Very sorry for your drama and your regretful experience. It has alerted me to the fact that, even though I'm very careful with emails/websites and run virus protection, when it comes to backups, I'm super lazy and under prepared with both the music computer and the house computer.
Thanks for the info @Blades re Crashplan. I shall download it for the house computer.
 
Cheers

abacab

The Grim
restoring is easy, just select restore, point to the image, click, walk away for 15 minutes, come back to a fully functional machine.
 
i don't install acronis on my pc's, i just use the bootable disk to do everything, easy as.

Acronis = $59.99
 
Macrium = Free
 
Windows Image Backup (included with Windows 7+) = Free
 
Does the same job ...

i'm quite happy to pay for peace of mind
 
 
the windows thing is hit and miss (i wouldn't trust it myself)
 
macrium free is crippled, but will still do somethings, you can do a basic image.
 
i hope the old saying isn't true "you get what you pay for" unfortunately i often find it is
 
whatever works i guess

The Grim
 
i'm quite happy to pay for peace of mind
 
 
the windows thing is hit and miss (i wouldn't trust it myself)

 
Based on what?  I have used it for years and it always worked.  Not talking about "backup", I am referring to the full image utility.  Wouldn't recommend it to a first timer, it's more of a sysadmin type of thing.
 

The Grim 
macrium free is crippled, but will still do somethings, you can do a basic image.

 
It's not crippled.  It's a top quality program, that you need to pay for to unlock some advanced features, most of which you would only ever use on a business network.  Go take a look at their website for a feature comparison.
 

The Grim 
i hope the old saying isn't true "you get what you pay for" unfortunately i often find it is

 
False.  There is a lot of quality freeware available, if you know where to look.  But Macrium is well respected.  If you feel better paying for a product you like, great!  But it's not the only solution.
 

The Grim
whatever works i guess

 
True!

Windows still does imaging doesn't it ?
I never used a back up software. I always used Microsoft Windows Image back up.

abacab
 
Acronis = $59.99
 
Macrium = Free
 
Windows Image Backup (included with Windows 7+) = Free
 
Does the same job ...

Well, I downloaded and tested this Macrium Reflect Free, and it has some limitations regarding Acronis.
The main limitation (and the limitation I've seen in most other software) is that it DOES NOT ALLOW TO EXCLUDE FOLDERS AND FILES when creating a Disk Image.
This, at least for me, is mandatory, since I have several temporary folders and files that do not need to be copied, which in turn occupy a very large space and make the backup unnecessarily large.

rogeriodec

abacab
 
Acronis = $59.99
 
Macrium = Free
 
Windows Image Backup (included with Windows 7+) = Free
 
Does the same job ...

Well, I downloaded and tested this Macrium Reflect Free, and it has some limitations regarding Acronis.
The main limitation (and the limitation I've seen in most other software) is that it DOES NOT ALLOW TO EXCLUDE FOLDERS AND FILES when creating a Disk Image.
This, at least for me, is mandatory, since I have several temporary folders and files that do not need to be copied, which in turn occupy a very large space and make the backup unnecessarily large.

"The main limitation (and the limitation I've seen in most other software) is that it DOES NOT ALLOW TO EXCLUDE FOLDERS AND FILES when creating a Disk Image."
 
Then with all due respect, I guess you do not quite understand that a disk image is not intended to a be file/folder backup.  Just google "What is a Disk Image Backup?", or "What is a File-Level Backup?".  You should use both.
 
A disk "image" is just exactly that.  A copy of all in-use sectors of the source partitions is written to a image file on the target drive just as they are on the date/time the image is taken. When you restore an image, it places the identical replica of the data you originally had at that date/time back onto the disk volume, exactly where it was.  Including the boot sector.  It is best used for only the boot/system partition, and all of the partitions on the C: drive, including the recovery partition, etc.
 
When you have an "image" of your system, you can restore it and be back up and running again in minutes, rather than days.
 
There are other tools better suited for backing up data in files/folders, such as your documents and project files.  But they are backup software, not imaging software.  I have never had any luck using backup programs for my boot/system drive.  But use whatever software you prefer for backing up important data files, and keep copies on offline disks, in the cloud, wherever!
 
Just FYI, you can run CCleaner, or even Windows disk cleanup, prior to taking an image to remove temp files and help make the image file smaller.  Try this free utility to see what is filling up your disk space.  It's an explorer tree that shows how much data is held in each folder on your hard drive.  You can use it as a guide to trim wasted disk space.  A lot of folks that use imaging try to keep their C: drive slim for this reason.  Makes imaging faster.
https://windirstat.net/

Thank you for your explanation.
I really understand what a disk image is, even though I have been working with IT for 34 years.
I just quoted that I keep some folders and files in my HD for sheer convenience, because if by any chance I lose them, I can easily retrieve them from the cloud and other sources. But while they're on my hard drive, they're not bothering me.
But at the same time I want to have a fast, efficient and space-saving disk image.
In this way, I add these unwanted folders and files in the Acronis True Image exclusion list.
So in the event of a disaster, I'll be able to quickly recover my full HD (Windows, MBR, etc), and I will not miss much of the files and folders I've added on the exclusion list.

rogeriodec
Thank you for your explanation.
I really understand what a disk image is, even though I have been working with IT for 34 years.
I just quoted that I keep some folders and files in my HD for sheer convenience, because if by any chance I lose them, I can easily retrieve them from the cloud and other sources. But while they're on my hard drive, they're not bothering me.
But at the same time I want to have a fast, efficient and space-saving disk image.
In this way, I add these unwanted folders and files in the Acronis True Image exclusion list.
So in the event of a disaster, I'll be able to quickly recover my full HD (Windows, MBR, etc), and I will not miss much of the files and folders I've added on the exclusion list.

OK, I gotcha!  Then it's worth it to you to have the extra features of a "premium" software. 
 
Most folks don't need that, especially first timers.  For them just getting started with the basics is all that they need.  Compared to nothing at all, that's a big needed leap!  Keeping it simple is the best way to avoid mistakes, especially while climbing the learning curve.  As you become a more advanced user, you can always re-evaluate needs.
 
I also test the restore to make sure that it works.  Have you tried that yet?

I love it when a question causes a useful discussion and there's an offer on Acronis at the moment!
http://www.acronis.com/en-gb/personal/buy-backup/
 

The main point is to just pick an image method, and get it rolling.  Once you do, your fear of broken updates and malware will ease up.  Knowing that you can roll back your boot drive at any time ... priceless!!! 
 
I take a fresh image at least before every Windows and/or Sonar update.  Or any other driver change, or other major change to the system.