You can backup your computer system or files to WD hard drive easily with the help of the best free WD backup software on Windows.
๐ Key Takeaways:
Backup Tool |
Key Features |
How to Backup |
1๏ธโฃ AOMEI Backupper Standard |
|
Launch AOMEI Backupper Standard and choose the needed backup type…Full steps |
|
Run Acronis True Image for Western Digital. Click BACKUP Column and create a Backup Name…Full steps |
WD backup is a backup software coming along with the WD hard drive (or you can download it from the official website). It can backup files, photos or documents automatically to HDD/SSD or Dropbox. It also supports schedule backup like daily/weekly/monthly backup as well as incremental backup.
However, the support for WD backup has ended. You need to look for some alternatives for WD backup. An official option is Acronis True Image for Western Digital. Using it requires one of the Western Digital branded storage (WD, SanDisk, G-Technology) connected.
So if you want a wider scope of application and more flexible backup capabilities, you may turn to powerful hard drive backup software like AOMEI Backupper. Keep reading to get more details and free download.
There are plenty of Western Digital backup software available online. Besides Acronis True Image for Western Digital, I find AOMEI Backupper Standard also a good choice. I'll introduce them both in the following.
AOMEI Backupper Standard is a reliable and easy-to-use WD backup tool. It allows you to backup files, system, disk or partition in Windows XP/Vista/7/8/8.1/10/11 and applies to all branded hard disks, such as WD, SanDisk, Seagate, Samsung, etc.
You can enable Schedule Backup to backup data in daily, weekly, or monthly mode, so as to keep files and all the changes made to them. It also allows you to backup only changed files with Incremental Backup, which saves much backup time and disk space.
It also enables you to create a bootable USB that can boot your computer and restore image without booting into Windows. Besides, you can enjoy email notification, intelligent sector backup, VSS backup service, compression, etc.
Pros |
Cons |
โ Backup all kinds of data on your PC โ Backup to local/external drive, NAS and cloud โ Daily/weekly/monthly backup โ Compress and split backup images โ Create bootable rescue media |
โ Some features are locked in the free edition โ Does not offer a macOS version |
Download this powerful WD backup software for free:
Acronis True Image for Western Digital backs up everything from operating systems and applications to settings and individual files. It offers different editions for Windows and macOS. With a Western Digital storage device (either a hard drive or a NAS), you’ll receive a free 5-year license to use the software.
Use of this software requires download and installation to a system connected to at least one of the compatible Western Digital (WD, SanDisk, G-Technology) storage products.
Pros |
Cons |
โ Backup all kinds of data on your PC โ Daily/weekly/monthly backup โ Create bootable rescue media โ Anti-ransomware and cryptojacking protection |
โ Not a lifetime free license โ Only support WD external drive or NAS device as the destination |
Download Acronis True Image for Western Digital (Windows edition) here.
In this part, I'll show you how to use AOMEI Backupper and Acronis True Image to backup your computer to WD hard drive in detail. Before you start, please connect the WD hard drive to your computer properly.
Launch the best free WD backup software - AOMEI Backupper Standard. Click on Backup tab and there are different backup options to suit your needs:
Here choose Disk Backup as an example to back up everything on the PC to WD drive.
Change the Task Name to a different one for clear distinction. Then, click Add Disk to select the computer hard drive you want to backup.
Then, select the WD hard drive as the backup destination.
To make this task run automatically, click Schedule Backup and select a backup frequency. Then, click Start Backup to backup your computer to WD hard drive automatically.
โ Tips:
Step 1. Run Acronis True Image for Western Digital. Click BACKUP Column and create a Backup Name.
Step 2. Click Select source and then Entire PC.
Step 3. Click Select destination and then Your external drive. Choose the WD hard drive you connected before.
Step 4. Configure more for your backup task with Options. Finally, click Back up now to backup your PC to WD hard drive immediately.
WD backup has reached its lifespan. To backup your computer to WD hard drive, you may choose the best free WD backup software - AOMEI Backupper Standard or Acronis True Image for Western Digital.
If you need a WD backup tool integrated with anti-malware features, you may pick Acronis True Image for Western Digital. However, it only offers a free 5-year license, and users find Acronis True Image not responding sometimes.
If you want a Western Digital backup software that is always free, you may choose AOMEI Backupper Standard. It allows you to backup file, system, disk, partition to not only WD hard drive but also SanDisk, Seagate, Samsung hard drive, etc. And you can easily restore them to bring your computer back when something bad happens.
In addition, it is able to clone WD hard drive to SSD, sync files between computer and drive, and more. Just download it to explore yourself.
WD Backup, the software provided by Western Digital, has reached its end of support life cycle. This means that the software is no longer being updated or supported by Western Digital. However, you can still use the software if it is already installed on your computer.
As alternatives, you can also use other WD backup options such as Acronis True Image for Western Digital, AOMEI Backupper, or Windows Backup and Restore.
The lifespan of a WD hard drive can vary depending on several factors such as usage, environment, and maintenance. However, most hard drives are designed to last for several years. Western Digital offers a limited warranty for its hard drives that ranges from 2 to 5 years depending on the model.
Anyway, it's best to make a backup and leave copies of important data before your hard drive shows signs of crashing.
Connect your WD drive to your computer, and launch the WD backup software you pick. Normally you can easily access the Restore wizard and recover your desired data back to Windows comptuer.
And with software such as AOMEI Backupper, you can even use explore image to mount a system/disk backup, and then access individual files from it.
If you are using a previously downloaded copy of WD Backup and are experiencing some problems using it, the following advices are available.
For more details, please refer to WD backup not working.
Note that if you are using professional backup software and have confirmed that the disk is recognised by the computer, then there is usually no such problem.