[aiharkness]

I gave it a try--attempted to backup with BlackBerry Blend running--and it didn't make any difference for me. Same behavior and same error as always. (The backup seems to proceed, with Link showing that it is calculating space, etc., but then Link throws the error, "Backup did not complete, verify that your device is connected to BlackBerry Link and try again."

It's hard to know what's going on in your case. If you can find something that works (even it doesn't make sense) then go with it so long as it works. Still, though, knowing you can't count on it (when time comes, you may not be able to restore) means you should have an alternate solution just in case.