If you use Carbonite to do backups online, and you use Picasa to manage the pictures on your computer, then there is a Carbonite feature you need to understand.  If you take a close look at Carbonite’s default list of files that are excluded from backup, you will see .ini files.  If you understand Picasa, you know that is a problem.  Picasa adds a .picasa.ini file to every folder of pictures it is watching (or Picasa.ini in earlier versions).  The .picasa.ini file stores all your editing information.  When you crop a picture, the crop dimensions are stored in the .picasa.ini file.  When you click I’m Feeling Lucky on a picture – that too is stored in the .picasa.ini file.

Are your Picasa.ini Files being Backed Up?

If you want a complete backup of your pictures for use with Picasa, you need to backup that .picasa.ini file, and, by default, that will not happen with Carbonite for Windows. It’s easy enough to fix, but you need to do it.  The list of excluded files for Macintosh does not show .ini files, so you should be ok if you’re on a Mac.

First you need to locate one .picasa.ini file.  They are normally hidden files, so you need to find the option to unhide them  In Windows Explorer, you click on Tools and Folder Options, then the View tab, and finally click on the option for Hidden Files to ‘Show Hidden Files, Folders, and Drives.’

Once the files are visible, you can tell if Carbonite is backing them up because they will have a dot on them … a Red dot means it’s not being backed up, a Yellow dot means that it will be backed up but it just hasn’t been done yet, a Green dot means it is backed up.

Ok, now that they’re visible, you should be able to open any folder of pictures and find the .picasa.ini file.  Right-click it and choose Carbonite and then Properties….  Now check the box that reads ‘Back up Files of this type (within folders selected for backup).

From now on, all your .ini files will be included in Carbonite’s backup process on a Windows computer.

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