How to Back up Partition with MiniTool ShadowMaker

Partition backup will back up all your files on the selected partitions into a compressed image file. If you have important files saved on a specific partition, it is recommended to do partition backup as data loss can happen unexpectedly. Besides, MiniTool ShadowMaker can back up NTFS partition range from 512 byte to 2 MB cluster size.

Step 1. Launch MiniTool ShadowMaker to enter the main interface.

Step 2. Click the Backup tab in the left panel. Under Backup, click the SOURCE part.

Step 3. Then click Disk and Partitions from the pop-up window.

Step 4. Under the Disk Backup part, choose the disk that contains partitions you want to back up. Then check the partition(s) in which you have saved important files as the backup source. Then, click OK.

Step 5. Then return to the Backup page, and click the DESTINATION part.

Step 6. Select the destination path. MiniTool ShadowMaker allows you to back up your computer to multiple places:

1. User account folder

Click the User tab, and all the folders under your user account folder will be displayed. Choose one folder as the destination location. If you back up the system partition, it’s not recommended to choose User as the destination since it belongs to the system drive.

2. Computer

Under the Computer tab, all drives that Windows can detect will be listed. And you can choose a partition on your internal hard drive, external hard drive, or removable USB flash drive as the target place to store the backup image file. It’s recommended to choose an external hard drive partition as the backup image storage location.

3. Libraries

Click the Libraries tab and folders under C:\User\Public will be listed. Choose one folder to store the backup image file. If you back up the system partition, it’s not recommended to choose Libraries as the destination since it belongs to the system drive.

4. Shared

Besides, you are allowed to back up your partition to the shared folder via an IP path or network path. First, you need to turn on the network discovery and file sharing and create the shared folder.

Turn on the network discovery and file sharing:

1. Go to Control Panel > Network and Internet > Network and Sharing Centre > Advanced sharing settings.
2. Turn on network discovery and file sharing under Private, Public, and All Networks.

Create the shared folder:

1. Create a shared folder called LLL, and then create a subfolder called DDD. (Here, LLL and DDD are examples and you can change the folder name)
2. Right-click the shared folder to choose Properties. Then, click the Sharing tab and click Share….
3. Click the arrow to choose Everyone to share with and click Add. Choose Read/Write under Permission Level and click Share.
4. Go to the Sharing tab again. Click Advanced Sharing… and check the Share this folder box. In the same window, click the Permissions button and check the Allow box next to the Full Control option.
5. After creation, go back to the Sharing tab and note down the network path.

Then, you can store your disk image in the shared folder via the following methods.

(1). Via IP path

Just go to the Shared tab. Click the Add button.

Type the IP path, user name, and password. Then, click OK.

Open the shared folder (LLL) and choose the subfolder (DDD) as the destination.

(2). Via Network Path

Type the network path, username, and password.

Open the shared folder (LLL) and choose the subfolder (DDD) as the destination.

Step 7. Click Back up Now to start the process or click Back up Later to delay the backup. And you can restart the delayed backup task in the Manage window.