how many SPlat users back up their drives before all the updates for the programs?

I also use Acronis. I also back up before installing an update. However, I back up the schmeer, the entirety of my internal hard disk set at the time of the back up. Generally I backup weekly - to an external drive. You never know.

I backup/store most of my important stuff on an external 2TB drive. I then mirror this to another set of 2TB externals and keep one offsite. I swap them around every month or so. I also tend to create DVD archives occasionally of very important files.
 
I use Macrium Reflect Free for imaging purposes.

I back up projects periodically.
 
I have an external drive. I do a substantial backup before formatting the drives and installing Windows 10.
 
Normally, I don't backing-up anything before for Sonar updates.
 
I do like Gobbler.
 
 

Up to you. I do a full backup every week, data every night. If I'm updating software I do it straight after a full backup.

I run a Windows Home server which after doing an original image of all connected computers on the network, does incremental backups every night. I do a manual image just before installing any new Sonar updates.

BobF

Kylotan
I never explicitly back up before a Cakewalk upgrade, or any other software update short of an OS upgrade. It's incredibly rare for any software to have a negative effect on your system in general, so the realistic worst case is that an upgrade breaks the software in question, which can be uninstalled and reinstalled.

Exactly my thinking.  Backup data and overall system, but individual applications are easy enough to reinstall.

Likewise.

Kylotan
It's incredibly rare for any software to have a negative effect on your system in general, so the realistic worst case is that an upgrade breaks the software in question, which can be uninstalled and reinstalled.

In which case never back up :):) :)
Not!
One thing I've learned is the worst case scenario is the one you didn't think about!

Cheers :)

On my Desktop DAW system (in the .sig below):
 
I back up nightly incremental backups using Retrospect to an external 4TB drive.
I make image backups using Acronis 2015 on to another external 4TB drive.
I backup images using disk images and also partition images. I make full disk images periodically and volume images when it seems right.
For example, since upgrading to Windows 10 I have imaged my system partition every day, keeping the last few and an older one.
I just removed all my Windows 8 images as I'm pretty confident about using Windows 10 now.
 
Occasionally, I also back up my system image to a 128GB Flash Drive (usually just before 'Patch Tuesday' or before making a major system change). I guess Windows 10 doesn't have a Patch Tuesday anymore...
 
The only problem I found with Windows 10 so far is using Virtual Box 5.0.1. The audio in VBox will not play unless you start audio in the host before playing it in the guest. I've seen this in virtual Windows 7 Pro, virtual Windows 8.1 Pro, and virtual Linux Mint Mate 17.2 "Rafaela" with my Windows 10 Pro host on both Desktop and laptop systems. Virtual Box 5 is announced as not yet being able to support Windows 10, but I'm hoping 5.1 will be out soon.
 
-----------------------------------------------------
 
On my laptop: 

Gateway (Acer) Model: NV570P29u-53334G50Mnik
Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-3337U CPU @ 2.7 GHz; 8GB Ram; 10-point Touchscreen
Windows Pro 10 64-bit
Sandisk Extreme Pro SSD 960GB
Sonar Platinum 64-bit
Live Suite 9.2.1 + Max4Live 7.0.5 64-bit
Motherboard Audio: Realtek ALC3225 driver 6.0.1.7246
Focusrite Scarlett Solo USB audio interface
LoopBe30 v1.6 - virtual midi ports

I back things up to three external drives on a rotational basis using Acronis 2015 disk imaging. Since upgrading to Windows 10 Pro, I have done this several times already (usually daily). But eventually that will be less frequent. On Windows 8.1 I rotate images about monthly or just before a major change.
 

But do you backup before installing the monthly Sonar updates?

Acronis True Image Home 2011 user here.

I do backup before monthly updates. Before I update, I backup my C drive excluding directories such as temp, download, etc. Sonar data files residing on my D drive are not backed up at that time. After my Acronis backup (recently 43 GB), and before the Sonar update, I'm sure to set a restore point and call it BEFORE SONAR UPDATE (date). After the update, I create another restore point named AFTER SONAR UPDATE (date).

It's the undetected problems that I worry about. It's easy enough to turn back the clock if Sonar malfunctions just after an update. But those gremlins that surface a week or two later, such as a Wave plugin misbehaving or crashes with older projects, those get harder to troubleshoot, and I'm led to wonder if the last update was the cause. The restore points come in handy for turning back the clock without having to reinstall applications.

To the point of the OP - I don't do a special backup prior to updating. 
 
I've now installed, then updated S-Plat A thru G and have NOT yet had the need for a backup.  IMO, the experience so far says that the Sonar dev team is doing a pretty darn good job.  Not that I would be happy about a disaster, but considering the new model and all of the moving parts, I think they've handled things remarkably well.
 
  beers all around for the dev team - Noel is buying!!

arachnaut
The only problem I found with Windows 10 so far is using Virtual Box 5.0.1. The audio in VBox will not play unless you start audio in the host before playing it in the guest. I've seen this in virtual Windows 7 Pro, virtual Windows 8.1 Pro, and virtual Linux Mint Mate 17.2 "Rafaela" with my Windows 10 Pro host on both Desktop and laptop systems. Virtual Box 5 is announced as not yet being able to support Windows 10, but I'm hoping 5.1 will be out soon.

 
Not familiar with this software. Are you saying you are running Sonar in a virtual machine? How is your latency... Or do I have the wrong end of the stick...