If my hard drive crashes, do I have to reinstall each program?

Posted by Caitlin on April 15th, 2009

The following post in our Reader Question series is an actual user submitted question. To maintain the integrity of the original question, we do not edit or change reader questions in any way.

Q: If I back up my system with Carbonite and my hard drive crashes, do I have to reinstall each software program in addition to the backup recovery or is everything recovered without having to manually reinstall each program?

A: Carbonite backs up all the files in your Documents and Settings folder by default. This includes data files and settings for your software applications. You can add other items, including programs, to your Carbonite backup. However, this does not mean that in the event of a hard drive crash, Carbonite can restore your software with the touch of a button. You will still have to individually reinstall each program, either way. So while it is possible to use Carbonite to back up your software, it may not be particularly useful for you, and your daily backup will most likely take significantly longer.

To learn more about Carbonite and other online backup services, see our reviews and comparison chart.