in BC (at least in build 215) such that the exact sequence of commands which I just listed, does not work, because it actually excludes all files and folders on C: The same thing happens if you Edit / Select ALL, then deselect your desired 7 folders, then Exclude.

I'm sure that this bug will be fixed soon. In the meantime, you can select all files and folders by selecting the first folder, then pressing Shift+End. Then hold the control key and click your 7 folders to deselect them. Then Exclude. Then save your session. Still short and sweet and gets you where you need to go.

[jdmarch]

Re: Multiple Base Folders

I would argue against the feature as requested. However I do support (though not urgently) a similar request: for a "virtual folder", which could be defined as containing any arbitrary (and user-editable) list of files and/or folders. I think this would do what you want, and also cover the more general case of someone who had copied an arbitrary group of files from around their hard disk, into a single folder or archive or removable disk, and wanted to compare all of these files to the copies, together.

[Pete]

Re: Multiple Base Folders

Jonathan wrote:

...a "virtual folder", which could be defined as containing any arbitrary (and user-editable) list of files and/or folders.

I'm not clear on where in the BC GUI you would specify a "virtual folder". Could only the source base folder be "virtual" or both the source and target base folders? Are you saying that there would be a single target base folder, or multiple target base folders that match with each source base folder? If multiple target folders, how would you specify them in your "virtual folders"? What about FTP sites?

I think that your "virtual folders" are based on DaveP's idea (you say files & folders, he said folders), but that your definition of "virtual folders" so far doesn't really seem to address the more general cases that I mentioned.

In fact, I would say that there are really two feature requests here. I think that your idea about "virtual folders" is unique enough to be a separate feature request that deserves its own topic in the forums. By posting in the current topic, it seems like you're trying to kill Dave's and my specific feature request in favor of your own. Ideally, though, I think that both requests are valid but different and there could easily be a future version of BC that somehow incorporates all of these good ideas without prematurely eliminating some people's ideas.

Jonathan wrote:

I think this would do what you want, and also cover the more general case of someone who had copied an arbitrary group of files from around their hard disk, into a single folder or archive or removable disk, and wanted to compare all of these files to the copies, together.

I don't understand what you mean by this.

[davepacey]

Re: Multiple Base Folders

I think I would rather have the ability to select multiple folders, in one session, and as Craig has already said this is on the wish list, I will leave it at that. If you want anything different, perhaps you should add it as a separate thread.

[Zoë]

Re: Multiple Base Folders

Don't worry guys, both DaveP's and Jonathan's requests are on the wishlist. Whether they're the same feature or not will really depend on how the final design turns out.