Content check in the case of file corruption - keep both good/bad files?

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Posts: 2
Joined: 13 Dec 2023

juz10mac

Greetings! I love FreeFileSync. It's definitely my go-to on backing up my external hard drives with photos, videos, software, etc.. I make a point to keep all of my files in two or more places, as any wise person should.

I do have a question/concern when it comes to working with extremely old backups. I like to use the option to compare file contents to make sure nothing has been missed. However, once in a blue moon a file will suffer from bit-rot/corruption. FreeFileSync interprets this as the file has been modified, and it will clobber the good file with the bad.

Apart from adding another backup into the mix or coming up with an elaborate checksumming scheme, I imagine the next best way to protect against this would be to have an option to keep both files when performing a content comparison (one file could be renamed, so the user can sort out which is the good one, later).

It would make sense to run a timestamp check first to see if any files were intentionally modified, then a contents check with the option to keep both. Perhaps there is a way to do this that I am unaware of? Or perhaps this could be a feature added in the future? Thoughts?
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Posts: 2300
Joined: 22 Aug 2012

Plerry

You could consider using Versioning. That will retain all files deleted or overwritten (updated) by FFS, in a self-selected location, for as many versions as you select and for as long as you select.
Posts: 2
Joined: 13 Dec 2023

juz10mac

You could consider using Versioning. That will retain all files deleted or overwritten (updated) by FFS, in a self-selected location, for as many versions as you select and for as long as you select. Plerry, 14 Dec 2023, 07:38
That sounds like that might be a workable solution. I'll look into that. Thanks!