Cannot Backup SSD Paragon TrueImage Macrium, etc HELP!

Running Win7 Pro 64-bit on brand new Thinkpad Edge. Installed a Kingston 128GB SSD VNow. I installed off the system restore discs. No problem. System runs great.

I went to setup backup using Acronis TrueImage Home (latest versions 2011 Update 1) I have my SSD partioned into C (OS) and D (Data Files). When I try to make an image backup of C: (and the SYSTEM DRV partition) the system freezes for a moment and then Blue Screen Of Death (BSOD) about 1/3 through the backup.

So I tried Paragon Backup. Same thing. But at some point I stopped getting BSOD and starting getting VSS can't read volume data. I tried changing Paragon Hot Swapping Setting to always on per Paragon forum post I saw. No difference.

So then I tried Macrium Reflect. Same thing. BSOD roughly between 1/4 and 1/2 through C-Drive image.

I did notice that it appears if I'm not using the computer the crash doesn't happen so soon but as soon as I start browsing the web a few minutes later I get the BSOD. I don't get the BSOD at any other time, only when backing up the drive.

I went into BIOS and changed SATA from AHCI to Compatibility mode but Windows fails to boot when I try that.

I verified TRIM is active so it knows it is using SSD. Although the C-Drive is showing Defrag option still but I think that is okay.

This is driving me nuts. I need to backup my drive!

Hard to tell. But here are a couple of suggestions:

1. Did you check the alignment of the SSD http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/113967-ssd-alignment.html?ltr=S
2. Did you run chkdsk /r in case there is any corruption
3. Since you say it occurs when you run other things in the foreground, does it work if you just let it run by itself.
4. Did you try to image the partitions one by one rather than combining them in one run.

Hope you can figure it out. I image SSDs with Macrium all the time and never saw anything alike.

I would follow the suggestions whs has given.

This sounds to me like there may be a issue with the drive itself.


I use Acronis and have never had such issues, even when browising the web, listening to music during a Automated backup.


The fact that all backup attempts seem to run into the same problem with various programs does seem to point to a drive issue.

whs said:

Hard to tell. But here are a couple of suggestions:

1. Did you check the alignment of the SSD http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/113967-ssd-alignment.html?ltr=S

I just did and this is what I get:

Partition 1 Primary Size=1199MB Offset=1024MB
Partition 2 Primary Size=48GB Offset=1200MB (this is my C: drive)
Partition 3 Primary Size=69GB Offset=49GB (this is D

2. Did you run chkdsk /r in case there is any corruption

I ran chkdsk /f - no issues but just ran chkdsk c: /r. Rebooted windows. No issues for the tests 1-3 but the last test 4 of 5 (the sector test I presume) it crashed with BSOD about 1/3 of the way through! Something is definitely screwed up with the SSD sectors?

3. Since you say it occurs when you run other things in the foreground, does it work if you just let it run by itself.

Per above - this is now ruled out.

4. Did you try to image the partitions one by one rather than combining them in one run.

I only tried imaging the C: partition. The D: partition I successfully performed a file backup - not an image copy.

Click to expand...

Looks like it is the drive.

Will reformatting help? Seems odd to have this problem when drive has been barely used? Bummer I can't even make an image copy so it will take hours to reinstall my dozens of apps., OR, could it be some sort of hardware compatibility issue or configuration problem.


Maybe Kingston SSD is crap or faulty and I need to just go back to Corsair Xtreme like I used before on my other laptop?

Help!

Please check c:/windows/minidump for any .dmp files and zip them up and attach them to your next post and we'll take a look at them...

Tews said:

Please check c:/windows/minidump for any .dmp files and zip them up and attach them to your next post and we'll take a look at them...

Click to expand...

No minidump directory in c:\windows

Microsoft.NET then ModemLogs

Did you remove your page file?

No. Most backup programs ignore the paging file. I also don't recall reading you can't have a pagefile if you have an SSD? My pagefile is set to be fixed at 4GB. I have 4GB physical RAM. I would think if you had apps open that needed more than 4GB of ram you would want to have a paging file setup?

Removed pagefile just for the hell of it. Ran CHKDSK /R. Crashed with BSOD and I caught the error message at the top: bad_system_config_info

There is definitely something wrong with the drive. I had a similar problem once with an early OCZ Vertex 2 years ago. I returned it to Newegg and got a new one that worked. That is what I would suggest in this case too. You are wasting more time on it than it is worth.

In the meantime you can complete the installation on the HDD the laptop came with and then image that to the replacement SSD - not sure I would get another Kingston (which I think is essentially an Intel). A Vertex or a Crucial C300 might be a better choice.

In regards to the PageFile, NO disabling it entirely is not a good idea. You need need one regardless how much RAM you have.

And NO, having it on the SSD will not hurt anything. Although sometimes, people move it to another physical drive for sake of saving space.
But if space is not a major issue for you, the SSD is really the best place for the Pagefile.

However, if you do want to move it off the OS/SSD to save some space, I always recommend leaving a 500MB PF with the OS at the very least, even though the main PF is else where (another physical disk)
This way, Windows still keeps a record of dmp logs.

I asked about the page file because the OP said he didn't have any mini dumps. No page file = no mini dumps. IMO the page file should be left on the SSD.

As for the original problem, there's something funky going on with the drive. If it were me, I'd try to a secure erase and re-install Windows. If the problem persists then the drive is faulty.

Maybe nothing to do with the root cause of the problems listed here but I saw something similar on my machine this week. The fix was easy once I figured it out...

I do full backups of all my internal drive partitions each week or so and have been doing so without any problems for months using Paragon Hard Disk Manager 14. (The same backup software is also sold under at least one other name: Avanquest.)

This week's backup froze the system when it got to the 4th partition, which is my data drive. The OS C: partition had already been processed ok. Once frozen, there was no progress shown in the status window, it was stuck at x%. The mouse still worked and I could switch between windows but couldn't start new processes such as Explorer or Task Manager. I left it for some hours but the only way out was a hard reset. I rebooted from the original Paragon CD and ran checks on all my partitions, they were all ok. Ran the backup again, same thing happened at about the same place (it was 2% different to last time). I locked the screen, left it for a few hours, when I came back, I couldn't even unlock the screen, so resorted to a hard reset again.

Then I realised that since my last backup, I'd installed Norton Internet Security. I disconnected from my WiFi, disabled Norton Firewall and Norton Virus detection and backed up again. This time it all went through with no problems.

So before you start changing disk and BIOS settings etc, it might be worth just isolating your machine and temporarily disabling its security protection before backing up.