Configuring Mozy Pro for Visual Studio

Earlier this week I revised my review of Mozy based on version 2.0 of the MozyPro client software. In short, MozyPro went from something I found acceptable to something that I am quite happy with.

One of my frustrations in earlier versions of MozyPro was figuring out how to exclude Visual Studio temporary files. In Visual Studio 2010, the IntelliSense data (the .sdf file) is 70MB to 300MB for each project. Since Visual Studio automatically rebuilds this file as necessary, it's a waste of time and money to back it up. There are numerous other temporary files, such as .ncb, .sbr, .bsc, and others, all of which are unnecessary to backup. This article tells how to set up MozyPro so that files with those extensions will not be backed up.

I found it best to create a global rule instead of modifying one of the predefined Backup Sets. Although MozyPro has a predefined Backup Set named "Visual Studio Projects", I've created other Backup Sets based on projects and customers. By creating a global rule, the temporary files will be ignored by all other projects.

To create a rule for Visual Studio, go to the Backup Sets page in the MozyPro configuration. Create a new backup set and call it something like Excluded Files. In the Backup Set Editor, put a checkmark next to C: so that this rule applies to the entire drive. Next check the box in the top right labeled "Files matching this set will be EXCLUDED." Under the Rules, the first rule should read:

Include / File Type / sdf pch ncb idb tlog sbr res dep obj ilk ipch bsc

This will exclude temporary and intermediate files for Visual Studio 2005 through 2010, as well as Virtual PC undo files. If you run Visual Studio 2010, also click the plus sign (+) on the right and create a second rule that reads:

Or / Include / Folder name / is / ipch / Files and Folders

Finally, if you use Virtual PC, create a third rule:

Or / Include / File Type / vud vsv

Note that the "Include" command in these rules really means "Exclude" because you checked the box "Files matching this set will be EXCLUDED..."