Is it possible to perform a complete backup of the Users folder with Robocopy?

This is a more specific version of a broader question I posted a few weeks ago,

I have my Users folder - B:\Users - on a separate drive to my Windows 7 system. I want to copy the contents of this folder to a new, larger drive, but also need to be able to use my computer at the same time. I'd prefer that the operation took ~10 hours in which I were able to use my computer rather than ~5 in which I'm not, and for this reason am leaning towards using Robocopy rather than CloneZilla.

Given the right parameters, Robocopy can be set to simply skip over the documents I'm currently using, which I then intend to transfer later manually.

I'll be using Robocopy with the following parameters to make the backup:

robocopy SOURCE_PATH DESTINATION_PATH /e /z /copyall /r:30 /w:15 /mt:64 /v /eta /xj /xf pagefile.sys hiberfil.sys

However, I want to know whether this is all I'll need to ensure a robust clone of my Users folder.

For example, someone in a previous question pointed out that the NTUSER.DAT file, which stores the HKEY_CURRENT_USER hive of the registry, would be open and locked by the system. This means that I would be unable to copy this file - and therefore, that portion of the Registry - using Robocopy.

Does this make Robocopy a bad tool for copying the current user's user folder?

If I did run the above command, will the Registry need to be backed up and transferred separately?

Are there any other potential pitfalls that I might run into when trying to backup the Users folder with Robocopy?

Hashim

Posted 2017-11-18T17:33:32.077

Reputation: 6 967

Why don't you just copy overnight (when you are not using the computer)? The copy will be much faster if the computer is otherwise idle ... – DavidPostill – 2017-11-18T17:38:47.170

I'm aware there are other, easier and faster ways to resolve this issue, but I'm asking this question primarily for the sake of the knowledge itself - to find out whether it can be done or not. – Hashim – 2017-11-18T18:40:26.927

@DavidPostill Also, as an aside, if I'm not mistaken, this method wouldn't solve the NTUSER.DAT problem because the registry is still being accessed - and therefore, that file is still open - whenever the user is logged on, regardless of whether the computer is idle. @Mokubai's solution would theoretically work, though. – Hashim – 2017-11-18T21:59:57.647

@Mokubai I'm yet to have the time to test it. Once I do, I'll select it as Best Answer or comment accordingly. It looks very promising, though. – Hashim – 2017-12-08T20:20:03.847