CopyHaven
Comparison
CopyHaven or Windows File History?
File History is free and already on your PC. For many people it's enough. Here's where the two differ, so you can decide whether CopyHaven is worth A$49 to you.
Updated October 2026
| File History | CopyHaven | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free, built into Windows | A$49 once per PC, 30-day free trial |
| Where it is | Control Panel – Microsoft treats it as a legacy feature now | Its own window, with a status at the top saying whether you're backed up |
| What it backs up | The folders in your libraries; others have to be added to a library | Any folder you tick, on any drive |
| When | Every hour by default, while the drive is connected | When you click Back up now, when a ticked drive is plugged in, and once a day if you choose |
| Files open in other programs | Microsoft doesn't say – worth checking Outlook's file is in your backup | Takes a snapshot first, so they're copied while they're open (when you click Back up now) |
| Checking the backup | No check after a backup | Checks sizes and dates after every backup, and every file's contents once a month |
| Earlier versions | Kept as long as you choose, from a month to forever | Kept 7 days to a year; a whole folder can be restored as it was before a chosen backup |
| Ransomware | No special protection | If most of a folder's files change at once, it holds that folder back instead of copying over the good backup |
| Two or more drives | One drive at a time | Swaps between drives, and reminds you when to |
| On the drive | Copies of your files, each with the date and time added to its name | Plain copies with their own names, plus a folder of previous versions |
When File History is enough
If your files are all in Documents, Pictures, and the like, you keep the backup drive plugged in, and you check now and then that recent files are really in it, File History costs nothing and does the job. Keep in mind it only runs while its drive is connected, and stops quietly if something goes wrong.
When CopyHaven is worth it
- You run Outlook or accounting software all day, and want those files backed up while they're open.
- You keep files outside your libraries – on a second drive, or in a folder your software chose.
- You want to know it worked: a check after every backup, and a plain answer at the top of the window.
- You want a drive kept away from the office, with reminders to swap.
- You run a small office and back up several PCs to a NAS.
What neither does
Neither backs up Windows and your programs – only your files. To restore a whole PC as it was, you need a disk-image backup such as Macrium Reflect, or to reinstall Windows and your programs, then restore your files.