How can I increase the space used by Windows 7's backup feature?
I have it configured to save the backups to a separate 100GB volume but the backup feature only wants to use at most 30% of the space. I could tell it to delete older backups as a temporary solution but this is not really desirable.
You can change the backup space used
To view and manage your backup disk space
Open Backup and Restore by clicking the Start button , clicking Control Panel, clicking System and Maintenance, and then clicking Backup and Restore.
Click Manage space. If you're prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
Note
If you haven't set up backup, you won't see Manage space.
.
I could be wrong here, this is not Windows Backup exactly, but System Protection, however this is the only one that I know of that limits you - Windows Backup as far as I know has no limits to what it can use.
Click the Start Orb, right click Computer, click Properties.
On the left hand side click System Protection.
Click on the drive you want to increase the percentage and then click Configure.
Move the slider up.
I hope this helps, but if I have got it wrong, let me know.
The 30% space limit is the default amount of space set for system images (shadow copies, the same technology behind System Restore points). Try opening System Protection as Wil mentioned, select the backup drive, click Configure, and move the slider from 30% to the amount of space you want to use for system image backups.
Old but helpful documentation from well informed people...
http://blogs.technet.com/b/filecab/archive/2009/11/23/managing-backup-disk-space.aspx
From what I understand, the 30% disk space limitation concerns the system image component of the backup, the remaining 70% can be used for data file backup.
The above link also mention that you should not turn on the protection of the backup disk!
