Protecting your valuable documents by backing them up to a different drive is a key tenet of PC security. Most backup programs work by looking at specific folders and copying every file that's new or changed in them to a designated backup folder. This works well but, depending on the frequency set for the backup, may only copy them once a day or even once a week.

VCom's AutoSave 2 takes a different approach. The program monitors your PC usage and whenever a file is created or saved, it saves a second copy to a backup folder you specify. This makes it a live backup, giving added security because there's no delay between file creation and backup. In use it's virtually transparent, too, as the tiny extra time taken to save the second copy is barely noticeable.

There's a one-time set-up process, which can be followed through in several ways. A setup Wizard enables you to select all files (with optional exclusions), to indicate individual folders to be monitored, or to pick file-types. Perhaps the best way is to choose from AutoSave's list of installed applications and select those whose files need backing up.

The options provided are versatile and it's easily possible to set up automatic backup of, for example, everything in My Documents except picture files with .TIF file-types, plus any files created by Firefox, plus the named file ‘bookmark.htm'. The only assistance missing is a ‘typical folders' option, which might include My Documents, e-mail and contacts from Outlook/Outlook Express, and perhaps My Pictures and My Music.

If you need to perform a one-off backup of the same or a different selection of files to a different location, you can do this from the AutoSave 2 control panel. Files backed up automatically or manually can be saved to internal drives, external drives or over a network to a different PC.

You should do this regularly for your vital data. If you accidentally save and close a document after deleting several pages of text by mistake, for example, AutoSave 2 might not be of use unless you have an earlier backup stored elsewhere.

AutoSave 2 is intelligent enough to notice when new software is being installed and offers to temporarily disable itself, so it doesn't create unwanted copies of new application files. At virtually all other times it works away in the background, without causing any interruption.

VCom is now owned by Avanquest, but VCom's AutoSave 2 application is only available on its own as a download from www.v-com.com. However, you can also buy it as part if the £40 VCom Perfect Image Copy & Protect Suite (see our review).

While a cost of £25 per PC may be a bit of a disincentive, when compared with the anguish of losing valuable data it's small change. The core idea of AutoSave 2, to create a duplicate of every file saved at the time of saving, is a great improvement on batch backup utilities.