Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Computing/2024 July 24

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July 24

Can't Back Up System Files

I have a Dell Inspiron 3910 with 16 GB of RAM and approximately 216 GB of solid-state storage as the C: drive. I just got a pop-up message saying something to the effect of "We can't back up your system files". It says that if I free up some space on my "hard drive" (which is hard because it is solid-state), it will be able to back up my system files. I don't recall having seen that message before. I do see that I have 10.1 GB free on my solid-state C: drive out of 216 GB. I also see that my pagefile.sys on the C: drive has grown to 26.6 GB, which is what is taking up the space. My question is: What system backup function is there that was trying to back something up, and was unable to back something up? The message was a pop-up, and I can't bring it back, although maybe that isn't important. So: What system process was trying to back something up to my C: drive and didn't have space for the backup? I will, in the very near future, be getting something like WINDIRSTAT to get a better view of how the 206 GB is being used, to see what if anything to move to my F: drive. So what is trying to back up my system files automagically? Robert McClenon (talk) 18:15, 24 July 2024 (UTC)

You've probably told us before, but which version of Windows are you using? Is there a load of Dell stuff in your Start Menu? Do you ever use such apps? Could be a cause. Maybe try disabling them sequentially in Services via Windows Task Manager. To reduce disk usage, perhaps try the resident Disk Cleanup app. Try using a fixed-size paging file. Delete the contents of your Temp folder and Recycle Bin. Purge your browser's cache frequently (In Firefox, press Ctrl+Shift+Delete, select 'Cache' only.) Your mileage may vary. MinorProphet (talk) 22:19, 25 July 2024 (UTC)

User:MinorProphet - You have addressed a question which I might have reasonably been asking, but not the question that I was asking. You have told me how to free up space on my disk. I already have plans for freeing up space on my disk. What I am asking is what process was trying to back something up on my C: drive. But thank you for useful general advice. Robert McClenon (talk) 07:06, 27 July 2024 (UTC)

I am running Windows 11, and I think that I have the personal version. (Are there a personal version and a business version?) Robert McClenon (talk) 07:06, 27 July 2024 (UTC)

@Robert McClenon: Hi, sorry for the slow reply, I don't come here every day. Last question first: You probably have the 'Home' version as opposed to the 'Pro/Professional' version. It's mostly to do with Pro's office networking capabilities. My main question may have been camouflaged by my suggestions: Does your PC have any pre-installed Dell software? If so, I found this page from Dell with plenty of screenshots which might prompt some memory of that transient pop-up, in case it wasn't anything to do with Windows. Just attempting to eliminate likely suspects. MinorProphet (talk) 16:46, 1 August 2024 (UTC)

Hi I just noticed your query further down: You said you had Norton Safe Web installed. Do you have any other Norton apps/utilities installed? Might they have been attempting to back up your hard drive? MinorProphet (talk) 16:56, 1 August 2024 (UTC)

Take a screenshot of the message when it happens again. That should definitely help identify what is trying to do this backup - I'm pretty sure you have paraphrased the error rather than given the exact wording. My first guess would be: disable OneDrive on your system. In this video at 00:44 you can see an option at the top that says "back up important PC folders to OneDrive" - something you can check and consider whether you want to disable it. My opinion: all unencrypted backups are data breaches waiting to happen, and data breaches for online data always happen given enough time. Komonzia (talk) 00:25, 4 August 2024 (UTC)

Fourier transform

Can the Fourier transform, using the Fourier series, analyze a function f(x) on a bounded interval x whose members are -P/2 and P/2 for some positive real number P, with frequency being the reciprocal of period (f=1/T or T=1/f), be programmed in PL/1? Afrazer123 (talk) 23:43, 24 July 2024 (UTC)

no, as the frequency goes to infinity for this, and the coefficients are real numbers that can be calculated, but not with perfect accuracy. However PL/1 could be used to approximate a finite number of coefficients approximately. see Square wave#Fourier analysis for the calculation. Graeme Bartlett (talk) 12:47, 25 July 2024 (UTC)

Can the negative infinity to positive infinity series be calculated from the sum of two series with one series from negative ♾️ to -1 and the second series from 1 to positive ♾️? Also, is the integral from -♾️ to +♾️ an improper integral? Afrazer123 (talk) 19:48, 6 August 2024 (UTC)

The question is not entirely clear. Does T stand for the variable x or for the constant P?  --Lambiam 13:45, 25 July 2024 (UTC)

T doesn't stand for the variable x. T does stand, however, for the constant P. Afrazer123 (talk) 02:55, 28 July 2024 (UTC)