Backing Up Before An Update Is Not Optional

The re-release of Microsoft’s latest Windows 10 update (version 1809) is the 6th major release of the operating system, and brings with it some impressive new features, from a Dark Mode in Explorer, to Screenshot, Search, and Clipboard improvements. This upgrade is an important one.

And while most of the issues have been shaken out at this point, the original release of this version in October was nothing short of a fiasco. Users complained of lost data (deleted Documents folder), installation, configuration, and performance problems. Yikes! This was enough to have Microsoft stop the rollout entirely and suspend it until mid-November.

Create Bootable Media

NovaBACKUP recommends performing a full system backup prior to any Operating System update. Don’t have backup software? There’s no excuse. Products like NovaBACKUP Server offer fully functional trial versions (15 days), allowing you to:

• Create a bootable flash drive or external drive to restore your Disaster Recovery Image, even if Windows can’t boot anymore

• Schedule a Disaster Recovery image backup (differential / incremental) that includes your OS, system drivers, applications, and file data

• Restore a Disaster Recovery image to the same machine, or even a machine with a different set of hardware
• Convert Disaster Recovery images to virtual machines for use in your Hyper-V environments

While a Disaster Recovery Image may get you back in business, you also need to ensure that always-running applications, like SQL and Exchange, are natively supported by your backup solution so that databases are properly paused and backed up regularly – to ensure they are restorable without any data gap.

While clicking that update button may be enticing, it should be translated into “backup now” in your mind to create some sense of security that you can always get back to where you left off if need be.