Community Newsletter: Q&A: How to back up and restore my PC to the exact same condition it was...
- 8/30/07 3:39 PM
This is the best weekly question I have seen yet!
by NorthBeachnik - 8/17/07 9:44 PM In reply to: How to back up and restore my PC to the exact same condition it was... by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I know there are ways to mirror hard drives. But I don't know which software is appropriate for Vista laptop, which for my XP Professional computer.
I do think that the answer to this question is key to two persistent fears and problems of average users (and I count myself among them): Data loss and Security (including ID theft).
People would back up more often if restoring were a simple procedure -as simple as backing up (which is actually not all that simple sometimes. I'm trying to figure out how to reformat an external drive to NTSF - Help!).
Alex
Recovery From HD crash-how I do it
by vmaxept - 8/17/07 10:19 PM In reply to: How to back up and restore my PC to the exact same condition it was... by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I have been dealing with this issue for years. Hard drives do fail. My most recent one was 2 days ago.
I have been using and assortment of "live backup" programs. Not one was able to do a complete recovery when I really needed it.
I have used the live versions of Ghost and True Image, only to find out my backup was corrupt when I wanted to restore. I always would validate the backup file(s) after the backup. However later when I needed to restore, it would fail. Most img files to CD or DVD would fail validation.
I run a validation every time and if there is a problem I re-run the program. MOST of the time I get a clean validation. One problem with validation errors comes from spanning CDs (many) and DVD (2-4).
I have had problems with a restore that appeared to work but the system failed to boot with dreaded 'missing file..." message.
After many failed recoveries and full installs, I looked for other methods.
The most successful product has been GHOST 2003. It runs in 'dos' mode. There is no 'window system' running. You get a pure copy of the HD/partition to an image file.
I boot GHO 2003 from a bootable DVD or a boot cd with the floppy dos/Ghost image. I have problems with this method when the program tries to write to the floppy "A:\" drive. I have no floppy.
I have found the BEST method is to use another HD and create the full HD image as one GHO img file. This has never failed. I run GHO 2003, create the image on HD2, validate then bring up windows. I backup the image file to my external HD.
All this is manual, but it works and I can recover.
I am now using a second program called CASPER. This is a HD clone, that is HD to HD copy program. It is 'suppose' run live. I thought it was working great until the other day.
I copy HD0 C partition to HD1 " U-C-Copy" partition. I size it the same. It runs live every 3 days. The logs indicates no problem.
The issue was, HD0 fails to boot, mechanical clacking noise. I install a new HD0. I use the CD ISO version of CASPER to install U-C-COPY back to C. Ran fine.
NO BOOT- Missing a file. Name not important but the recovery was a bust.
I then used GHO2003. Used the full GHO IMG file on HD2 to restore C.
It worked. I was up and running but with a week old system.
My data is stored on the D drive of HD0. It is cloned with CASPER every other day. That restore worked perfect.
The problem is LIVE copies or images of the running environment.
I have not had much success. I think some files are copied correctly and others are corrupted copies.
Casper under win live will do a good job cloning the non-boot partitions for sure.
I will use the CASPER boot CD to clone the C drive in 'dos/linux' mode
This process is more trouble then a live clone but it should be as failsafe as GHOST 2003.
My third backup will be a full HD clone to a removable HD (mobile rack) of the same size using CASPER Boot CD. I have done this and tested the cloned drive. The system booted with no problems.
I hope this was clear enough and provided some help.
Roger
Me Too
by PCBiker - 8/18/07 11:09 AM In reply to: Recovery From HD crash-how I do it by vmaxeptI have been on the same path as you and am delighted to hear that someone else has landed on the same zone. I too use an old DOS version of Ghost, use a pair of mobile racks to swap the IDE drives. I have two versions of my hard drive on the shelf, ready to go at any time .. one is a clone of the latest fully loaded main drive, and a second is a 'basic' version with just Windows and all my hardware drivers. I have found that the old version of Ghost has been 100% reliable for over 20 recoveries. The new Ghost 10 made a clone that would not boot, and I removed the program from my computer and trashed it. Years ago I was a fan of DiskImage, and relied on images. Mostly 90% reliable. I am now a fan of cloning, only.
Backing up.
by dgprotective - 8/17/07 11:31 PM In reply to: How to back up and restore my PC to the exact same condition it was... by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Acronis True Image or Norton Save and Restore will both do exactly what you want. They take a complete image of your hard drive and will restore everything on the drive. They can also restore individual files if required.
Hello
by MoeyD - 8/17/07 11:37 PM In reply to: How to back up and restore my PC to the exact same condition it was... by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Hello can someone tell me which pocket pc and which pda phone is aol and youtube compatible. I have the dell axim x30 and it does not seem to play youtube..How can I go about this? Thanks
Back up and Restoring computer and data
by e.kempenaers - 8/18/07 12:26 AM In reply to: How to back up and restore my PC to the exact same condition it was... by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Hi Bill,
Backing up your computer is very important, but being able to restore it after a crash or hard disk failure is actually the most important issue which most people seem to forget. I may call myself a real back up and restore freak, a few years ago I experienced a real hard disk burn out and I did not feel like starting from scratch to rebuild it. So I took some effort to find out what’s the best and fastest way to go back to the situation of my last back up, here is how I do it.
Preparation:
First start by inserting a new hard drive, doesn’t matter if it is an IDE or a SATA drive. Start by making partitions on the drive, I usually make 2 partitions. A primary partition of about 40 to 50 GB to install the OS and all programs. A secondary partition (logical drive) to store all your data being documents, pictures E-mail store (pst file) etc. Make you’re My Documents folder point to the D: drive (second partition)
This way you have a more secure feeling knowing your data is stored on this separate partition. It is usually the primary partition (C: drive) that gets messed up by ad- and spy ware and/or viruses.
To make partitions on a drive I usually use Gnome Partition editor, which is an open source program that can be downloaded for free. Make a CD from the download and boot from this CD to start the program. You can decide yourself how many and how large you make your partitions, it is quit easy to use.
Back up:
For Back up reasons you should have a separate hard drive. This can be an internal second hard disk or an external USB hard disk. The only thing you have to keep in mind is that your back up program needs to be able to load USB drivers during restore actions if you decide to purchase an external USB drive. My favorite back up program has always been Norton Ghost 2003 from Symantec. This program works fine backing up AND restoring all kinds of OS (Win98, W2K and XP). And more important, the program used to be included for free when buying a new Iomega external hard drive.
When you have completely installed your OS and programs, and you are happy about the way the computer works it is time to create your first back up.
Back up OS:
To back up your primary partition you must make sure your computer will boot from de CD/DVD drive. Insert the Norton Ghost CD and boot your machine. Tap any key at the question “start computer from CD/DVD” ghost will now boot and ask you if you want to load USB drivers. Now if you have decided to use an external USB hard disk you will need to make a choice here, loading USB 1 or loading USB 2 drivers (depends on your hardware) You can choose by using the arrow keys, once you made your choice press enter. Ghost will continue to boot loading the requested drivers. When the program is started up you will have to make some additional choices. The best choice is, Partition to image (Not Disk to image) than choose the partition where your OS is installed on. Next thing to do is to choose the destination, point to the second hard disk and give the image a name. Than start making the back up, depending on your choice internal or external hard disk to make back up to and the size of you OS partition it may take some time to make the back up. When Ghost tells you the image creation was successful you can close the program, remove the CD and press Ctrl+Alt+Del to reboot your PC the normal way.
Back up Data:
To back up my data on the second partition of my hard disk I use the old-fashioned way of Batch routine which still works fine even on Vista. I have made an Xcopy routine with some standard parameters like, compare overwrite etc. (find an example here below) The first time you make a back up of your data will take a long time as it has to write all data to an empty disk, from the second time on it will work much faster as it compares and excludes the files already written on the back up location.
Example batch script:
:Program C:\BACKUP-D.BAT
:Creation Date 1 October 2004
:Created By Eddy Kempenaers
:Modify Date 24 May 2005
:Modified By E.Kempenaers
:Creation Remarks The file DONOTDOD.TXT is used for excluding Backup-files on D
:Working Back-up D-DRIVE to External Harddisk DRIVE T:
@ECHO OFF
Echo Check if DriveLetter "T:" is labeled as BACKUP-D
Echo If you have sharing-violation-errors you can add the files to D:\DONOTDOD.TXT
echo ================================================
ECHO =CLOSE ALL APPLICATIONS BEFORE YOU CONTINUE!!!!=
echo ================================================
ECHO.
PAUSE
XCOPY D:\*.* T:\ /A/V/F/H/R/E/D/Y/K/EXCLUDE:DONOTDOD.TXT
ECHO.
PAUSE
Copy the above text in to a new notepad document and save it. Than open a windows explorer and change the file extension from .txt to .bat
In this example D: is the source drive (your data) while T: is the destination (Back up disk)
Save this file as e.g. Back up D
To use this Batch routine you just have to double click the file and follow the instructions in the DOS box that opens when the routine starts.
Note: Prior to making a back up you can assign drive letters to your hard disk in Windows.
Restore OS C: drive
Lets presume a worst case scenario, you hard disk has exploded. Remove the hard disk from your computer, insert a new one and use Gnome partition editor to make new partitions. Once this is done, attach your Back up disk, insert the Ghost CD and boot from it.
When the program is started loading USB drivers as described above (if necessary) make following choices:
Partition From image, now point to your back up disk to the place where you have stored your previously made Ghost image. The destination should point to your new hard disk’s Primary partition than start partition restore. When Ghost completed the image restore successfully you will be prompted to reset your computer. Remove the Ghost CD and reboot.
If all went well you have now a new fully functional operating system restored on your new hard drive.
Restore Data:
To restore your data make a copy of the above described Batch routine (right click the file and choose edit) and switch Source and destination drive letters. Than save it as Restore D.
Note: Make sure your new hard drive’s second partition has drive letter D assigned.
Start the modified batch routine by double clicking it and all your data will be restored on your new hard disk’s D: drive.
Important note:
You can use Norton Ghost 2003 to make an image of VISTA but you can NOT restore it as Vista is using disk signatures which will be different after restore!!!!!!!!
The above described methods of backing up and restoring OS and or Data can be executed separately. I suggest you make a regular back up of your data (I do it every week) I would only make a Ghost image of the OS partition after a clean install before you install any Anti-virus program.
I hope this is usefullto you Bill
Good luck,
Eddy Kempenaers.
(NT) How do you use your script with Email?
by Dango517 - 8/18/07 11:21 AM In reply to: Back up and Restoring computer and data by e.kempenaersBackup E-mail store
by e.kempenaers - 8/18/07 11:27 PM In reply to: (NT) How do you use your script with Email? by Dango517Hi Dango517,
Depending on the E-mail program you use it is different. I personally use Office Outlook. Well this is quit simple to do. First make sure your Windows explorer is set to view hidden files and to show extensions of known files. Than you look up the Outlook PST files which reside at following location on a Win XP computer.
C:/Documents and Settings/Username (should be your username)/Local Settings/Application Data/Outlook.
In this folder you will find a file called outlook.pst Copy this file to your D: partition (Data partition) create a folder e.g. Outlook mail and paste it in there.
Now go back to the original location where you found the PST file and rename it to e.g. outlook.pst.old. This way Outlook will no longer recognize its mail store. Now you have to start up Outlook and you will get following message, Outlook can not find the file (complete path…..) outlook.pst. Now you have to point to the new location on your D: drive where you copied the PST file to. Outlook will now accept the new location, this way (as described in my post) you have all your crucial data on 1 partition. The new PST file will be included in the backup script I have explained in my post.
If you are working with Vista the path to find you PST file will be following:
C:/Users/Username/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Outlook
Good luck,
Eddy Kempenaers
Recover your computer easily in case of a fatal system failu
by georgelm - 8/18/07 12:38 AM In reply to: How to back up and restore my PC to the exact same condition it was... by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
The really simple, and quick way, is to use an image maker. I use Acronis, and regularly make an image of my C drive, so if something happens, I can recover the complete operating system, with everything such as drivers, upgrades, etc, that had been added up to the time I made the latest image. DO NOT save any image to the same hard drive that your operating system is on, because if the hard drive fails completely, then obviously you lose the image(s) as well. I go one better than just making an image of my C drive; I have my Master drive in a removable tray, and have another Master hard drive, in another tray not in the computer, which I regularly update using the latest image, so that if one fails, I just plug in the other tray, and I am up and running in a few minutes. One thing to bear in mind is that these images will only work in the computer they were made in (As far as I know), so when you change to a new computer, you will have to do a new install of everything. Also on my Master drive I have other partitions that I install my programs, data, etc in, and I make copies, not images, in an external USB hard drive, so I don't have to reinstall the programs if something happens to those particular partitions. I usually make a new image once a week, then delete the earliest image, otherwise I would soon fill up a disk with out of date images. I know you can use the XP system recovery, but that is not foolproof of course; if your hard drive fails, you are stuck.
Back-Up Solutions
by IceR8yne - 8/18/07 12:46 AM In reply to: How to back up and restore my PC to the exact same condition it was... by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Hi Bill,
There is a program from Symantec, well a couple actually first is Norton Ghost. This essentially takes a carbon copy of your entire drive (an image file) and saves it to a destination of your choosing, my advice would be to buy a cheap external hard drive (possibly usb 2.0 or F/wire/IEEE 1394). Prices can vary depends where you go, but use it purely for backups! and keep it at home away from any sources which might destroy the data on it. The good ting about ghost is that it will constantly monitor your drive, to see if any files have changed, if so it will create a backup copy of those plus keep the copies of the older file version too.
The other is Norton save & restore, It's pretty much like Ghost but without all but a couple of features!
To summarise, do some research on the software like the one's I've mentioned, buy removable media i.e. external hard drive, the software will prompt you if a Backup is due, just plug in the drive and there you go!
I'm also very sorry to hear about you laptop, there are services online available that can wipe your hard drive remotely in the event of theft! Might be worth looking into!
Backing up your computer/system
by martingreg3 - 8/18/07 1:27 AM In reply to: How to back up and restore my PC to the exact same condition it was... by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
The traditional way of backing up your computer is still the best way.
The first step is to install your software and get your machine running.
The second step is to do a full backup of your computer. These days the amount of data to build asystem runs out at several gigabytes, and hence one is faced with using multiple CDs, at 750 Mbytes per CD. It should be posible to use DVDs with a capacity of 3.3 Gigabytes. I have been meaning to write a driver for adding to the Ahead software (Nero) which is highly reputable.
The backup must include all boot files, so that if a complete format of the hard drive is needed then the entire system can be backed up and restored.
The problem currently is that there is no standalone restore program which can start from CD, (with no operating system present), boot itself into life and restore the drive. Again it is some thing I have been meaning to do but just have not had the time to do it.
Currently I keep copies of my master CDs. OS, drivers, and Nero, and Partition Manager make a partition once the OS and drivers are loaded and restore the original drive to the new partition. I can then delete the old partition and hey presto we are in action.
The second part of maintaining a backup is to do a regular incremental backup. This involves backing up all the files added or modified on your system since the last backup. This can be hard work as I have not found any sofware outside Linux, Unix or VMS which does the job properly. Again something to do.
martingreg3@aol.com
Re ACRONIS IMAGE MAKER
by georgelm - 8/18/07 9:04 AM In reply to: Backing up your computer/system by martingreg3Hello Martin, Just been reading your post where you say "there is no standalone restore program which can start from CD, (with no operating system present), boot itself into life and restore the drive". I have been using Acronis, and you actually use the CD to boot the computer if you cannot boot from the hard drive containing the C partition. I have had to do an image back up several times over the years, and providing I have the images stored on my slave drive in the computer, booting from the Acronis disk allows me to restore the C drive image with no problem. George.
My solution.
by torestov - 8/18/07 1:33 AM In reply to: How to back up and restore my PC to the exact same condition it was... by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I use Acronis True Image.
I can make backups to any media, and also make a copy of my drive to a secret partition. If I get a nasty virus I can restore my HD at boot time.
I copy my drive to the secret partition when I install new programs. But copy all my files to an external harddrive at intervals.
This has saved me a number of times.
Woe Is Me
by 2dogday - 8/18/07 1:59 AM In reply to: How to back up and restore my PC to the exact same condition it was... by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Last year I too, lost it all--on my hard drive, that is. 
I spent hours upon hours trying to get it back. Went to Gateway and Microsoft sites, read and tried everything they had. Paid for techs as well. It was galling, mainly because it was Microsoft's fault. I had problems with Service Pack 2 and never knew until too late that SP 2 would not install if a certain CD label making program was on the computer.
When SP2 first came out in 2003 or 04, it wouldn't install--my computer kept repeating the sign-on which prevented Windows from loading. Finally, I went to Safe Mode and was able to do Syst. Restore from there. I was delighted when it not only worked but SP2 seemed to have installed okay.
After a year or two no problems until Microsoft sent a balloon message last year warning me that SP2 wasn't installed correctly and to immediately click the balloon to reinstall it. I figured it was okay because I could always go to SM and do a restore again if it didn't work. WRONG!!! Same thing occurred, but this time the Restore wouldn't work. Of course, the infamous BWOD (blue window of death)appeared.
Finally, I made a new partition and reinstalled Windows on it. That's the best thing to do because everything on the defunct original partition will auto-install, but with one little problem--all the files are grayed out so won't open. Fortunately, the text files can be opened with either Word Pad or Note Pad, so I got them back by using the "open with" option in Properties. I then reinstalled all my Windows programs from their CDs and they opened everything else. If you do this, be sure you still have the keys to unlock Word and Windows. You'll also need your computer serial #. I had lost my Word key but was able to find a new Word 2000 a week after Microsoft declared it "obsolete" for only $49. and it opened all my Word files--what a relief that was!
As soon as I located their keys, the non-Microsoft programs opened as well. I did that by finding the documents where I had typed them and opening them with Word Pad. Now, a year later, I have everything back. My new partition, which my computer calls Windows2, works great and you'd never know I have more than one partition on my HD. It does take up more space, of course, but at least everything is restored.
I now get auto. backups from one of the safe and trusted online backup sites. For only $29. a year it backs up everything--even gives me an ftp space to publish a website. It appears to have backupped both partitions, so that could be another option for you, though everything may be grayed out as mine had been.
I NEVER backup - only sync my data
by lexthor - 8/28/07 8:49 AM In reply to: Woe Is Me by 2dogdayI use to back my full hard drive regularly. No more.
All of my files & data are scanned & stored digitally. I have zero paper files. Needless to say, my data files are critical. Last year, when my system froze, I realized I couldn’t access any of my backup data files without restoring them onto another system first because they were compressed during the backup process. I couldn’t even get a copy of my insurance policy as it was stored in a compressed format on my external USB hard drive. That's when I rushed out and bought a notebook so I'd have something to work on while my desk system was rebuilt.
It’s then that I realized I don’t care about software. Especially the Windows operating system. Software can always be bought & whenever I’ve bought a new system, I’ve upgraded all the software anyways. It’s the data I care about.
Besides, if your system gets so corrupted that it actually crashes, the only sure way to solve all the problems is to completely erase your hard drive, better yet to buy a new one, and to reload everything from scratch. Kind of hard to do if you're worried about retrieving data from your damaged hard drive.
Now I keep all my data in My Documents folder and sync just that folder using a free software called Alway Sync. It only copies over changed or new files and deletes files no longer present on the source drive. And it does so WITHOUT compression. Just creates a mirror copy on the destination drive.
It’s idiot proof and easy. Every night, or once a week depending how much work I do, I sync my desktop data folder to my notebook and 3 separate external US flash harddrives. Two are at my desk, one is in the safe. To do all 4 takes less than 15 minutes.
If my desktop crashes overnight, I can open my notebook and work uninterrupted while the main system is fixed knowing all my data files are on my notebook. In the event of disaster, I can just grab the smaller USB flash hard drive and run, and access the data as if I were at my desktop on any Kinko’s computer. Can’t do that if ur backed up data is compressed.
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