MiniTool ShadowMaker is backup and recovery software for Windows that creates images of files, partitions, disks and the operating system. It also synchronizes folders and clones drives, giving these tasks separate controls and different kinds of output. Free and Pro editions serve Windows PCs, while Business editions also support Windows Server.
MiniTool ShadowMaker system and file backups
For an operating system backup, MiniTool ShadowMaker selects the partitions Windows needs to run, including its boot-related partitions. The image contains applications, drivers, settings and system files, so restoring it returns more than the contents of a documents folder. You can also select individual partitions or an entire disk as the backup source.
File backups use a narrower selection: choose the files and folders to include, even when they are in use, and save them in an image. Destinations include internal drives, external disks, USB drives and shared network folders. A network destination can be specified with its path and access credentials. Backup tasks can run immediately or remain in the Manage page for later execution.
Schedules, backup schemes and image options
Daily, weekly and monthly schedules let a saved task run again without selecting its source and destination each time. Paid editions also provide event triggers for logging on or off Windows. Each task has its own options, allowing a system image and a collection of working files to follow different schedules.
The backup scheme controls how old images are removed. Free includes the incremental scheme, which groups a full backup with its associated incremental backups and removes older groups as new ones are created. Paid editions add full and differential retention schemes.
MiniTool ShadowMaker can image used sectors or copy every sector of a partition. Compression controls the resulting image size, while splitting divides a large image into smaller files. A verification option checks the backup’s integrity after creation; stronger compression and verification can add time to the task.
File recovery
Restoring a file backup starts with choosing an image and the saved version to recover. You can then select particular files or folders and choose where their restored copies will be written.
Disk, partition and system images created by MiniTool ShadowMaker can also be mounted to inspect their contents. Select a backup version and partition to expose it as a virtual drive in Windows Explorer. The drive can be dismounted when browsing is finished.
File sync
Synchronization writes ordinary copies of selected files and folders to another location. The copied contents can be opened directly, without restoring an image. Targets include local and external drives, removable USB storage and shared network locations, including NAS storage.
MiniTool ShadowMaker uses one-way synchronization: the selected source supplies the destination copy. It can process files that are in use, and sync tasks can run immediately or be saved for later. The Locate control opens a task’s destination folder so its copied files can be found again.
Disk cloning
Clone Disk copies a source drive onto another drive, producing a disk that can be used directly. The operation offers used-sector and sector-by-sector modes, and replaces data on the target disk.
Free supports cloning non-system disks. Cloning the disk containing Windows requires Pro or a higher edition. Dynamic-disk cloning is limited to disks containing simple volumes, with a basic disk as the destination.
Rescue media
Media Builder creates bootable rescue media for starting ShadowMaker’s recovery environment when Windows cannot start. From that environment, a system recovery selects the image version, the partitions to restore and the destination disk. The program identifies partitions that will be overwritten; the destination cannot be the disk holding the backup files.
Paid editions add Universal Restore for a Windows image restored onto different hardware. After the image restoration, this tool detects the installed operating system and handles drivers needed for it to start on the new machine. A driver folder can also be supplied when the required drivers need to be added.
