How to Backup Data to a Thumbdrive
Step Summary:
- Insert thumbdrive in USB port
- Open the thumbdrive
- Identify files to be backed up
- Copy the folder and/or files to the thumbdrive
- I want to restore my data
Detailed Instructions:
Step 1 - Insert thumbdrive in any available USB port.
USB ports can be located near the bottom of the front panel of many computers, on the back panel (although difficult to reach), and many of the Dell LCD monitors have 2 USB ports located on the left-hand side of the device.
If this is the first time you have used the USB device with your computer, a series of messages will pop up showing that the system is looking for appropriate drivers for your device. The next time you use the USB device, the computer will recognize it as a removeable drive.
Step 2 - Open the thumbdrive.
Double-click the "My Computer" icon on your desktop to open a list of available drives.
Double-click the removable drive in the list (folder name differs for different manufacturers). The folder will open showing a list of folders and files on the thumbdrive.
A dialog box may appear asking what action to perform with the USB device. Choose to open the drive and view its contents. You will see a list of files already stored there.
Step 3 - Identify the files you want to back up.
In this example, "ACT Projects", a folder from "My Documents" will be selected and copied.
Step 4 - Backup the selected files.
Method 1: Right click the folder and "send to" the thumbdrive (this example specifies "PKBackup").
Method 2: Right-click and then drag the "ACTProjects" folder to the thumbdrive. A dialog will pop up asking if you want to copy or move the folder to the new drive. Choose "copy here".
If you cannot complete the backup of your data because you are getting "disk is full" errors from the thumbdrive, you will have to perform some cleanup on the thumbdrive before proceeding with your backup. Delete files from the thumbdrive as you would delete them from your computer's hard drive.
Step 5 - Restoring files.
If you want to restore data from the thumbdrive, repeat steps 1 through 4, except you will be copying files from the thumbdrive to their original locations on your computer's hard drive.