CNET Editors' review
Backing up your computer shouldn't be a tedious task. Macrium Reflect Free Edition makes file backup incredibly easy thanks to its intuitive user interface and helpful wizards.
Installing the program did confuse us a bit, because although it's a free program, it refers to purchasing the program, and you're given a confirmation number. On top of that, the program recommends that you view the online tutorials before getting started, but you might have some trouble deciphering them unless you speak Italian. Luckily, the built-in Help menu is more than adequate and written in English. The user interface is simple but professional in appearance. Intuitive commands line the top of the window, and tabs reveal options for disk images, partitions, XML definitions, and scheduled backups. A helpful wizard guides you through the process of setting up your backup. We were able to quickly select our backup location (local hard disk, network, CD/DVD). Before proceeding, it provides you with a summary of your backup so that you can see the backup type, destination, compression type, and password protection. Here is also where you can make advanced configurations to the compression levels and file sizes.
The program did slow our computer while it worked its magic, and we were unable to browse or work with other resource-intensive programs at the same time. However, we were able to watch the backup process, and the program successfully backed up our C Drive without a hitch. If you're looking for a simple but reliable backup program, we highly recommend Macrium Reflect Free Edition to all users.
Publisher's Description
From Macrium Software:
Macrium Reflect v5.0 Free Edition. An award winning disk cloning and imaging solution for free. Protect your personal documents, photos, music and e-mails. Upgrade your hard disk or try new operating systems in the safe knowledge that everything is securely saved in an easily recovered backup file. Macrium Reflect supports backup to local, network and USB drives as well as burning to all DVD formats. This version is for non-commercial home use.
What's new in this version: Version 5.0 build 4258 may include unspecified updates, enhancements, or bug fixes.
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All versions:
3.8 starsout of 424 votes
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Current version:
3.8 starsout of 4 votes
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My rating:
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Results 1-4 of 4
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"Excellent Imaging Utility"
Version: Macrium Reflect Free 5.0 build 4258
Pros
Easy to use; intuitive graphical interface; etc.
Cons
free edition only does FULL images
Summary
Although the free edition only allows full images, no differential or incremental - still, this is a very useful free utility that can save the user hours upon hours of work reinstalling his operating system, programs, and restoring all customized settings. An image contains exactly that: the exact image of your hard drive; so that when an image is restored, you have all your programs and settings back, just as they were. Worth its weight in gold but is absolutely free!
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"Great Program."
Version: Macrium Reflect Free 5.0 build 4258
Pros
Does exactly what I want.
Cons
None that I can think of.
Summary
I've been using this program (free version) several years now and would highly recommend.
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"A waste of time on a Windows 7/64 machine."
Version: Macrium Reflect Free 5.0 build 4258
Pros
Nothing to put here.
Cons
Error'ed out before completion, with a nonsensical error code.
Summary
Macrium could not do the job on a Windows 7 64-bit machine. It would complete only one out of several tasks given to it. I eventually just used the Windows Backup System Imaging function to get a copy from the failing main disk to a backup disk, and then populated a replacement disk via a Win7/64 System Repair CD/DVD.
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"Works As Described"
Version: Macrium Reflect Free 5.0 build 4258
Pros
Fairly intuitive interface with some nice features.
Cons
Burning a DSI to DVD is not for the faint of heart (or short on time).
Summary
I was surprised at how easy this excellent program is to use. (although it doesn't hurt to check out the tutorial). Cloning to an external HDD is a breeze and it's nice to have the disk burning feature. True, there are some features only available in the paid version, but not a "deal-breaker" for my needs. In all, a really fine program. (although I haven't tried the Easeus products for comparison.)
Results 1-4 of 4
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