1 OR 2 system images if I have a laptop and a desktop?


  1. orlando1974
    Posts : 43
    Windows 7 Ultimate x64
       New #1

    1 OR 2 system images if I have a laptop and a desktop?


    I have a laptop (Win 7 64-bit Pro) and a desktop (Win 7 64-bit Ultimate). Can I just create one system image or is it best to create one for each? If so, why?

    Thanks
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  3. Brink
    Posts : 72,051
    64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
       New #2

    Hello Orlando,

    A system image can only be created per computer, so you would have to create one for each since they are separate physical computers. :)

    Backup Complete Computer - Create an Image Backup

    Hope this helps,
    Shawn
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  4. orlando1974
    Posts : 43
    Windows 7 Ultimate x64
    Thread Starter
       New #3

    OK thanks. Can I put them on same external drive under 2 different folders? (ie. Laptop, Desktop)
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  6. Brink
    Posts : 72,051
    64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
       New #4

    You can save them both on the same external drive since they will have a separate computer name folder in the WindowsImageBackup folder, but the WindowsImageBackup folder must be in the root of the drive for Windows to be able to use it for a system image recovery. If you place the WindowsImageBackup folder in another folder, Windows will no longer be able to see it.
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  7. orlando1974
    Posts : 43
    Windows 7 Ultimate x64
    Thread Starter
       New #5

    Hmmm, I was hoping to fit both images on a 100GB external drive... but oddly...after successfully backing up the desktop system image (Ultimate) and using up 55GB, I went to do the same on the laptop (Professional) and it was estimating space needed as 180GB.

    Why would my laptop image (c: only) require 3 times the space as my desktop image??? Same programs are installed! Almost identical setups....
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  8. ignatzatsonic
    Posts : 12,012
    Windows 7 Home Premium SP1, 64-bit
       New #6

    orlando1974 said:
    .

    Why would my laptop image (c: only) require 3 times the space as my desktop image??? Same programs are installed! Almost identical setups....
    The Windows backup tool has its own idea of what a "system image" is and it apparently thinks the setups aren't exactly identical.

    We can't tell much more without a screen shot of Windows Disk Management on the laptop.
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  10. orlando1974
    Posts : 43
    Windows 7 Ultimate x64
    Thread Starter
       New #7

    I've opted to try using Macrium Relfect (Free edition) after reading some positive comments and experiencing an error message with the Windows 7 backup feature. I like Macrium because it is simple to use and it allowed me to decide on a level of compression.

    QUESTION 1: Does using a higher level of compression when creating the image affect anything other than it takes longer to create the image?

    QUESTION 2: It took only 18 minutes to create the image from my SSD on my desktop, but over 2 very long hours to create the image from my laptop's internal drive!! Such a big difference! (for some reason the laptop is also yielding a much larger system image.. 100GB more than the desktop). Weird..almost identical setups in terms of programs.
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  11. mjf
    Posts : 5,969
    Windows 7x64 Home Premium SP1
       New #8

    orlando1974 said:
    ..almost identical setups in terms of programs.
    The difference may be that a system file is located on a non OS partition on your laptop. In terms of speed difference, the image size is clearly a big issue but also read speeds from your laptop spinner will be much slower than your SSD.
    Full Disk Management screen shots of your Desktop & laptop could help with opinions.
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