About Fast-Backup

How It Began

Fast-Backup began in 2009 when Acclaim Software was looking for backup software for its own business.  After searching extensively, the company could not find a program that ticked all the boxes, so a small in-house team began developing its own solution.

The first version was a command-line program.  It provided the fast, dependable backup engine the business needed, but it was not yet intended for general users.

From an Internal Tool to a Commercial Product

A graphical Windows interface was later added, making the same backup technology straightforward enough for anyone to use.  Fast-Backup made its first commercial sale on 25 February 2013, and its first website also appeared in 2013.

The original website offered Fast-Backup as a commercial product, with Home and Pro editions.  It went on to be used in many countries around the world.

Simple and Fast

The philosophy has always been to keep Fast-Backup simple and fast.  Users choose what they want to back up, choose where it should go - typically a USB drive - and start the backup without unnecessary complexity.

Fast-Backup quickly detects which files have changed and copies only those files.  After the first complete backup, later backups can therefore take minutes rather than hours.  File history and automatic scheduled backups were part of the original design.

A great deal of testing went into the program.  One of the more difficult technical problems involved handling the time changes caused by daylight saving.

A New Chapter with Version 4

Version 4 introduced restore points, allowing a folder to be rebuilt as it appeared at an earlier time.  A 32-bit edition is still provided for the small number of people using older systems and to preserve backward compatibility.

With the original developer moving towards semi-retirement, the aim is to keep Fast-Backup available and useful.  Version 4 is therefore completely free, and its source code has been released under the MIT License so other developers can maintain it, improve it or take it in new directions.

Acclaim Software's ambition is for Fast-Backup to become the world's most popular program for straightforward backups from one drive or computer to another - especially USB, remote and network drives.

And there is a personal reason Fast-Backup has lasted this long: even after all these years, its original developer still enjoys watching it run.

About Acclaim Software

Acclaim Software Ltd is a New Zealand software company.  Fast-Backup was developed after Focus Magic and Cashbook Complete, but all three products share the same philosophy: keep things as simple as possible for the people using them.

Acclaim Software products have been used in more than fifty countries around the world.

Other Acclaim Software

Acclaim Software also develops straightforward accounting and photo-sharpening software.

Cashbook Complete Accounting Software Simple desktop accounting software for small businesses, clubs and sole traders, with a free 90-day trial and no monthly subscription. Accounting software (New Zealand) Accounting software (Australia) Accounting software (Worldwide)

Focus Magic Photo Sharpening SoftwareFix blurry photos and recover lost detail from out-of-focus and motion-blurred images on Windows and Mac.