Abstract: A method of incremental backup of a storage device includes reading descriptors of logical storage units of the storage device; comparing the descriptors of the logical storage units of the storage device with descriptors of archived logical storage units; for logical storage units of the storage device whose descriptors are not identical to the descriptors of the archived logical storage units, backing up contents of physical storage units that correspond to those logical storage units of the storage device; and, for logical storage units of the storage device whose descriptors are identical, performing a comparison step to check if these logical storage units need to be backed up. The logical storage units can be files. The comparison step can be, e.g., (1) bit-wise comparison of the logical blocks, (2) comparing control sums of the logical blocks, and (3) comparing log files relating to the logical storage units The physical storage units can be blocks. The descriptors can be, e.g.

Abstract: A server is restored by creating an image of a local drive of a server; replacing a driver in the boot up procedure of the server, the replacement driver redirecting disk drive access requests from the local drive to the image; on-demand copying portions of the operating system needed for start up from the image to memory of the server; and copying a remainder of the image from the image to the local drive as a background process. The data is copied on-demand from the image to the local drive. The copying is performed over a network. The image is created on a different server connected to a network. The copying of the remainder of the image, after critical start-up data has been copied, is done based on a priority of a sector of the image being copied. A bitmap is created corresponding to sectors of the image, and the server decides whether to access a particular sector on the local drive or on the image based on the bitmap.

Abstract: A system includes a storage device, a backup storage device, and an intermediate storage device. Backup is on-line and copies data blocks from the storage device into the backup storage device, optionally through the intermediate storage device. When a write is directed to a data storage block has not yet been backed up, that data storage block is copied from the storage device to the intermediate storage device, the write is executed on the identified data storage block, and the data storage block is copied from the intermediate storage device to the backup storage device. In case of an error accessing a block on the storage device, the block is marked as invalid. The system suspends a write command to the storage device during the backup if the intermediate storage device has reached a selected capacity; and copies a selected amount of data from the intermediate storage device to the backup storage device.

Abstract: A method of changing storage drive contents includes changing, in an operating system, a main storage driver to create a virtual storage driver, wherein the virtual storage driver redirects access requests to a main storage either to one of the main storage and a temporary storage; copying, as a background process, blocks from the main storage to the temporary storage; restoring, to the temporary storage as a background process, blocks from a source storage into blocks of the main storage that have already been copied; and redirecting, to the temporary storage, operating system's requests for access to blocks of the main storage that have been copied to the temporary storage. The method can also include hiding the temporary storage from the operating system. The main storage and the temporary storage can share partitions of the same physical storage drive. Free blocks of the physical storage drive can be used as blocks of the temporary storage. Blocks can be assigned to the temporary storage in succession.

Abstract: A method of incremental backup of a storage device includes reading descriptors of logical storage units of the storage device; comparing the descriptors of the logical storage units of the storage device with descriptors of archived logical storage units; for logical storage units of the storage device whose descriptors are not identical to the descriptors of the archived logical storage units, backing up contents of physical storage units that correspond to those logical storage units of the storage device; and, for logical storage units of the storage device whose descriptors are identical, performing a comparison step to check if these logical storage units need to be backed up. The logical storage units can be files. The comparison step can be, e.g., (1) bit-wise comparison of the logical blocks, (2) comparing control sums of the logical blocks, and (3) comparing log files relating to the logical storage units The physical storage units can be blocks. The descriptors can be, e.g.

Abstract: A method of restoring a storage device includes creating an image of the storage device of a computer system; during execution of a boot loader, starting an initialization application that at least partially restores to the storage device, operating system data from the image; modifying a disk driver of the operating system to form a driver that redirects unexecutable storage device read requests to the image; rebooting the computer system using the at least partially restored operating system data; and restoring unaltered portions of remaining data from the image as a background process.

Abstract: A system for data backup includes a storage device, a backup storage device, and an intermediate storage device. Backup procedure is performed on-line and copies data blocks from the storage device into the backup storage device. When a write command is directed to a data storage block identified for backup that has not yet been backed up, the identified data storage block is copied from the storage device to the intermediate storage device, the write command is executed on the identified data storage block from the storage device, and the data storage block is copied from the intermediate storage device to the backup storage device. In case of an error accessing a block on the storage device, the block is marked as invalid. The intermediate storage device can be external to a file system of a computer that includes the storage device, or can be located in the storage device, or can be a separate partition of the storage device, or can be a file within a file system.

Abstract: A system for data backup includes a storage device, a backup storage device, and an intermediate storage device. Backup procedure is performed on-line and copies data blocks from the storage device into the backup storage device. When a write command is directed to a data storage block identified for backup that has not yet been backed up, the identified data storage block is copied from the storage device to the intermediate storage device, the write command is executed on the identified data storage block from the storage device, and the data storage block is copied from the intermediate storage device to the backup storage device. In case of an error accessing a block on the storage device, the block is marked as invalid. The intermediate storage device can be external to a file system of a computer that includes the storage device, or can be located in the storage device, or can be a separate partition of the storage device, or can be a file within a file system.