Macrium, do I need Recovery disks to create OS image

bawldiggle · 19 Mar 2017

I have created Recovery Disks of a new laptop ... Lenovo Win-7 x64 PRO.
- the Lenovo machine has not been used except to ...

register the OS with Microsft (online)
resized the C: partition to accomodate another partition D:
created the D: partition.

No other software has been installed on the laptop, just the factory installed OS.

Lenovo only allow a single shot at "getting" a copy of the recovery drive
- I have put the recovery disks (x3 ?) away for safe keeping and now I cannot find those

disks.

Q1: Do I need the Recovery discs to create an image of the lenovo as it stands at the moment ?

Q2: What media is best to save images on ? What capacity media for the existing state of the Lenovo

Q3: does free Macrium verify the new image with existing state of the machine.

I plan on imaging just the existing registered OS in its smaller partition, and then (say) a weekly or Monthly image as backup.
Data is on an external HDD

I have been trawling through sevenforums.com tutes and threads for 3 days and am now drowning in information overload.
The Macrium website is very detailed and has left me floundering and confused.

I would appreciate some help, thank you :)

bawldiggle · 19 Mar 2017

My brain cells are wilting ... too many serves of birthday cake.
Took my own advise (my sig) and Wolfgangs tute Imaging with free Macrium is the first tute

RolandJS · 19 Mar 2017

Were you able to use Macrium Reflect version 6 or anything similar to create a full image of your OS partition and a full image of your Data partition?

bawldiggle · 22 Mar 2017

I know nothing about imaging ... and have not created anything so far from my pristine Lenovo.

Before reading whs' tutorial this 2012 Toshiba crashed (overheating I think).
Ever have one of those days when everything goes wrong ?
I had to resurrect a stand-alone Win-XP rig out of mothballs, find XP SP-3 so that I could install VLC for XP (current VLC only supports XP sp3 and later) .... all to watch whs YouTube demo.

Downloaded the YT and now using the XP rig to watch the MP4 video.
... but before anything else I must clean the Toshiba before it fries.
Toshies are a nightmare to clean ... back off, keyboard out just to access the cooling system.
Lenovo is simple ... remove the back

[?] Can I create an image using portable/bootable Free Macrium ? (if it exists?
- I don't see the point in installing Macrium (Free or otherwise) just to make a very occassional image.
- and to include Macrium in the "raw" image

Data is/will be on an external HDD, and I prefer to sync files and folders to backup

[?] Do I need the Lenovo recovery media (that I created, and now cannot locate) to create an image ?

Thank you for dropping by, at least I don't feel alone.

marsmimar · 23 Mar 2017

Forgive me for jumping in. It's been a few days since Roland replied and he's very knowledgeable when it comes to system images. As I understand things, the Lenovo recovery media will most likely return your computer to the exact condition it was in when you bought it. It won't have the most current operating system updates or any other files, folders, or data that you installed. It also won't have any personalizations you might have made like screen savers, sensitivity of keyboard, mouse, etc. The Lenovo recovery media disks should not be needed to create a system image.

I've found that for best results Macrium Reflect (or any of the imaging software) should be installed on your hard drive. When it comes time to make a system image, Macrium will be able to read (image) everything on the hard drive and then save it to a separate hard drive. It even images itself so if you ever have to restore that image your computer will be exactly like it was when the image was made. On my computers it takes less than 40 minutes to create a system image and about the same time to restore it. I've also found that external hard drives are relatively inexpensive these days. I use 1TB Seagates and 1TB Western Digitals. They both cost less than $50 on sale. Buy the largest capacity drive you can afford so you can store multiple images.

As far as I know system imaging software (whether Macrium, AOMEI, EaseUS Todo, Paragon, etc) asks you to create a system repair disk or a system recovery disk on a CD. This CD would be used if, for example, you couldn't start your computer the normal way. The CD is designed to let you boot up Windows - even if nothing else works - and provides you with several options for repairing your failing machine, including installing the system image you've previously made. I've also had best results by saving all system images to an external hard drive. If you save your images to the main hard drive (usually the C: drive) and if that drive fails completely and you have to replace it, you'll likely lose your images as well.

Again, my apologies for jumping in. Hopefully Roland or one of the other members will correct me if I've provided bad info.

RolandJS · 23 Mar 2017

"...Again, my apologies for jumping in. Hopefully Roland or one of the other members will correct me if I've provided bad info..." marsmimar -- I'm one of several who is glad you jumped in! Being at school, I cannot hang around sometimes. Your information is very thorough!

bawldiggle · 26 Mar 2017

Thank you both for your support,

I dont see the point in installing Macrium (Free version) to create an image of the C partition and include Macrium in the image file. ?
My Lenovo is unused and only has 64 bit Win7 PRO installed.

Is it possible to create an image from a portable ? or am I whistling in the wind ?

Thank you :)

marsmimar · 26 Mar 2017

I don't consider myself an expert when it comes to creating system images so I went directly to the Macrium User Guide. It's in PDF format here:

http://updates.macrium.com/reflect/v...user_guide.pdf

Starting on Page 37 they talk about "...how to install Macrium Reflect on an Internet connected PC using the Macrium Reflect download agent." To me (and it's very possible I'm wrong) this means Macrium is supposed to be installed on the hard drive. The only reference I saw to anything portable was the creation of rescue media on Page 7 which says, "...you can start your PC using Macrium Reflect rescue media on CD, DVD, or USB stick." Even Windows 7 own imaging tool is a part of the operating system and installed on the hard drive.

Macrium, do I need Recovery disks to create OS image-system-image.jpg

Even if all you do is keep your Lenovo updated with the latest Microsoft / Windows Updates each month, a lot of folks have experienced catastrophic issues after updates are installed. Many people (myself included) have gotten into the habit of making two system images a month. One just before updates are installed and one a few days or a week after the updates and after verifying the computer is working as it should. Macrium takes up about 70MB on my hard drive so it has a very small footprint. (1000MB = 1GB.)

Again, I hope someone more knowledgeable than me pops in with additional info. My personal recommendation is to install Macrium on your Lenovo. :)

ThrashZone · 26 Mar 2017

Hi,
Well possibly this will make things a little easier to understand
Create Backup Image with Macrium Reflect by Britec - YouTube

Reflect is a lot better than any oem system restore disk or better than system restore out of the box for many reasons.
Here's another tutorial a little clearer although for win-10 it's virtually the same for 7 users
Backup and Restore with Macrium Reflect - Windows 10 Backup & Restore Tutorials

bawldiggle · 30 Mar 2017

The Create Backup Image with Macrium Reflect by Britec - YouTube video was an excellent suggestion.
Downloaded as MP4 and watched it several times.
I now have a reasonable (not perfect) grasp of Image and clone.

My Lenovo is a new factory OEM Win-7 PRO 64bit SP1 setup.
I made a recovery disc from the hidden partition (Lenovo only allow a one-shot process) so I dont even know if the recovery disks are a success !

I am not sure whether to initially create a clone or image, as insurance if the disks are corrupted ?
I have shrunk C: partition and created an additional D: partition.
Activated Windows 7 64bit with Microsoft
... and that's it ... no system tweaks, no other installations, not even portables

Should I create a clone of the virgin setup, and then images over time as needed or just an image to start ?

Your suggestion of making an image before each Windows update is very wise

- Windows updates this late in the life of Win-7, really worries me ... considering the back log of KBs due.
- I do not want Win10.
- I have a crude list of KBs to avoid, but am feeling nervous about a hijacking by MS updating

The Create Backup Image with Macrium Reflect by Britec - YouTube recommends "verification" but does not say "how" ?

Hope I am not being a pest ... I do appreciate any help
Thank you :)

--------
I dont want to expose my Lenovo to the web before I have an additional backup.
- my Toshiba backup lappy is broken and I am relying on SWMBO's machine

SWMBO = she who must be obeyed