Which is the primary benefit of using a differential backup compared to a full backup?

Using a differential backup primarily benefits users by saving time and space, as it only captures the changes made since the last full backup. This means that during backup operations, only new or modified data is included in the backup set, which reduces the amount of data that needs to be processed and stored compared to a full backup, which requires copying all data every time.

This approach helps to optimize backup times, making the process more efficient, especially in environments where data changes frequently. Consequently, it consumes less storage space than maintaining multiple full backups, as fewer data sets are retained with each differential backup created.

In terms of recovery, while differential backups support quick restoration of the data from the most recent full backup and the last differential backup, they are not necessarily easier to manage than incremental backups, which only save changes since the last backup of any kind, thus often resulting in even smaller backup sizes.