AISBackup integration into Explorer Shell

Do you want a new option in AISBackup? Do you want an existing option enhanced? Ask here.
Post Reply
jmtces
Posts: 4
Joined: Thu Jan 15, 2009 6:26 am

AISBackup integration into Explorer Shell

Post by jmtces »

Hi Barry,

Ever thought of adding she'll context menus allowing unsavvy users to right click on a file or folder to do a 1 click backup or restore of file(s) or Folder(s). I have clients who are afraid of anything with more than one button on it and they have to ring me when they have just trashed a spread sheet and want to restore the previous backup.

It would be simple if they could just click on the file in explorer and have an AISBackup option to backup or restore that file. Restore would then give them a list of all the generations of that file to choose from and the option to rename or overwrite the current file or change the destination. If the right click on the folder, they get a treeview of that folder only and are able to tick the files to restore followed by a destination/overwrite choice. This folder option would also allow them to select a file from backup that they have inadvertently deleted.
James Taylor
Barry
Site Admin
Posts: 1529
Joined: Tue Aug 20, 2002 3:16 pm

Explorer integration

Post by Barry »

This option has been thought of many times. The integration into the shell would require that a database be held of all backup sessions across all jobs - and this database would have to be very efficient and kept up to date in a very efficient way (New backup jobs, pruning jobs, deleting jobs, resetting jobs etc). AISBackup's sophistication is probably its own undoing this respect.

Adding folders to a backup via a right click is doable but I highly recommend that a full regular backup (as opposed to a disk to disk copy) is made by each of our customers in any case. The backup should also be made to at least 2 destinations (the same backup job can maintain 2 or more independent backups to USB external drives for example). I am making a short story long here, but if everything is backed up then a right click 'backup this folder' is not quite so important.

However, the integration with explorer would probably be a valuable USP regardless of how useful it actually is.

Barry
jmtces
Posts: 4
Joined: Thu Jan 15, 2009 6:26 am

Post by jmtces »

I understand what you are saying but consider this scenario. A computer phobic user has just trashed a spreadsheet and needs to restore it from yesterdays backup. The user connects the backup drive but instead of going through the Normal Steps; 1. Open AISBackup UI 2. Select restore 3. choose the session. 4. navigate the tree. 5. Select the file. 6. Verify the destination. 7. Confirm Overwrite. 8. Confirm NTFS Security then performing the restore, they just right click the file, choose "Aisbackup Restore {filename} - Renaming original" or "AISBackup Restore {filename}- Overwrite" or "AISBackup Restore {filename} - new location" and that performs steps 1 to 7 above for them, summarizes what is about to be done and prompts for them to continue with the restore with or without NTFS security.

This will use the same database that a manual restore does (most likely on the removable media) and doesn't need to be resident. All this would do is pass parameters to the UI that answers all the prompts up to step 7 or 8 including searching the tree for the file. It might do additional prompting if more than 1 generation of the file exists or notify the user that the file does not exist in the backup. If AISbackup supports commandline restore, then it would simply create a commandline and execute it.
James Taylor
Barten
Posts: 4
Joined: Wed Jul 20, 2011 3:18 am

Post by Barten »

I got it
nikkil
Posts: 53
Joined: Mon Feb 27, 2012 2:08 pm

Post by nikkil »

I guess it will just require a lot of time to develop this with little users that can benefit. I would certainly understand this move.
You're never a loser until you quit trying. Image
Post Reply