The CDP backup software functions in the sense that it takes an initial image backup of the hard drive partition it is backing up, and from there, only backing up changes to existing files. This has many advantages, such as fast and efficient bare-metal restores when needed, and also the ability to back up 'Hot Files', which are files constantly in use, such as database files.

If you notice your backup is becoming too excessive, and would like to reduce the usage, there are a few methods for accomplishing this.

• Utilize the NT Backup software in conjunction with a second hard drive.

Windows Server 2003 and 2008 both come with the NT Backup software, which can be used to select individual files and folders for local backup to a '.BKP' file. Though the software is not able to back up directly to the CDP backup server, it can be set to back up files from the primary hard drive of a server to it's secondary hard drive. You can then exclude the primary hard drive from the CDP backup, and it will only backup what files are on the secondary hard drive.

• Reduce the amount of backup sets retained by the backup server.

By default, Server Intellect provisions servers ordered with the Enterprise Backup solution to backup once per day, and retain seven individual backup sets. If there is a lot of data on your server which is constantly changing, this can lead to rather size able backup usage. You can lower the amount of backup usage by lowering the number of retention sets kept on the server. For instance, instead of backing up once per day and keeping seven days worth of data, you can lower it to only keep three days worth of retention sets. You can also adjust the backups to run on either a weekly or monthly basis instead of daily.

• Remove any unnecessary files from the server.

Over time, unnecessary files on the server can accumulate and take up vast amounts of space, such as temp files and log files. While the log files generated by Internet Information Service (IIS) are used to generate the statistics tracked by SmarterStats, after time, they can build up on the server. Also, previous versions of the HELM Control Panel are also saved on the server and can be removed. To check these files, you may want to look in the following locations:

• C:\WINDOWS\Temp (Windows Temporary Files)
• C:\SmarterMail\Logs (SmarterMail Logs)
• C:\WINDOWS\system32\LogFiles\MSFTPSVC1 (FTP Logs)
• C:\Program Files\WebHost Automation\Helm\Logs\Error (HELM Error Logs)
• C:\Program Files\WebHost Automation (folders with a '.bak' extension)
• C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL.1\MSSQL\LOG (SQL Error Logs)

By removing these files, you can further increase the efficiency of your backups.

If you would like further assistance with lowering your backup usage, please feel free to contact our Technical Support department, and they will be happy to assist you.