BullGuard Backup 8 review

One of the best-known and longest-running European backup services, BullGuard has had plenty of time to refine its interface and feature set. Setting up a regime is very easy, with a wizard to take you through What, When, Where and How stages of selection - the last providing options such as whether or not to compress or encrypt the backup, and whether to store old versions. The program either backs up according to your schedule or just when your PC has been idle for a set time.

It's every bit as easy to restore lost or damaged files, although BullGuard annoyingly restores all files in your backup to a single folder on your desktop rather than returning them to their original source. It's also possible to drag and drop files directly to and from your online store, but only if you don't use encryption or compression.

Other goodies include integrated email backup for the most popular email applications, plus 24/7 email and chat-based technical support. Interestingly, the program also handles offline backups to hard disk or DVD using the same basic GUI, so you could use it as your one and only backup package.

Files saved using BullGuard should remain safe and secure, with 256-bit AES encryption and data mirrored across three servers in a secure hosting facility in charming, earthquake-free Denmark.

Despite a slow initial backup and a mediocre full restore time, BullGuard offers 10GB of space at a decent price, and an excellent client with which to manage it. It may not be a winner this time around, but it's still a fine consumer-level service.

Author: Stuart Andrews