Rebit 5 continuous backup software

Unlike a standard backup program in which you have to make lots of decisions about what to archive, how often to do it and where to store it all, Rebit 5 just backs up everything that's stored on the computer, and it does it continuously.

This plug-it-in-and-forget-it approach will be familiar to Apple Mac users who've had occasion to be grateful to Apple's Time Machine, which works in pretty much the same way.

The result is simplicity itself. There are no complicated dialogue boxes asking you which folders you want to back up or what needs to be done with all your emails or Internet bookmarks and there are no schedules to decide on and then stick to. Rebit just asks which disks you want to back up (the PC's main disk is always selected) and then shovels the lot into the storage of your choice.

Then whenever that disk is available it sits there continuously backing up files that have been changed. Typically then, you will need an external disk that's between 25 per cent and 50 per cent larger than the total of the files you want to back up, and that's it. Once you have made these simple choices, Rebit does a full backup. This does take a while but you can continue to work while it's going on.

Thereafter, whenever any changes are made on the computer – edit a document, download a song from iTunes, install some new software – Rebit saves the changes as they happen. If you're using an external disk that isn't always plugged in, Rebit waits until you connect it again and copies the changes then. It's easy, unobtrusive and elegant.

The program mirrors the structure of whatever it's backing up, which means you can browse the backup to find and restore individual files and folders, though you cannot restore individual programs.

It can also create a System Recovery CD to restore your operating system and files in case of a complete computer failure.

Rebit is an easy to use backup program that takes almost all the effort out of keeping a copy of your valuable data.