@aaron @BBigford

Hola! My name is Christopher and I am one of the senior support guys @ Backblaze. Just want to clarify a few points, as it seems there's a little confusion.

Under the "Continuous" backup schedule setting (the default), the Backblaze software will automatically index the computer for new or changed files roughly once every 1-2 hours, depending on the system configuration. Following the completion of each indexing cycle, the Backblaze software will upload all the new or changed files that were just indexed. Once a file has been uploaded, it can take 1-2 hours for the file to appear and be available for restore through the Backblaze website.

In regards to open files, this is generally not an issue unless the file has not actually been saved to disk OR the application locks or prevents other applications from reading the file on disk (like Outlook does, for example). So long as the Backblaze software has the ability to read the file, it should be able to be included in the following Backblaze backup. We do not support VSS/Shadowcopy.

It's likely worth noting that any time the computer is shutdown or asleep, neither the file indexing nor upload processes can run. The user's power settings and usage patterns may effect the frequency with which either the indexing or upload processes complete.

@scottalanmiller 100% correct!

PS. Thanks for the welcome!

@Dashrender Using the manual backup schedule setting, both the indexing and upload processes are triggered when the "Backup Now" button is selected. Both of those processes can also be started via command line, but there is a lockout if the indexing or upload processes initiate too often.

@dafyre We do not currently have any local backup features as a part of our service. There's already a number of services and softwares available to do so, many for free. We also feel that having local and offsite backups which are managed by different softwares/services reduces risk due to bugs or software issues.

@BBigford Functionally personal and business accounts work the same. It's the exact same client software, so it should be working as I outlined above. I believe the point our chat agent was attempting to make was that other factors (sleep, shutdown, disconnection from the internet, user behavior) could result in additional delays, so sometimes allowing time is all that's needed.

Assuming the computer is powered on, connected to the internet, and awake while the Backblaze software is running on the "Continuous" backup schedule, I would expect a file to take no more than 4.5 hours to be indexed, uploaded, and then available for restore.

If that's not the behavior you're seeing, we should definitely troubleshoot further. In which case, please submit a support ticket and we'll be glad to help. If you address it to me (Chris or Christopher), the ticket will come to me directly. Here's the submission form: https://help.backblaze.com/hc/en-us/requests/new

@BBigford Functionally personal and business accounts work the same. It's the exact same client software, so it should be working as I outlined above. I believe the point our chat agent was attempting to make was that other factors (sleep, shutdown, disconnection from the internet, user behavior) could result in additional delays, so sometimes allowing time is all that's needed.

Assuming the computer is powered on, connected to the internet, and awake while the Backblaze software is running on the "Continuous" backup schedule, I would expect a file to take no more than 4.5 hours to be indexed, uploaded, and then available for restore.

If that's not the behavior you're seeing, we should definitely troubleshoot further. In which case, please submit a support ticket and we'll be glad to help. If you address it to me (Chris or Christopher), the ticket will come to me directly. Here's the submission form: https://help.backblaze.com/hc/en-us/requests/new

@dafyre We do not currently have any local backup features as a part of our service. There's already a number of services and softwares available to do so, many for free. We also feel that having local and offsite backups which are managed by different softwares/services reduces risk due to bugs or software issues.

@Dashrender Using the manual backup schedule setting, both the indexing and upload processes are triggered when the "Backup Now" button is selected. Both of those processes can also be started via command line, but there is a lockout if the indexing or upload processes initiate too often.

@scottalanmiller 100% correct!

PS. Thanks for the welcome!

@aaron @BBigford

Hola! My name is Christopher and I am one of the senior support guys @ Backblaze. Just want to clarify a few points, as it seems there's a little confusion.

Under the "Continuous" backup schedule setting (the default), the Backblaze software will automatically index the computer for new or changed files roughly once every 1-2 hours, depending on the system configuration. Following the completion of each indexing cycle, the Backblaze software will upload all the new or changed files that were just indexed. Once a file has been uploaded, it can take 1-2 hours for the file to appear and be available for restore through the Backblaze website.

In regards to open files, this is generally not an issue unless the file has not actually been saved to disk OR the application locks or prevents other applications from reading the file on disk (like Outlook does, for example). So long as the Backblaze software has the ability to read the file, it should be able to be included in the following Backblaze backup. We do not support VSS/Shadowcopy.

It's likely worth noting that any time the computer is shutdown or asleep, neither the file indexing nor upload processes can run. The user's power settings and usage patterns may effect the frequency with which either the indexing or upload processes complete.