How to Use File History to Backup Files in Windows 10?

When working with your computer, you don’t have to go through the devastating effects of malware and ransomware without a long-lasting solution. Also, sometimes you might have wrongly deleted, damaged, or lost some of your files or sections. It is better to safeguard your data and retrieve it whenever you want to. File History in Windows 10 helps users make regularly schedule backups of files either in the PC hard drive, external hard drive, or in cloud storage. However, we recommend you opt for an external hard drive or cloud backup option to avoid losing your data. In this article, we will explain how to use File History to backup your files in Windows 10.

File History Backup Options in Windows 10

You can automatically backup file history to internal PC hard drive, network drives, external hard drive or in a cloud storage utility like Microsoft OneDrive. The efficiency will, however, vary. For an external drive or cloud storage, your data will be more secure compared to the internal drive option.

Cloud Backup Option

For a secure and easy access option, you can opt for a cloud backup option. It is easy to set up and doesn’t require any additional hardware. However, to run it, you require internet access. Also, the cloud platform may be paid depending on the size of the space you use.

External Hard Drive Backup Option

In case you don’t want to have internet access for backup, this is the best option. You only need a hard drive with enough disk space for regular backups. For large file storage, it may take longer time to upload. You can backup to a network drive too if your computer is in a homegroup setup. 

Besides, there is a System Image Backup feature, the improved version of Backup and Restore in previous Windows versions. Users can opt to create the whole system image backup in an external hard drive, DVD, or a network drive. You can as well choose the drives to backup. Later, in case of any irregularity or need to update to Windows 10, you can restore your device data.

How to Set up/Enable File History Backup in Windows 10?

Backing up your PC using File History is not hard given that you have an external hard drive or network option. Here is a complete guide on how to set up the File History backup in Windows 10 using the new settings.

• Under the Start Menu, open “Settings” option. Then select the “Update & Security” option to open the “Windows Update” window.

• Select the “Backup” tab on the left-hand side of the window.

• Click the “+ Add a drive” option to select your drive or network backup option. Ensure you have a connected USB drive to add.

In case you had a drive already added, but off, you can toggle the option to “On” for an automatic backup. That is only when the drive is connected.

File History Backup Configuration

You can as well control how your files are backed up in terms of selected folders, backup intervals, the duration for keeping the backups, add/remove folders, and the folders to exclude.

• Click the “More options” choice to configure the backup settings.  

• You can click the “Back up now” option to begin the backup. Also, you can customize what to back up. Update the files backup intervals ranging from every 10 minutes to once per day. You can also choose the duration of time to keep the backups. It can range from 1 month to forever or until when more space is needed. Under the “Back up these files,” click the “+ Add a folder” button to add folders or click on a folder and then “Remove” to remove it.

• To exclude a folder from the backup, click the “+ Add a folder” button and select the folder(s). You can also change a drive by clicking the “Stop using drive” option and select another one.

• You can restore files from the current backup under the “Related Settings” option. For more settings, select the “See advanced settings” option.
• The new “File History” window of the control panel includes options you have already set and the “Advanced settings,” “Recovery,” and the “System Image Backup.”

• Click the “Advanced settings” option to open. Apart from how long you opt to keep the backup versions, you also clear them up by clicking the “Clean up versions.”
• Under the “Homegroup” section, you can recommend other homegroup members to use your drive.
• Using the “Event logs” section, view recent tasks and errors and retrieve if need be.

Restore Files from Your External Backup

Let’s have a look at how you can restore backed up files from your external drive.

• With your external drive connected, launch the device settings and open the “Update & Security” tab.
• Under this window, select the “Backup” tab then click the “More options” tab to open. Scroll down to the Related settings section and select “Restore files from a current backup.”
• A “Home – File History” tab will open. Right-click on the folders to preview before restoring and the arrows to scroll between the restore versions available.
• To restore, click the “green” button.

Restore Files Under File Explorer

This option makes the restoration of individual files easy and fast, considering the files you want to restore.

• To restore one folder to its previous state, “Right-click” on it and select “Restore previous versions.”

 Also, you can right-click on the file and select “Properties.” Under the “Previous versions” tab, you will get the previous versions of the file. Highlight the file and select either “Open” to open the File History or “Restore” to restore it on the same or different location.

Open the folder with the file to be reverted. Click on the “Home” tab and select the “History” icon under the “Open” section. You will be referred to the “Home -File History” window with the only selected file.