In terms of backups, what does an incremental backup do?

An incremental backup focuses on optimizing storage and reducing the time required for backups by only copying data that has changed since the last backup operation, regardless of whether that backup was a full or incremental one. This means that if a full backup is done first, subsequent incremental backups will only mention the changes made since that last backup.

This method is efficient because it minimizes both the amount of data transferred and the time it takes to perform the backup. With an incremental backup, if the last backup was a full backup, the first incremental backup will contain changes from the full backup. Any later incremental backups will only include changes since the most recent backup operation, allowing for quicker backups and reduced storage requirements.

This option strikes a balance between the need for complete data recovery and the practical management of backup resources.