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Free Backup and Sync Software — The 10 Best Tools for Files and Disks

Free Backup and Sync Software — The 10 Best Tools for Files and Disks

“Best free backup software” lists still recommend Macrium Reflect Free, which has been discontinued, and put free editions full of ads and upgrade prompts at the top. We read the main comparison pages — TechRadar, PCWorld, StoredBits, ComputingForGeeks and AlternativeTo — and in October 2026 we checked every tool ourselves: licence, platforms and what the free use really allows.

For an engineer, the projects folder is the most valuable thing on the computer: drawings, models, calculations and submitted reports. There are three kinds of tool: file backup with version history, disk imaging that restores a whole workstation with all its software, and sync, which keeps identical copies across computers — but also deletes a file there when you delete it by mistake, so it is not a backup. The simple rule is 3-2-1: three copies of your data, on two different types of media (for example the PC and an external drive or NAS), with one copy off site — in the cloud or at home.

Comparison table: the top 10

Tool Type Platforms Licence in plain words Best for
FreeFileSync Sync / mirror Windows, macOS, Linux Open source, commercial use allowed Copying projects to an external drive
Kopia Versioned file backup Windows, macOS, Linux Open source, commercial use allowed Encrypted cloud backup with a GUI
Veeam Agent FREE Disk imaging Windows Limited free edition: one backup job Restoring a whole workstation
Rescuezilla Disk imaging and cloning Boot media (Windows, macOS, Linux) Open source, commercial use allowed Moving to a new SSD
Syncthing Computer-to-computer sync Windows, macOS, Linux Open source, commercial use allowed Office, home and laptop with no cloud
Duplicati Versioned file backup Windows, macOS, Linux Open-source client; some modules paid Encrypted backup to any cloud, in a browser UI
restic Versioned file backup Windows, macOS, Linux Open source, commercial use allowed Scripted backup to S3 or SFTP
rclone Cloud copy and sync Windows, macOS, Linux Open source, commercial use allowed Moving archives between cloud services
UrBackup Office backup server Windows, macOS, Linux Open source, commercial use allowed Central backup of every office PC
Clonezilla Disk imaging and cloning Boot media (Windows, macOS, Linux) Open source, commercial use allowed Deploying one image to a computer lab

The top 10

FreeFileSyncDownload ↗

1. FreeFileSync

It compares two folders and copies only what changed — the simple way to keep an up-to-date copy of the projects folder on an external drive, a NAS or a server, or between the office PC and the laptop. Before each run you see exactly what will be copied and what will be deleted.

Advantages: open source (GPLv3), free for any use including commercial, with no registration. Mirror, two-way and update modes, plus real-time sync with RealTimeSync.

Disadvantages: no real version history, only a folder for deleted or overwritten files. Scheduling goes through the operating system’s task scheduler. Some extras, such as parallel sync, are only in the Donation Edition.

KopiaDownload ↗

2. Kopia

It creates encrypted, compressed, deduplicated snapshots of folders and stores them on a local disk, a server or the cloud storage of your choice. You can go back to any saved version of any file.

Advantages: open source (Apache-2.0), free for any use. Both a graphical interface (KopiaUI) and a command line, with built-in retention policies and scheduling. In the ComputingForGeeks benchmark it was the fastest of Borg, restic and Kopia.

Disadvantages: setting up the repository the first time needs some technical understanding. In the same benchmark it used more memory, and it is a younger project than Borg and restic.

Veeam Agent for Microsoft Windows FREEDownload ↗

3. Veeam Agent for Microsoft Windows FREE

It backs up a whole Windows PC as an image, or selected volumes, files and folders, to an external disk, a network share or a Veeam repository. You create recovery media on USB or as an ISO and restore a PC that no longer boots — important on a workstation where reinstalling the design software takes a full day.

Advantages: full bare-metal restore as well as single-file recovery from a backup. No licence key and no time limit.

Disadvantages: not free without limits: the free edition allows only one backup job, with no direct backup to cloud object storage and no long-term (GFS) retention. You must register with an email address to download. Windows only.

RescuezillaDownload ↗

4. Rescuezilla

A USB boot environment with a graphical interface, built on Clonezilla’s engine: pick a disk, create an image, restore it or clone to another disk. It works even when the system will not start.

Advantages: open source (GPL), free for any use. The easiest way to move a PC to a new SSD or back everything up before a reinstall. It reads Clonezilla, VirtualBox, VMware and Qemu images.

Disadvantages: no scheduling and no incremental backups, and you cannot use the computer while the backup runs. The image explorer for pulling out single files is still in beta.

SyncthingDownload ↗

5. Syncthing

It syncs folders directly between your own computers, without going through a company’s cloud server. The project folder stays identical at the office, at home and on the laptop on site, with no size limit.

Advantages: open source (MPL-2.0), with no account and no subscription. Transfers are encrypted and the files stay only on your devices.

Disadvantages: sync is not backup — a file deleted or overwritten on one computer disappears on the others too, unless you turn on file versioning for the folder. Setup in the browser interface is unfamiliar to beginners.

DuplicatiDownload ↗

6. Duplicati

It backs up selected folders on a schedule, encrypts them with AES-256 on your own machine and sends only the blocks that changed — to Amazon S3, Backblaze, OneDrive, Dropbox, Azure, SFTP, a NAS or a local disk. Ideal if you already pay for cloud storage.

Advantages: the backup client is open source (MIT) and free for any use, including commercial. A friendly browser interface and version-retention policies.

Disadvantages: the full-disk and Microsoft 365/Google Workspace modules are proprietary and need a licence. The cloud management console is free for up to 2 machines only.

resticDownload ↗

7. restic

A command-line backup program that ships as a single executable. Every backup is encrypted and only the changed parts of files are transferred, so daily backups of large project folders are fast and space-efficient. It can also verify that a backup can really be restored.

Advantages: open source (BSD-2-Clause), free for any use. Built-in support for many destinations — a local disk, SFTP and cloud services such as S3, B2 and Azure.

Disadvantages: no graphical interface (Backrest adds one) and no built-in scheduler — you use the operating system’s scheduler.

rcloneDownload ↗

8. rclone

A command-line tool for managing files across more than 70 storage services and protocols: Google Drive, S3, Dropbox, Azure, WebDAV and SFTP. It copies and syncs with integrity checks, encrypts on the client side and mounts cloud storage as a drive on your computer.

Advantages: open source (MIT), free for any use. Ideal for moving project archives between services and for scheduled cloud backups.

Disadvantages: it needs command-line work and reading the documentation. On its own it is not a backup tool with version history.

UrBackupDownload ↗

9. UrBackup

A backup server installed on a Windows or Linux machine or a NAS, with a client on every workstation. The server collects fast incremental file backups as well as disk images of the PCs while they keep running. Files are restored from the web interface or Explorer, and a whole PC from a bootable USB stick.

Advantages: open source (AGPLv3), commercial use allowed. Central backup for the whole office with no licences, and files shared by several PCs are stored only once.

Disadvantages: you need a PC or NAS to act as the server. Disk images are mainly supported on Windows clients.

ClonezillaDownload ↗

10. Clonezilla

It boots from USB or DVD, creates an image of a disk or partition or clones disk to disk, copying only used blocks. The Lite Server edition deploys one image to dozens of machines at once over the network — handy for a computer lab or several identical workstations.

Advantages: open source (GPLv2), free for any use. Very reliable, with support for Windows, Linux, macOS and BSD file systems.

Disadvantages: a text interface with a learning curve, no incremental backup, imaging is done with the system offline, and the target partition must be equal to or larger than the source.

More free tools worth knowing

Front ends for backup repositories: BorgBackup stores each identical chunk once and restores fast, but it is command-line only and mainly for macOS and Linux. Vorta is a simple graphical front end for Borg, and Backrest gives restic a web interface with scheduling, integrity checks and notifications.

Backup on Windows: Cobian Reflector runs scheduled file backups to a disk, a network folder or FTP/SFTP and is free even for commercial use, but it is developed by a single author and updated infrequently. Paragon Backup & Recovery Community Edition backs up whole disks on a schedule — but for non-commercial use only, without disk cloning, and only on 64-bit Windows.

Linux: Déjà Dup backs up the home folder simply and with encryption, to a disk, a server or Google Drive. Timeshift takes system snapshots so you can undo an update that went wrong, but it does not back up documents.

Transfer, compare and encrypt: LocalSend sends site photos from a phone to the PC over the local network. WinSCP syncs folders with an SFTP server. WinMerge compares two versions of a project folder. Cryptomator encrypts files before they reach the cloud, and VeraCrypt encrypts the external drive that holds your backup.

Outdated advice you will find on the web

Which tool to choose by need

Freelance engineer with one PC: FreeFileSync to an external drive, plus Kopia or Duplicati for an encrypted copy in the cloud — and you already follow the 3-2-1 rule.

Restoring a whole workstation: Veeam Agent FREE for scheduled image backup on Windows (one job); Rescuezilla for a one-off image or a move to a new SSD.

Small office: UrBackup on an old PC or a NAS to back up every workstation, and a copy of the server to the cloud with rclone or restic.

Working between office, home and site: Syncthing with file versioning turned on — plus a real backup, because sync alone does not protect against deletion.

Linux server or advanced user: restic or BorgBackup in a script, or Backrest and Vorta if you prefer an interface. Computer lab: Clonezilla Lite Server.

Sources

All the tools in one place: free compare, backup and sync software.

Further reading

מדריכי AI למהנדסים ולמשרד, ב-5 שפות: adit-ai.com ←