Compress to destination: possible? Benefits?

[lore77]

Hi,

I'm testing SyncBackSE 5.9.4.0 using the following setup:

- A daily full backup (no versioning) is performed from my PC to a NAS, for a specific set of folders
- Data are compressed to a single zip file before being moved to the NAS
- "Verify that files are copied correctly" option is enabled

My NAS is a basic Lacie NAS; data are copied at about 15-20 MB/sec; I'm compressing files in a single zip to improve the backup speed.
I noticed that the file is compressed in the TEMP folder before being moved to the NAS; my questions are the following:

- Is it possible to set SyncBackSE to compress data directly to the destination (the NAS in my case)?
- If not, would it have benefits on the overall backup speed? What I'm wondering is if "direct zip to destination" would be faster than "create zip locally and then move it to NAS".

Basically, since my NAS is a bit slow, I'd like to know if there are ways to improve the backup speed.
Thanks and regards,
Lorenzo

[Dave Wilkins]

Wish I had $1 for everyone who said 'my NAS is slow' (also, $10 for everyone who said 'your software is' till we proved them wrong )

You can move the temp area where files are compressed (into a temp file) to the NAS (see Modify > Expert > Compression > Advanced > bottom option), which would make the compression take place on the NAS, and then the rename/copy of the temp file to the 'real' file would (should) be a Move on the NAS. The latter would usually be faster (NAS permitting - see below) but the former would almost certainly be significantly slower - but you could try it...

It's not possible to compress and store in one operation (c/o the 3rd-party Compression component).

Your NAS may be reacting badly to the Safe Copy process (Modify > Expert > Copy/Delete > Advanced > 'Make safe copies...' - press F1 on that page for what it does, how, and why). Some NAS devices react badly to the process involved, or perform it incredibly slowly. If yours is one of them, you either need to put up with it or turn it off

[lore77]

Hi Dave,

Thanks a lot for all your hints! I tried what you suggested and I think that, after all, standard settings have the best performance vs reliability compromise.
I was so impressed from your quick response and support that I decided to join the SyncBack family and just bought the application!
Keep up the good work and thanks,
Lorenzo

[Dave Wilkins]

One thing I forgot to mention is that - as per the Help on that settings page - Verify may significantly slow the overall run-time.