There is no simple answer to this question. For some people, it may take 20 minutes. For others, it may take several hours. If you're reading this, it may be because your backup is taking longer than you think it should. We want to reassure you that this can be normal. For now, you can sit back, relax, and let Picture Keeper do the hard work. Below, we'll give you the long answer and the reasons why.
The long answer
Most modern computers and mobile devices are powerful and can do some amazing things. However, your backup could still take quite a while to complete. Here are some factors to consider:
- The number of files to backup can drastically affect the time it takes. Backing up 100 photos that are less than 2 MB in size will take just a couple of minutes. Backing up tens of thousands of photos may take up to 6 hours. This time will increase if you also include videos or music files, since they are larger.
- High resolution photos or videos are larger in size and that can add up to a lot of data to be backed up, increasing the time it takes to complete a backup.
- Our duplicate detection does a very good job, but if you have a lot of duplicates, the process may take longer to scan and compare them.
- Of course, the speed and performance of the computer or mobile device also affects the speed of the backup. If you know that your device can be slow to process, you should assume that it may take your backup a while to complete. Running other applications during the backup will also use some of your device's resources, making the backup take longer.
- If you want to save photos from other locations such as e-mail, Facebook or iCloud, then the speed of the internet connection will also be a factor.
What if my battery runs out?
In some cases, your phone, tablet or laptop battery may not have enough power to save all the files in one session. Typically, this only happens on your first backup. The first backup will usually be a large amount of photos. With regular backups, the total number of pictures for each session will be smaller and the backup will be faster. If you see that your battery is getting low:
- Cancel the backup.
- Close the application.
- Unplug the Picture Keeper.
- Next, recharge your device.
- Once you are fully recharged, plug in your Picture Keeper and click Start Backup. You will be prompted to continue the previous backup.
How long is too long?
If the backup process takes longer than 12 hours, there may be an issue. As we discussed above, there are many factors that can make the backup take longer. However, if you don't see the backup making any progress after several hours, the best way to handle it is to cancel the backup and start again. Don't worry, it will pick up right where it left off. But if it happens again, please contact us.
If you need any additional assistance, please contact Picture Keeper Support.