Network shares

The Network Shares data source lets you back up data from a local network.

Currently, this feature is available on all Windows devices.

See the Network Share backup requirements - Windows page for details on the requirements for backing up Network Shares on Windows devices and see Backup Network Shares - Windows for steps on configuring these.

Solutions for macOS and GNU/Linux

If you want to back up shared network drives on a Mac or Linux device, you should mount them first (connect to your computer) so Backup Manager can recognize them as the Files and Folders data source.

There is no common way to mount a network share on Linux, that is why Linux users should follow specific instructions for their distribution.

For details on configuring a macOS device, see: Pre-backup settings for macOS

There is no limit to the number of network shares you can back up.

Limitation

• Network Shares are only supported if it utilizes SMB (Server Message Block protocol). Other share setups may work, but are not supported.
• Network Shares cannot be backed up on DFS replication.

Network shares versus Files and folders backup

Backing up data on a shared network drive is almost the same as backing up files and folders on the main computer (the one that Backup Manager is installed on). There are only two differences:

• Network shares often need user authorization.
• Network shares do not support the backup of open files (because the Volume Shadow Copy Service used for that purpose is unavailable on the network).