Macrium Reflect v5 query

nenny · 12 Oct 2011

I have used the earlier versions of Macrium Free but this is the first time I have used version 5.

I made the Macrium Rescue Disks both Linux and pe.

When I load the pe, it said the following 4 drivers were missing:

PCI Simple Communications Controller
SM Bus Controller
PCI Host Bridge
Video Controller (VGA Compatible)

Since Win7 is working perfectly I assume I don't need these anyway. I would like confirmation of this.

After I created an image using Macrium, I noticed there is no way to verify the image until it is used to restore. This seems very odd to me.

Any comments would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

ignatzatsonic · 12 Oct 2011

Nenny:

I'm in much the same situation.

In the last hour, I uninstalled Macrium 4.2 and installed 5.0.

I then created the Win PE disc. It loads, but I got a similar notification of missing drivers---6 in my case, rather than the 4 in your case.

I bypassed the notice and was able to get into the Win PE and access, verify, and drill into a previously created image. But I don't know if a restore would have succeeded.

The instructions to create the Win PE disc:

Create a Custom Windows PE Rescue Environment

includes this statement:

The Rescue Media Drivers page will be displayed. This step in the wizard will list devices that may be required to restore an image in the Windows PE environment, e.g.: RAID controllers. Note that it is not necessary to add drivers for all the devices, you only need to add drivers for devices that will be used in a restore or image process. See Further Reading for more topics. Click Next when all required drivers have been set for devices.

I did not see this "Rescue Media Drivers" page. Did you?? If I had seen it, I would have selected all possible drivers.

It isn't confidence inspiring. My options are to revert to Macrium 4.2 or keep Macrium 5.0 but use a Linux-based recovery disk rather than the Win PE disc.

I just don't know about the significance of that missing drivers message.

I'd like to hear from SIW2 and others on these issues.

I think you are right about the inability to verify an image prior to going into the restoration process. I saw no such option in the menus.

Edit:

I went back and burned another disc, this time unchecking the box asking to look for missing drivers. When I booted from this new disc, I did not get the "missing drivers" message.

But I still don't know if either of these discs will in fact restore an image.

ignatzatsonic · 12 Oct 2011

Update:

I just burned a Linux-based recovery disc with Macrium 5.0, using compatibility mode.

It won't boot at all.

Looks like it's Win PE disc or nothing.

Corazon · 12 Oct 2011

I can't tell you with 100% certainty, but I would think that if your WinPE disc boots up fine and goes into the Macrium app despite the missing driver warnings, you'll be able to restore images no problem. It just needs access to your disks after all.

About verifying images, it's true that Macrium offers no such option either during backup from within Windows or during restore from the rescue CD. It will verify an existing image for its integrity, but it won't verify the contents of the image against the partition from which it was made.

It would be neat if Macrium could do the latter, although it would have to perform the verification immediately after the backup, while the partition is still locked via the VSS service. Maybe someone could suggest it to them?

kado897 · 12 Oct 2011

Corazon said:

I can't tell you with 100% certainty, but I would think that if your WinPE disc boots up fine and goes into the Macrium app despite the missing driver warnings, you'll be able to restore images no problem. It just needs access to your disks after all.

About verifying images, it's true that Macrium offers no such option either during backup from within Windows or during restore from the rescue CD. It will verify an existing image for its integrity, but it won't verify the contents of the image against the partition from which it was made.

It would be neat if Macrium could do the latter, although it would have to perform the verification immediately after the backup, while the partition is still locked via the VSS service. Maybe someone could suggest it to them?

There is an auto verify image option in the Standard version. It is not available in the free version.

Corazon · 12 Oct 2011

kado897 said:

There is an auto verify image option in the Standard version. It is not available in the free version.

But that's not my point. It's not about whether there's a verify option or not, it's about what gets verified. And I believe only the integrity of the backup image is verified, not its contents. See above.

kado897 · 12 Oct 2011

Corazon said:

kado897 said:

There is an auto verify image option in the Standard version. It is not available in the free version.

But that's not my point. It's not about whether there's a verify option or not, it's about what gets verified. And I believe only the integrity of the backup image is verified, not its contents. See above.

I'm not sure about that. It does the auto verify before the backup is closed and it takes nearly as long as the backup itself, or at least it did in V4.2. I've not tried it in 5. The documentation is unclear and the question should probably be asked on their forum.

Corazon · 12 Oct 2011

Indeed.

All I can say from experience is that regardless of whether I verify an image right after the backup or at some later time, it takes just as long (like you said, almost as long as the backup itself). I'm pretty sure that's simply because Macrium is reading the entire image file byte by byte (therefore being limited by the backup medium's read speed) and, if the image is compressed, it has to decompress the data to verify it.

That, and the fact that there's no way you can verify the contents of an image file - meaning, compare its contents with the partition that was backed up - if that partition has changed since then.

nenny · 13 Oct 2011

First of all let me say I have absolutely NO confidence in Macrium Reflect v5.

I have not tried to use it to restore an actual image so I have little to back up this feeling. I tested both the Linux and pe rescue disks and both worked (pe showed missing drivers, but I can get into the restore function).

There is a Macrium forum at:
Macrium Support Forum

Unless you have purchased Macrium you can not register there, so you cannot ask any questions.

I have used Macrium Reflect v4.x (using the linux rescue disk) and it saved my butt on many occassions, so I am seriously considering going back to that version.

If anyone has restored an image using v5 I would greatly appreciate their comments on how they did it and how effective it was.

Thanks again for your input

kado897 · 13 Oct 2011

I have restored two images using the V5 Win PE standard Edition on my laptop with no problems. I have also restored an image made and restored with the free V5 and the Linux disk in a VBox VM again with no problems. The Linux disk didn't work in a VMPlayer VM. It wouldn't detect the disks.