-- Well, I correct myself!

I spoke too soon -- there is another tab at the top where you can choose which partition and which subdirectories you wish to back up!

Okay then.... I guess it's worth having -- as a second backup....

Tranmontane -- That's me, coming back to say that now I have tried it, and find there are quite a few useful settings, like days and times to re-back up, I can say it looks like it could be a useful tool to have.

Once you select your disk partition, you then have to select which sub-directories or folders you want to back up. Each time you select or de-select a folder, the programme recalculates how much space you will be using up, before you start the backup.

In my case, I was surprised how quickly 100Gb goes! So I had to go back and click several folders OFF.

Before you start backing up you can choose how much bandwidth you wish to devote to it (useful if you want to leave that computer to talk to Zoolz, while browsing on another computer). It starts out at 128Kbps. I chose 256Kbps and hope that allows me plenty of bandwidth to carry on with my work.

All-in-all, it is a simply-operated programme that could come in useful. The only trouble of course is that 100Gb goes VERY fast -- so of course it is more of a come-on for their services.

Okay -- but then the only problem you MAY have (as outlined elsewhere here) -- is, will they still be in business in a year or two's time? Because they have different plans (for upload speed, for instance) my betting is they will be.

Hope so -- because I'm just uploading 95Gb of files.

As a SECOND backup, of course.

MSRebel54,

Download and run ZoolzSetup.exe.

Freeby, That's the first thing I did. That program installs, but never connects. Just a never ending progress bar from left to right after the program installs. I can find no other reference to this particular problem, so evidently zoolzs is not going to work for my windows 10 setup. At this point, it's more trouble than it's worth, so I will just delete my account. Thanks for responding though!

MSRebel54,
Well, I'm using Windows 7, so I may be out of my depth here. But, for what it's worth, I just got an e-mail entitled "Tip 1 of 3" from Zools:

Follow these 3 simple steps to setup your backup:
Open the Zoolz Client software from your desktop

Select the files you wish to backup

Customize your backup settings

And you're done.

For a complete illustration on how to setup your backup, click here

Note: If you haven't downloaded the Zoolz setup yet, download it from here

Regards,
Zoolz Team
http://www.zoolz.com/

Maybe you got it, too. If you need the links, let me know.
-- Freeby

Gerrymar, I dunno, but after discovering that I CAN upload my choice of sub-directories, I then assembled a whole bunch into the upload list -- then had to keep going back and knocking folders off, as it was far more than 100Gb!

Okay, so when I had got it down, I started uploading.... well, I don't know for sure if it is my (old) computer, but I have pretty good bandwidth, with no problem watching videos, etc. Yet, the upload was SO SLOW -- after more than 24 hours, barely 3Gb had been uploaded!

It COULD be the computer, but I am doubtful. I will try with my other computer, with another account. But if that is similarly S L O W (I really, really hope not!) than I will regretfully DUMP it, London-based company or not. Because at the present rate of going (even when using "Full bandwidth" too!) it will take a MONTH to upload my 100 gigs.

And sorry, I am not sure I will be around that long!

Well, not if I have to sit by my computer, waiting to save just one tenth of a terabyte of files -- because that's ridiculous!

GWS,

I think most on-line access is set up for higher download speeds, since that's what's most used, at the expense of very low upload speeds. One way around it is to ship the cloud provider a hard drive [or drives] with the initial data -- Zoolz calls their service Copy, Encrypt & Ship -- & then upload incremental backups.

GWS,
I just installed from THIS site.
4.07 GB in 43 min.

Bendan, he meant to back up and restore files in Cloud!

nibo1978,
He wrote "Would have taken 18 hrs to back up the 6gb I was testing with."
I backed up 4.07 GB in 43 min.

Please read and think before adding your opinion.

GWS,

22639 files (58.5GB) in 11 hours for me :)

GWS,

and this at average 45Mbps, also I have selected multithreaded option in the settings, try it if that helps. :)

GWS, If you take encryption off, will be a lot faster.

Jos

Ivan, wait til you need to access one of those files. Have fun! (it is not)

bendan, Can you please define "THIS site"? You mean through GOTD?

How do you do that, without a URL on this page leading to the developer??

from the developer's details at the top of this page??

I think it would help to clarify that....

Learn you are the difference between "restore backup" and "installing" Installing means install software. Restore backups means replace broken or lost files with files from a backup.

Tranmontane, some people like nibo1978, you and I thought he meant the "Giveawayoftheday"-Site with "THIS Site" and then he does not seem to know the difference between "install" and "restore backup". He would have written better:
"I just recovered from the cloud 4.07 GB in 43 min." Then there would have been no problems of understanding.

jerry,

If you want to be more assured that your data's safe, store it in more than one place, & that includes cloud service providers. Amazon, Microsoft, & Google have all had mishaps, though it's rare.

ickr,

There are 2 types of storage, hot & cold... Cold storage [included with this offer] only lets you view images -- you have to restore backups, which also means a delay before downloading starts. Zoolz also offers hot storage where you can see & access individual files, but Amazon, where their cloud storage is located, charges more for hot storage.

bohurupi,

You've got faster upload speeds than I have using cable broadband. :(

bohurupi, That seems like a reasonable time frame for nearly a GB of data.

George James Ducas,

It's always good to have an off-site backup as well. Backing up at home is great, but what if your house burns down while you're away?

George James Ducas, This is difficult to answer without knowing your method of backup.
Are you referring to a basic windows backup on the same computer?
Are you using an external drive?
Are you using a NAS?
What would you do if your house burns down?
Professional backups require multiple location storage for mission critical data.

George James Ducas, Well, if there's a fire at your home, your backup may get fried. YMMV.

George James Ducas,

"Why do I need this if I am backing it up at home?"

If you're talking about something like complete disk/partition image backups, I think those are *usually* only stored in the cloud after sending hard drives with the data to the cloud provider -- after that, the much smaller amount of data from incremental backups is uploaded. That's because uploads usually take too long. I think for many [most?] folks, if you've got 30 GB or more of backup data, storing a hard drive in a PO Box or safe deposit box might be the best, easiest route for off-site storage [Blu-ray would work if the media was reliable -- most is not].

That said, instead of performing disk/partition image backups in the 1st place, the model Microsoft's been pushing is to backup your data only -- not your software & not Windows. Windows 10 can [usually -- hopefully] always be restored, & worse case downloaded & installed. Software can usually be downloaded if necessary & reinstalled. And storing your stuff [your data] is where Zoolz [& One Drive, Dropbox, Google Drive, Amazon etc.] usually comes in. You store your stuff on-line, & access it whenever, wherever, using you phone, PC, laptop etc.

And you should probably store it in more than one place as well... Stuff happens. If you care about your data, e.g. photos, it's your responsibility & no one else's. *To me*, Zoolz is attractive because with Windows 10 always connected to One Drive, I figure if 10's compromised, the bad guys have got access to that One Drive account.

Just a thought BUT many have grumbled about how slow it is backing up........I would wonder, IS it your PROVIDER that's the problem - most CABLE JOKERS may have a usable Download speed but TYPICALLY their UP-LOAD is likely ONE TENTH your DOWNLOAD connection........or even less..
IN my case, and my "name brand provider", with nearly 3TB's of info, I'd die of old age trying to backup to a CLOUD.

Patrick, Mail a Hard Drive backup to yourself........if you house burns, the Post Office will likely deliver it to you.............a YEAR OR SO FROM NOW.
PS - don't use FEDEX......they will get it back to you before you house burns.......hee-hee

Patrick,

I am a user and not part of Zoolz, the license provides a web based account to log into, the PC software will ask you for this account when you install the software the second time, so its not a software license to activate the program.

John Q., this is wrong. He must buy then a second licence for the new PC!

Chris,

"Can I map it as a network drive?"
The simplest answer is no, it is a backup package and not a device sync package.

"What's with the 3-5 hours wait before restoring begins?"
The 3-5 hours is due to the storage type used at Amazon, it used Amazon Glacier for data archiving and long-term backup.

Chris,

Based on reading the on-line help & this review...
cloudwards[.]net/review/zoolz/

"Can I map it as a network drive?"

I don't believe so -- you don't have direct access to the storage, but use their software [appears to be Genie9] to backup your selected files/folders.

"Can I store encrypted disk images without Zoolz adding it's own encryption on top of it?"

It doesn't look like it -- using their software, files are encrypted by your device before being sent or uploaded -- but I could be wrong... I found this article in their on-line helps that says: "If you have already configured the backup without encryption, you must drop it and configure a new one again to set your own encryption password, by uninstalling Zoolz." I did not however find anything else that even hinted that you have a choice other than use their software's internal password or your own.
wiki[.]zoolz[.]com/can-i-specify-my-own-encryption-password-for-zoolz/

"What's with the 3-5 hours wait before restoring begins?"

There are two different types of storage -- hot or immediate & cold, & it's the cold, designed for long-term storage, that's offered with this GOTD. You can read about Amazon's Glacier storage option here:
aws[.]amazon[.]com/glacier/

Chris Hartsfield, Where does it say "1 year license"? I only see "1 user licence"

Robert Everest, My bad, you are correct! Thanks.

Robert Everest, Keep Reading :

"
Zoolz is a market leading provider of cloud based storage. Our mission is to provide an affordable and secure cloud solution for users. Our innovative platform is made with you in mind. The user experience is focused on simplicity. But that’s not all, in just a few clicks you secure all your critical data with military-grade encryption.

What’s included?

1 user license;
Protects photos, videos and documents;
Super fast upload;
No bandwidth limitations;
Lifetime backup. "

glnz,

I am a current user and not part of Zoolz.

"Not clear exactly what's happening. Is it automatic backup of any designated folders? Or just one folder that this app adds to your machine, like a dropbox folder?"
It does automatically select the My Documents of folders but you can add and remove from this during setup or even adjust it later.

"In the cloud only or also to a home network designated drive?"
Cloud Only Backup service.

"Is there any syncing across computers, like SugarSync or pCloud (which also let you designate which folders)?"
It is for secure off-site backup, it does not sync across PCs.

glnz,

It's not like One Drive, Google, or Dropbox... You sign in, same as those services, but rather than just running in the background, syncing one or more folders, you select what you want to backup, like a regular backup app. Another difference is that since this offer apparently uses Amazon's Glacier storage, you can only view image files you've stored to this account -- everything else, e.g. restoring backed up files/folders, requires a delay.

You should use hot storage [rather than this offer's cold storage] for files that you want to share, though according to their on-line help you can restore your backups in cold storage using any device. The free account you get with this GOTD also limits you to 2 PCs, I'm assuming as sources of backups.


Zoolz can also backup your on-line accounts, e.g. Facebook, but I'm not sure if that works with this offer. You can either pay for an account with hot storage, meaning immediate access [vs. long-term cold storage], or get limited amounts of storage free, e.g. signing in with their Android app.

As far as where stuff's stored, by default it's in the cloud at your Zoolz account, but there's a Hybrid backup that also stores a copy of the backup locally, e.g. on an external drive. I haven't seen anything about being able to sync files/folders across devices.

Kiwi1960, http://home.zoolz.co.uk/#home_why_zoolz_anchor

Kiwi1960,

"100 gigs for life.... really? That would depend on if the company paying for the server is even around in 12 months."

It means you would not have to pay again. As far as your data goes, you would presumably have it stored in more than one place, or should anyway, so the loss of one copy doesn't mean it's gone for good. Stuff happens, including in the cloud, including with Amazon's data storage services, so while the odds are much greater your data might be lost at your end, it can still happen at theirs.

"Nothing is for life..."

I couldn't resist mentioning the age-old duo, Death & Taxes. ;)

Kiwi1960, Just for amusement, I sure as H wouldn't and don't depend on ANYTHING related to Microsoft OR Government.........but then what day will SATA drives disappear from Computers like IDE has, and SSD gets hit by an EMP thus your up the creek and no conversion.....
Guess I'll just have to print out about a MILLION pages (well 785,000 files) and store then where "mice" can't eat them up.........or perhaps carve them on some Cave wall for future generations to discover.

AdG, http://www.zoolz.co.uk/resources-data-center-locations/

audiomonk,

From the user being linked to the stores in various locations - is it correct to take this as meaning data from UK users ( designated by the email address - or what ?) will be kept on UK based servers and held under the UK and where superseded by that, EU data security and confidentially agreements and requirements, and the data will not be disclosed to the USA, or any other government departments or organisations including any who can get non-UK/EU courts to declare that the data is 'global' and thus under their jurisdictions?

Anthony, Couldn't agree more, works well and a very generous give away.