User manual
RapidoBackup 2.0.2 to 2.1.0


Contents

Quick reference

Preliminary remarks

  1. Your workstation must be connected to Internet to access the RapidoBackup.com public service, notably when using the client or running a schedule.
  2. A backup set groups together a set of documents (files) and folders (directories) that can be backed up, restored, synchronized or scheduled in a single operation.
  3. In the client, additional functions can be accessed by clicking with the right mouse button on documents or folders in the local or remote space. The same applies with the schedule agent icon in the shape of a boomerang (at the bottom, right hand corner of the screen, next to the clock).
  4. Selection by highlighting is not permanent. In order for files or folders to be permanently selected, their checkboxes must be marked within the backup set. Otherwise, they will not be taken into account for scheduled tasks.

Local space

The client is the application (software) that you use to manage your backup operations interactively. In the client, the upper half of the main screen displays the contents of your workstation.

List of functions that can be accessed by right clicking with the mouse:

  • Add to current backup set
  • Add to current backup set (encrypted)
  • Toggle encryption status: switch the selection from ciphered to non-ciphered and vice versa.
  • Remove from current backup set
  • Backup selection: selective backup of the highlighted files.
  • Backup selection (encrypted): selective and encrypted backup of the highlighted files.

Remote space

In the client, the lower half of the main window displays the contents of the secure backup space.

List of functions that can be accessed by right clicking with the mouse:

  • New folder: create a folder in the remote space without it needing to exist in the local space, for example, to move documents or folders that you do not want to delete definitively.
  • Move: move documents or complete folders from one folder to another. This action is also available by drag-drop.
  • Rename: change the name of the document or folder.
  • Delete: destroy documents or complete folders.
  • Restore: restore documents to their original location.
  • Restore to: restore documents to any location.

Scheduling agent

The scheduling agent monitors scheduled tasks to ensure that they run correctly. It can also be used to configure all the current user's schedules.

List of actions that can be accessed by right clicking with the mouse on the boomerang-shaped icon in the taskbar (at the bottom, right hand corner of the screen, next to the clock):
  • Open client: launches the interactive client in order to restore data or modify the backup settings.
  • Browse log: display the list of events generated by the scheduling service.
  • Open agent: display the schedule configuration screen.
  • Quit: close the scheduling agent. The scheduled tasks continue to run if the scheduling service is active.

Connection

Member of RapidoBackup.com

To take out a subscription or subscribe to a trial period, visit the www.RapidoBackup.com site and click on Download. As soon as you have received confirmation that your account is activated:
  1. Open the RapidoBackup client (menu Start > Programs > RapidoBackup > Client).
  2. Enter your username and password.
  3. Tick the Save password box to avoid having to enter it again later.
  4. Tick the box Connect at start-up and this screen will not be displayed when it is started again.
  5. Click on the Connect button.

It is essential to keep your password if you plan scheduling operations. Do not tick the corresponding box if you use a public computer: cybercafe, library, etc.

User on a company LAN or WAN

Your administrator will give you the information required to be able to connect. Follow the previous steps. If required, click on the Advanced button to enter the server location.

Main screen

After identification, the main screen is displayed. It is divided into four sections (from top to bottom):

  • Main actions: access the backup, restore, synchronise, schedule and configuration wizards.
  • Local space: display the contents of your workstation (similar to your Windows explorer); select the current backup set and its contents.
  • Remote space: display and manage the current contents of your backup space.
  • Key: meaning of the colour codes (see the details below).

In the same way as your Windows explorer, the remote space (physically located on the backup server) displays the folders to the left and the documents to the right. In addition, each document can be backed up in several successive versions: click on the "+" button to the left of a document to display all the versions available for this document. A colour code indicates the synchronization status between your workstation and its backup:

  • For documents, the column "L" ("local") gives the status of the document on your workstation and the column "R" ("remote") gives the status of the latest backed up version:
    • Green: the document is up to date,
    • Orange: the document is outdated,
    • Red: the document is missing,
    • Grey: the status cannot be determined.
  • For folders:
    • Green: all the documents and all the sub-folders that it contains are actually up to date,
    • Red: at least one document is missing, outdated or unknown in the folder or one of its sub-folders.

Backup

In the local space, which displays your workstation, tick the folders and documents to be backed up. Additional actions are available with the right mouse button (see the details in the "Quick reference" above).

Then click on the Backup button. A wizard is displayed: select the appropriate mode (select Back up backup set for the initial backup operation) then validate with the OK button. The documents selected in the set then start being backed up.

Notes

  1. In Back up selection mode, the selected documents are not automatically incorporated in a backup set. Documents that are not in any backup set cannot be scheduled.
  2. You can keep several successive versions of a document in the remote space. This can be done in one of two ways:
    • After having backed up a document at least once, click twice (slowly) on the figure that is displayed in the Versions column in the remote space. The number of backed up versions of the document will be incremented for each backup operation until the set limit is reached. Each new version will then replace the oldest version. In doing so, you modify the number of versions per document.
    • To modify the number of versions of all the new documents, modify the setting Default number of versions (Settings screen, Account tab).
  3. A progress screen indicates the state of progress. The first progress bar represents the state of progress of the file that is in the process of being backed up, whereas the second bar symbolises the overall state of progress of the operation.

Restore

Selective restoration

In the remote space, which displays the contents backed up on the server, select the document (and possibly the version) to be restored. Additional actions are available with the right mouse button (see the details in the "Quick reference" above).

Then click on the Restore button. A wizard is displayed: select the Restore selection mode then validate with the OK button. The selection then starts being restored.

Batch restoration

In the local space, tick the folders and documents to be restored. Then click on the Restore button and select Restore backup set in the wizard that is then displayed. Lastly, validate with the OK button. The documents selected in the set then start being restored.

Synchronize

This action simultaneously combines backup and restore operations. Proceed in the same way as backing up for the selection of folders and documents to be synchronized and then click on the Synchronize button.

Select the appropriate mode in the wizard that is displayed, then validate with the OK button.

Settings

The interactive client is very easy to use and configure. The settings can be accessed using the settings button. A few indications in addition to the concepts already explained above are given below:

  • Account tab:
    • Default number of versions: for newly backed up documents.
  • User tab:
    • Descriptive information to be used by the administrator.
    • Passphrase: defines the passphrase used to encrypt documents that are duly marked. The administrator does not know this passphrase and it is essential to be able to read encrypted documents!
  • Backup sets tab: add, delete and name backup sets.
  • Filters tab: the documents that correspond to a filter are not backed up again.
  • Advanced tab:
    • Deletion mode: when restoring, outdated local files can be sent to the Windows recycle bin instead of being definitively replaced by the most recent remote version.
    • Clean server side: see below.

Cleaning the server side

When backup space is used, due to the "sticky” nature of the activation algorithms, elements previously backed up may become useless. It is then necessary to proceed with a selective clean up of these elements.

To do this, from the Advanced tab of the Settings dialog box, click Clean server side. Two methods are available:

  • Cleaning deleted files: this permanently deletes from the server side files that have not been modified for a specifically defined amount of time. Warning! This method can permanently delete backed up data for which there is no copy on the local side.
  • Compact the catalog: this deletes a certain number of elements from the server side that do not have any associated data. No data is destroyed using this method.

These two methods may be selected at the same time. If so, they will be executed sequentially without interfering with one another.

Schedule and agent

You can schedule automatic backup operations (restoration or synchronization) very simply according to a schedule of your choosing.

It is worthwhile distinguishing between the scheduling wizard, agent and service. The wizard is the schedule configuration tool. It can be accessed from the client by clicking on the Schedule button and from the agent by clicking on the menu Open, selecting an account then clicking on the Schedule button.

To change from one step to another in the wizard, click on the buttons located at the bottom of the wizard. To begin with, select a backup set and the task to be executed. Each set can be allocated to a task and a different schedule, but the same backup set can only be scheduled in one way.

Then select one of the four schedule types (hourly, daily, weekly or monthly) and validate. The following step depends on the type selected. For the last three, you must select the times when this schedule will be executed, in addition to the dates.

Once a set has been scheduled, you can schedule another one. You can schedule all the accounts that are available on your workstation. However, only one schedule can be executed by the service at a given time. Therefore, please ensure that your different schedules do not overlap one another.

The agent is a monitoring tool for the service. It can be accessed via the green or red boomerang icon in the taskbar (at the bottom, right hand corner of the screen, next to the clock):

  • If the boomerang is green, the service is operational.
  • If the boomerang is permanently red, the service is not operational.
  • Lastly, if the boomerang is flashing red, one or more errors have occurred during a recent schedule. These errors are recorded in the Event log.

The schedule service, which runs continuously on your PC, executes the actions that you have scheduled with the wizard (one at a time). Note that the main screen of the client must be closed when a schedule is executed.

Lastly, you can check that your schedules have been executed correctly using the Event log, which can be accessed via the RapidoBackup menu in your Start menu, or via the agent menu (right mouse click on the boomerang at the bottom, right hand corner of the screen, next to the clock).
 

Frequently asked questions

Please refer to this section before contacting the help desk.

Connection

What does the error message "User not found or bad credentials" mean?
Your username or password has been rejected by the server. Check the server address, the spelling of your username and password (the password must be completely identical to the one that you have backed up, including the difference between upper and lower case characters and spaces).

If you connect to a public server, you must be registered beforehand. Your account may also have been suspended for administrative reasons, in which case, please contact the help desk.

What does the error message "User is already connected" mean?
An account can only be connected once at a given time: another instance of the client, schedule agent or schedule service, on your PC or another PC, is probably already connected with this account to the same server.

Furthermore, if a previous connection has been recently and suddenly interrupted (crash, Internet connection interrupted, etc.), the server may not yet have detected the disconnection. In this case, wait a few minutes before trying again.

What does the error message "Socket error" followed by a number mean?
The physical communication between your PC and the server cannot be set up or maintained. The most likely causes are that your PC is not connected to Internet, the server address is erroneous (in the client, Advanced button on the identification screen) or the server is temporarily inaccessible.

What does the error message "Error connecting with SSL" mean?
SSL (Secured Socket Layer) is a communication protocol that secures data exchange on public networks such as Internet, for example, during bank transactions or your RapidoBackup sessions. The most likely causes are that the server port is erroneous (in the client, Advanced button on the identification screen).

Interactive client

Why do documents marked "missing on the remote side" (green/red) appear in my remote space when I do not want to back up these documents?
These documents used to belong to a backup set and have been removed. To get rid of them simply, open the Settings box and click on Compact catalog in the Account tab.

How do I exclude a folder from the backup set or a document that is located inside a folder that actually belongs to the backup set?
This action is not directly possible. However, you can manually select the folders and documents included in the backup set and not select the excluded folders or documents.

Why are all my folders in the remote space marked as being synchronized (green) when the backup set is not up to date?
The colour code of the remote space does not indicate the synchronization status of a backup set, but the status of all the documents contained in the remote space at that time. If you have recently added files to be backed up in the local space, they do not yet exist in the remote space and therefore, do not affect the synchronization status that is displayed.

How can I quickly restore a folder or set of documents?
Create a temporary backup set (Settings box, Backup set tab). Add the folders and documents to be restored in the backup set and restore this set. You can then delete the set or keep it for later use.

When working with RapidoBackup, I added folders/documents into my local space with a program/the Windows explorer. They are not displayed in the local space. Must I restart the RapidoBackup client?
No, simply click on the Refresh button (to the right of the list of backup sets).

I ticked the Connect at start-up box. How do I go back to the identification screen to change account?
Click on the Disconnect button in the main screen.

Why are the times of the versions in the remote space offset by a few hours compared with the local space?
They are not displayed in the same frame of reference: the times in the local space are displayed in "local time" whereas the times in the remote space are displayed in "UTC time".

Schedule

Why do the schedules continue to run when I have quitted the schedule agent?
The schedule agent is a configuration and monitoring tool for the schedule service. The schedule service normally operates continuously, including when the agent has stopped. It executes the schedules. See the following answer.

How do I temporarily suspend schedules?
In the schedule agent, click on the Service status tab then on the Stop schedule button and wait about ten seconds. The service then changes to the "not running" status (boomerang icon is red). To re-enable the schedule, click in the same place on the Start schedule button and wait about ten seconds. The boomerang icon changes back to green.

What does "exception not managed" mean in the event log?
When executing a schedule, two types of errors may occur: "managed" and "non-managed" exceptions. The first errors may occur when backing up or restoring a document, but they do not interrupt the schedule. The second "non-managed" errors occur when the schedule starts or stops and they cancel the current schedule.

The most likely causes are that your PC is not connected to Internet (see "Socket error" above) or the client has stayed open (see "User is already connected" above).

How do I backup my Outlook mail archive (.pst)?
If you often see an error indicating that your Outlook mail archive cannot be opened during the backup operation, it is because when Outlook is running, it obtains exclusive access to these files (including the name that ends with .pst).

To backup them, close Outlook during the backup operation or contact the help desk for more information on the additional open backup tool from our partner St. Bernard Software.

Why is the schedule agent icon permanently red since I have updated my Windows 95/98/Millenium edition to Windows 2000/XP/2003?
The schedule service for the former Windows generation is not fully compatible with the new Windows generation. Reinstall RapidoBackup: the schedule service will be operational again without you needing to reconfigure anything.