SAVE AS PDF
Seagate Personal Cloud 2-Bay User Manual
Seagate Personal Cloud 2-Bay 

Was this content helpful?

Backup Manager

The Backup Manager has four options: Backup, Restore, Sync, and Network Backup server. Backup, Restore, and Sync feature intuitive setup wizards.

Backup

Use Backup to perform the following types of backups:

  • Back up your Seagate Personal Cloud to:
    • External USB storage (USB hard drive or USB flash drive)
    • Network storage (Seagate or third-party network storage)
    • Cloud storage
  • Back up external USB storage to your Seagate Personal Cloud (USB hard drive or USB flash drive).
  • Back up network storage to your Seagate Personal Cloud (Seagate or third-party network storage).
  • Back up cloud storage to your Seagate Personal Cloud.

Cloud services supported by Backup include:

  • Amazon S3
  • Baidu
  • Box
  • Dropbox
  • Google Drive
  • Strato HiDrive
  • Yandex.disk
  • OneDrive
  Note on computer backups: You can back up your computers to the Seagate Personal Cloud. Backup applications such as Seagate Dashboard (Windows), Windows File History and Apple Time Machine manage how the computer backups are performed. Use your preferred backup application and choose a shared folder on your Seagate Personal Cloud as the destination for the computer backup. When performing a backup to a private share, make certain that a user can access the share. For more information, see Back up.

Restore

Restore a backup that has been performed on the Backup page.

Sync

Choose one or more folders on your Seagate Personal Cloud to sync with your cloud storage account. Cloud services supported by Sync include:

    • Baidu
    • Dropbox
    • Google Drive
    • OneDrive

Network Backup disk

Enable Network Backup so that other Seagate Personal Cloud or Seagate network storage devices can back up to your primary Seagate Personal Cloud.

  Important info on backups: It is recommended that all users back up data to a USB storage device, another network storage device or cloud storage as further protection against a missing hard drive or secondary points of failure (e.g. hardware, network, etc.)
  Note on backup job order: To conserve processing resources, the Seagate Personal Cloud runs one job at time. If more than one job is scheduled for the same time or started manually, Backup Manager places them in a queue.

Backup, Sync, and Restore examples

Back up to a USB storage device

An owner keeps important files on her private share. Since remote access is not always available when she travels, the owner backs up her share to a portable USB storage device.

Back up to a Seagate network storage device on the home network

To prevent data loss due to hardware failure, the owner schedules regular backups of Seagate Personal Cloud 1 to Seagate Personal Cloud 2. They are both on the same local network. Alternatively, the administrator can back up Seagate Personal Cloud 1 to a compatible third-party network storage device.

Back up to a network storage device outside the local network (offsite)

To prevent data loss due to onsite fire, flood, or theft, the owner backs up data on Seagate Personal Cloud 1 at her home to Seagate Personal Cloud 2 at a her brother's home. A compatible third-party storage device can also act as the destination storage.

Back up to a cloud service

To prevent data loss due to onsite fire, flood, or theft, the owner backs up data on Seagate Personal Cloud 1 to her OneDrive account.

Restore

Someone at home accidentally deleted an important spreadsheet from his personal share. Fortunately, the owner backs up to another storage solution, such as USB storage, another Seagate network storage device or cloud storage. The owner can:

  • Restore a backup to revert the share to an earlier state, including the lost file.
  • Connect to the destination storage device from a computer and browse for the missing file. For example, retrieve the file from a cloud storage service that hosts a Personal Cloud backup.
  Important info: The time to complete the first backup job can vary based upon the amount of data and the speed of your network. It can take several hours or, if it is an offsite or cloud backup, several days.

Create a backup

To create a backup:

  1. Launch the Backup Manager app
  2. Choose Backup.
  3. Click Add backup to launch the Backup Wizard.

Follow the Backup Wizard to perform one of the following types of backup:

  • Back up your Seagate Personal Cloud to:
    • External storage (USB hard drive or USB flash drive)
    • Network storage (Seagate or third-party network storage)
    • Cloud storage
  • Back up external storage to your Seagate Personal Cloud (USB hard drive or USB flash drive).
  • Back up network storage to your Seagate Personal Cloud (Seagate or third-party).
  • Back up cloud storage to your Seagate Personal Cloud.

Review the topics below to better understand the settings and requirements for the type of backup you want to perform.

Back up using USB storage

Perform the following types of backups with USB storage connected to your Seagate Personal Cloud:

  • Seagate Personal Cloud to USB storage.
  • USB storage to Seagate Personal Cloud.

You can optimize backups to and from a USB storage device connected to one of the USB ports on your Seagate Personal Cloud. Refer to the table below for the file formats that work best with your Seagate device. When configuring a backup with a USB device, the Backup Wizard gives you the option to format your USB storage for optimized backups. By using the optimized formats, you have the option to perform incremental backups.

An incremental backup allows you to back up new or modified files following the first backup. If the format is not optimized, you must perform full backups each time a job is run. A full backup copies everything on the source each time the backup is run.

Operating systemsHard disk file systemOptimized backup (incremental)
Linux EXT2, EXT 3, EXT 4, and XFS Yes
Mac HFS+ Non-Journaled Yes
Mac HFS+ Journaled No
Windows/Mac FAT32 No
Windows NTFS No

Back up using network storage

Perform the following types of backups with a second Seagate Personal Cloud, another Seagate network storage device or a third-party network storage device:

  • The primary Seagate Personal Cloud to a second Seagate Personal Cloud, another Seagate network storage device or third-party network storage device.
  • A second Seagate Personal Cloud, another Seagate network storage device or third-party network storage device to the primary Seagate Personal Cloud.

The second Seagate Personal Cloud, Seagate network storage device or third-party network storage device can be located on the same network as the primary Seagate Personal Cloud or, on a network at a different location (offsite).

Backups between Seagate Personal Cloud and other network storage devices

Backups to and from your Personal Cloud and other Seagate network storage devices require a unique destination share called Network Backup server.

Backups to and from your Seagate Personal Cloud and a third-party network device can use an existing shared folder.

For example, the owner wants to back up shares on Seagate Personal Cloud A to Seagate Personal Cloud B. Seagate Personal Cloud A is the source network device and Seagate Personal Cloud B is the destination network device. To receive the backup data from Seagate Personal Cloud A, the destination device, Seagate Personal Cloud B, must enable its Network Backup server. Refer to the table below for examples of backups to and from Seagate and third-party network devices.

Type of network backupSource deviceDestination deviceDestination folder
Backup to a Seagate network storage device Seagate Device A on the local network Seagate Device B on the local or remote network (offsite). Network Backup server
Backup to a third-party network storage device Seagate Device on the local network. Third-party network device on the local or remote network (offsite). Shared folder on the third-party network device that supports a compatible network protocol (see below).
Backup from a third-party network storage device Third-party network device on the local or remote network (offsite). The device’s shared folders must support a compatible network protocol (see below). Seagate Device on the local network. Shared folder on the Seagate network device.

Enable Network Backup server

Before configuring network backups between Seagate devices, the administrator must enable the Network Backup server on the destination device.

  1. Go to Backup Manager > Network Backup server.
  2. Choose Enable.
  3. At the prompt, enter and confirm a password. The password can be different from the password you use for your Seagate Access sign-in (between 4 and 20 characters). Your Network Backup password will be needed when you set up a network backup.
  4. Choose Save.

Network Backup server settings

The Network Backup server table provides a summary of its settings. You can return to the Network Backup server page if you forget the password or you want to disable it.

  • Only the administrator can access the Network Backup server settings.
  • The administrator can find the Network Backup password if it is forgotten. Go to Backup Manager > Network Backup server and click on the magnifying glass icon.
  • To change the Network Backup server password, pass the cursor to the right of the asterisks and choose the configuration icon (pencil).
  • For offsite backups, administrators must confirm that the ports used by Personal Cloud backup jobs are available on the network router. The default port numbers are:
    • Port 22
    • Port 873 (encrypted backups)
  • To delete the Network Backup server, choose Disable. A prompt will ask if you wish to keep data or delete all files within the share.

Backups with third-party network storage

The Backup Wizard can help you create backups to and from third-party network storage devices that support the following protocols:

  • Rsync
  • SMB
  • FTP
  • NFS
  • WebDav (Web Distributed Authoring and Versioning)

Backups to network storage devices

Home or local network

When performing network backups on a local network, make certain that:

  • The source and destination network devices are powered on.
  • The destination network storage device is connected to the same network as your source device.
  • (Seagate network storage) The Network Backup server has been enabled and you have the password.
  • (Third-party network storage) The third-party network device supports one of the five network protocols listed above.
  • (Third-party network storage) You have noted the third-party network device’s IP address or network name. Network naming services are not as reliable as IP addressing.
  • (Third-party network storage) You have the username and password for the network device’s backup service.

Similar to Seagate network devices, many third-party network devices have separate credentials for login and backup.

Remote network

When performing network backups to a remote network, make certain that:

  • The source and destination network devices are powered on.
  • You have the network device’s public IP address. You can find the public IP address by visiting http://www.whatismyip.com/ or by accessing your remote network’s router management software. When searching for the public IP address, use a computer connected to the same router as the destination network storage device. For further information, review the user manual for the offsite network router or contact your Internet service provider.
  • The ports are open for the backup. You may need to open ports using your router's management software. The ports to open are listed at Backup Manager > Network Backup server. Review your router’s user manual for instructions on how to open ports for a device on the network.
  • (Seagate network storage) The Network Backup server has been enabled on the destination device and you have the password.
  • (Third-party network storage) The third-party network storage device supports one of the five network protocols listed above.
  • (Third-party network storage) You have the username and password for the network device’s backup service. Similar to Seagate network devices, many third-party network devices have separate credentials for login and backup.

Advanced parameters for backups to network storage devices

The Backup Wizard includes four options for your backup. See the explanations below for each option. It is not mandatory to select one or more of the parameters to continue with the backup:

  • Secure data transfers uses encryption during the data transfer. The data is not encrypted once it is stored on the destination. This option is ideal for offsite backups.
  • Compressing data during a transfer optimizes data transmission rates. Data is compressed during the transfer only. While this option is good for low bandwidth networks, it can affect the Personal Cloud's performance.
  • Send only modified parts of files is best used with backups that include files larger than 50MB. For example, if you edit a document that has already been backed up, only the edits will be copied during the next backup. This option can affect the Personal Cloud's performance.
  • Never delete files on the destination folder keeps files on the destination network device even if they are deleted from the original network device's source folder.

Back up using cloud storage

Before performing a backup to or from cloud storage, make certain:

  • You have an account with one of the following services:
    • Amazon S3
    • Baidu
    • Box
    • Dropbox
    • Google Drive
    • Strato HiDrive
    • Yandex.disk
    • OneDrive
  • You have the necessary login and access credentials for your account. You cannot create a backup without your credentials.

Advanced parameters for backups to cloud storage

The Backup Wizard includes one or more options for your backup. See the explanations below. It is not mandatory to select one or more options to continue with the backup:

  • Secure data transfers uses encryption during the data transfer. The data is not encrypted once it is stored on the destination. This option is ideal for offsite backups.
  • Never delete files on the destination folder keeps files on the destination even if they are deleted from the source's folder.

Sync folders

Use Sync to keep data in one or more folders on your Seagate Personal Cloud consistent with a folder in a cloud storage service. For example, you run a Sync job for Folder A on your Seagate Personal Cloud. It has 25 files when the Sync job is first created with a similarly named folder on OneDrive. Soon after, you copy file 26 to Folder A on your Seagate Personal Cloud. The same file 26 is automatically uploaded to OneDrive to keep both folders in sync. You can also add files to the folder on OneDrive and they will automatically sync with Folder A.

Before performing a sync to cloud storage, make certain:

  • You have an account with one of the following services:
    • Baidu
    • Dropbox
    • Google Drive
    • OneDrive
  • You have the necessary login and access credentials for your account. You cannot create a sync without your credentials.

Create a sync:

  1. Launch the Backup Manager app.
  2. Choose Sync.
  3. Click Add sync job to launch the Sync Wizard and follow it to completion.

Restore a backup

Backups to or from your Seagate Personal Cloud can be restored. You can restore a backup to the original source folder or choose another folder for your backed up files. Follow the directions below to restore a backup.

  1. Launch the Backup Manager app.
  2. Choose Restore.
  3. Click Add restore to launch the Restore Wizard and follow it to completion.

Backup and sync job options and start/stop

Options

Follow the steps below to review and change options for a backup or sync job.

  1. Launch the Backup Manager app.
  2. For backups, locate the backup you want to modify then pass the cursor to the far right of its row to enable the Edit pull-down menu.
  3. For sync jobs, click Sync and locate the sync you want to modify then pass the cursor to the far right of its row to enable the Edit pull-down menu.
  4. You can choose:
    • Details
    • Enable/Disable the OneTouch button (if applicable)
    • Edit authentication
    • Edit description
    • Edit schedule
    • Disable
    • Restore
    • Delete

If you disable a scheduled job, it will not run until it is enabled again.

Starting/stopping jobs

Locate the backup or sync job you want to stop or start and pass the cursor to the far right of its row to view the triangular and square icons:

  • Start a job: choose the triangular icon.
  • Stop a job that is in progress: choose the square icon.