TeraCopy is a utility designed to copy/move files faster and more secure. One of the most common complaints about newer versions of Windows is the slow copying speed, especially when transferring lots of files over the network. If you want to speed up your copying or if you regularly transfer large amounts of data and have to stop the process to perform some other disk-intensive task, this program may be just what you need.

One of the most common complaints about newer versions of Windows is the slow copying speed, especially when transferring lots of files over the network. If you want to speed up your copying or if you regularly transfer large amounts of data and have to stop the process to perform some other disk-intensive task, this program may be just what you need.

TeraCopy replaces the Windows file handling functions with its own, which appear on the right-click context menu or simply when you copy or move files. The pause function alone is worth its weight in gold if you do a lot of copying. Windows only lets you cancel–not pause–which makes it difficult to ascertain exactly where you left off. You may also choose up front whether you want to overwrite all files, older ones only, skip files that already exist, or rename the file being copied to avoid overwriting the existing files. Vista and Windows 7 provide the same choices, but only when the conflicts occur after the copy process has begun. Anyone who’s ever started a large copy operation, gone to lunch, and come back to discover that Windows is only two files into the process and wants attention can appreciate Code Sector’s approach.

You may also invoke TeraCopy Pro as a standalone so you can select files from diverse locations and copy them to a single location. You may also create favorite destinations to cut down on your browsing time to them. Checksums are generated for verification–a great safeguard, especially when you’re copying files to less-reliable removable media.

TeraCopy Pro adds a few very handy perqs lacking in the free TeraCopy Home: letting you select all files with the same extension, and letting you remove files from the copy queue. It includes free updates (though it seems you get those with the free version as well). Without a help file it took me a few minutes to realize that the selection options apply only to files already added to the queue and that it didn’t gather more files from a location.