Review: Sprite Backup 6.5

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I always get excited when one of my favorite applications gets an update. It gives me a warm fuzzy feeling knowing that they are still wanting to improve on something that is already on my list of favorites.

Sprite Backup is one of the top backup solutions available for Windows Mobile. Now in version 6.5, Sprite continues to add functionality to one of the powerhouses in Windows Mobile software.

Stick around for my full review.

The premise of Sprite Backup is simplistic. The intent is to provide a tool for users to back up their documents, settings and applications in order to prevent data loss in the event of a tragedy (I would call losing my phone a tragedy).

Backup

Sprite allows you to specify at a fine grained level exactly what your backup should contain. Anything from PIM data (Contacts, Call History, Speed Dial), to email to system data (Favorites, Today Items, System Settings), to files on the device and storage card are available options.

Backups can be created in a self-extracting format. This means that you can restore your backup without actually having the software installed on the device on which you wish to perform the restore. Additionally, backups can be saved to local storage, across an ActiveSync connection, or even to an FTP server online.

When performing a backup, you may wish to exclude certain files. For example, large media files like music and videos are often easy to replace, but can inflate your backup to an unmanageable size. Also, it doesn’t make sense to back up your previously created backup files. Sprite handles both of these scenarios and more in their options. You also have the option to execute a “One Click Backup”, allowing you to start a backup without requiring you to go through all of the configurations and such a second time.

One other thing that is worth mentioning is that I have experienced problems with other backup solutions when backing up and restoring my contacts. This is because I synchronize with an Exchange Server. What was happening is that I would restore my contacts, and then sync with Exchange, duplicating all of my contacts. Sprite Backup doesn’t totally prevent you from backing up your synchronized data, but it does give you a notification that what you are doing could cause issues later.

Restore

Restoring your device from a previous backup can be accomplished multiple ways. If you created a self-extracting backup, you can run the .exe file that was created during your backup. Alternatively, you can run Sprite Backup and go to the Restore option. This will do a quick search of your device for any backup files that it can find. You will then be allowed to choose which backup you wish to restore. Restores can also be accomplished from your ActiveSync or FTP backup. Once the restore is initiated, you can configure which data from your backup you wish to restore. This is particularly handy when you only wish to restore your data, not your configuration. As a security measure, you can also password protect your backup files, making it so that only you can restore your data.

Schedule

Backups can be scheduled on a Daily, Weekly, or One Time basis. This is the one area that I would have liked to see some additional functionality. There does not appear to be any way to create multiple schedules or to create a more advanced schedule. It would have been nice to at least be able to run a backup every weeknight, but not on the weekends. I understand that this can add some complexity to the configuration, but as a piece of software that is widely viewed as one of the most powerful applications of its kind, I expected more in this area.

PC Tools

Some of you will be familiar with Sprite Explorer. Explorer allows you to extract and browse through individual backup files. This makes it easy to open a backup and extract a single file or set of files without going through the full restore process.

In addition to Explorer, Sprite now provides you with their Sprite PC Manager. This new PC based tool allows you to configure your backups and backup schedules from the comfort of your PC. In addition, you can do things like running a backup once daily on an ActiveSync connection. This helps remove some of the hassle sometimes associated with managing your backup routine.

Upgrading

One instance where Sprite Backup is extremely useful is when you are upgrading to a new device. Many of you have experienced problems when attempting this in the past. Sprite has recognized these issues and addressed them through the use of Merge Levels. Merge Level 1 is intended for upgrading the ROM on your device. This level encompasses the most data in that more data will be compatible in the upgraded state since it is the same hardware. Level 2 is intended for when you are migrating to a new device. Level 3 is a last resort, and is intended to be used only when Level 1 and Level 2 fail.

Conclusion

Sprite continues to build on a solid set of tools that protect your data on a daily basis. For many of us, the data on our Windows Mobile devices cannot be easily replaced or replicated. Having a good backup solution is the best way to protect this data in a consistent manner.

Sprite is currently offering several upgrade paths for those who have an earlier version, including those who may have had a version of Backup bundled on their device. If your data is important to you, make sure you get your copy today.