Comparing methods 1 and 2

This topic shows a comparison of methods 1 and 2: (1) Using image backup with file system incremental or (2) Using image backup with incremental-by-date image backup.

To help you decide which method is appropriate for your environment, the following table is a comparison of methods 1 and 2.

Table 1. Comparing incremental image backup methods
Method 1: Using image backup with file system incremental	Method 2: Using image backup with incremental-by-date image backup
Files are expired on the server when they are deleted from the file system. On restore, you have the option to delete files which are expired on server from image.	Files are not expired on server. After the image incremental restore completes, all of the files that are deleted on the file system after the image backup are present after the restore. If file systems are running at or near capacity, an out-of-space condition could result.
Incremental backup time is the same as regular incremental backups.	Incremental image backup is faster because the client does not query the server for each file that is copied.
Restore is much faster compared to a full incremental file system restore.	Restore is much faster compared to a full incremental file system restore.
Directories deleted from the file system after the last image backup are not expired.	Directories and files deleted from the file system after the last full image backup are not expired.