Three Free Backup Programs for Windows

Backing up your PC is about as fun and exciting as a root canal, but it's something you must do regularly. I'm a proponent of diversified backup plans, meaning using multiple methods (online, local) and media (external hard drives, DVDs, etc.). You can get started down this road using any of these three backup utilities, all of which are available free of charge:

• Comodo Backup We've covered this before: It lets you back up selected files and folders to any number of destinations, including network drives, FTP servers, and the like. It doesn't clone entire drives, however; for that you need:
• Seagate DiscWizard The OEM version of Acronis TrueImage, which works with any Maxtor or Seagate hard drive, lets you clone your drive, create a backup image, and build a boot CD in case your system suffers a major meltdown. If your system has a different drive brand, try this:
• Drive Backup Express A newcomer to the free-backup party, this utility archives entire hard drives or individual partitions. It can perform "live" backups (meaning it runs while you work) and create system-recovery discs and flash drives. Best of all, it has a wizard-driven interface to keep things novice-friendly.