Image your system with free Macrium

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  1. Posts : 9,600
    Win 7 Ultimate 64 bit
       #811

    whs said:
    I would test it by imaging to a USB stick - maybe a partition that does not have too much data so that the image fits even on an 8GB stick. But if you have a 16GB or 32GB stick, you can probably image C.
    I had to chuckle (ok, I was rolling on the floor) when you suggested i might be able to put my C: on a 32GB stick (it only has 272GB on it; the images are 180GB).

    The problem was, when it acted up, the transfer speed would gradually drop slower than a crippled snail on sleeping pills. Often, the backup would self-abort. I found switching switching to another dock and cable seemed to fix the problem. I then put the first dock back on without swapping out the cable (I have two identical docks). It continued to behave. It didn't start acting up again until after I had put the original cable back on the first dock (it's a stinker trying to diagnose intermittent problems). It will be easier for me to continue to do my backups with the cable I stole from an external optical drive I'm not using right now (I'm a horrible pack rat) and see if the problem crops up again. I verify all my images so I'm not worried about how they are coming out.
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  2. whs
    Posts : 26,210
    Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8
    Thread Starter
       #812

    Holy cow, 272GB of stuff on C. I never keep my data on C and always have less than 30GB on C. At least when my system goes down, my data does not go with it.

    Even when you image frequently, there may be data lost - the new data from the last image to the incident. My data is too precious to keep it next to a fragile OS.
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  3. Posts : 9,600
    Win 7 Ultimate 64 bit
       #813

    Keep in mind this is a notebook that is running the stock setup; I haven't bothered to make any significant changes to it since I got it and won't until I get another machine up and running (then I'll reinstall the OS with a shrunken C: partition and a large data partition). I'm not worried about losing data since I don't keep anything critical on it (most of it is my music and books which also exist in multiple places); it's the machine I got to use when I travel. Everything on it worth having has already been backed up multiple times. If I do put something that would be problematic to lose and I don't have an original elsewhere (such as a ripped CD or photos copied from a camera card), I immediately do a backup, even if it's only a copy of the file on a USB stick or an SD card. When I'm on the road, I copy pictures to the computer and to a 32GB SD card (kept in my purse, not with the camera) before I erase the camera card. The last trip I took, I took a USB dock and one of my 500GB backup drives with me and also ran a couple of differential backups while I was gone (right after copying photos to the notebook and the SD card). So, even if the OS takes a dump (I can count the number of times that has happened during my life on one hand), my data is safe. When I take images of the drive, I do the entire drive (for now) so recovery is easier, albeit more time consuming).

    The desktop I have right now, which I'm not using right now because it's running XP and I've been spoiled by Win 7, has a Carbonite account on it (I'll either transfer that account to the new machine I'm building when it's operational or open a new one and shut down the old one) so that takes care of the worry of data being added between local backups (I'm still religious about doing local backups, though).
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  4. mjf
    Posts : 5,969
    Windows 7x64 Home Premium SP1
       #814

    whs said:
    Holy cow, 272GB of stuff on C. I never keep my data on C and always have less than 30GB on C.
    I'm a bit more adventurous. I'll go to 50GB but not much more even with USB3. With USB2 any more just takes far too long IMO.
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  5. Posts : 4,049
    W7 Ultimate SP1, LM19.2 MATE, W10 Home 1703, W10 Pro 1703 VM, #All 64 bit
       #815

    Agreed


    whs said:
    Holy cow, 272GB of stuff on C. I never keep my data on C and always have less than 30GB on C. At least when my system goes down, my data does not go with it.

    Even when you image frequently, there may be data lost - the new data from the last image to the incident. My data is too precious to keep it next to a fragile OS.
    Agreed.
    I keep my Documents, Music, Pictures & Videos on their own (separate) partitions.

    My W7 partition is ~22GB (OS and Programs).

    IMO, multiple smaller partitions allow you to do faster backups of your important stuff (not to mention faster AV scans).
    If the images are smaller, you can also keep more backup copies.
    Last edited by lehnerus2000; 16 Jan 2013 at 08:33. Reason: Additional
      My Computer


  6. Posts : 9,600
    Win 7 Ultimate 64 bit
       #816

    I have a paid version of MR that let's me do differential and incremental backups so the time required for backups isn't a problem. When I do a full backup, I just start it up at a time when I'm not using the computer, such as when I'm watching TV, getting showered, made-up, and dressed in the morning, etc. and just glance at the computer once in a while to make sure something wonky isn't going on. Between full backups, I have been doing differential backups (which take way less time than a full backup).

    I agree it's not a good idea to have all my data on the C: drive but this was my first Win 7 machine and I was reluctant to mess with it until I became more familiar with it (and I've learned one "heckuva" lot since then). Once I get my second Win 7 machine built and running, I'll clean up and redo this one (my XP machine has the data off the C: drive). As I already said, I'm backup OCD so I'm not worried about my data going south.

    Curious the direction this thread has gone. I mentioned the elusive problem I was having with MR to corroborate how an obscure hardware issue can cause MR to go wonky and now we are discussing the evils of data on the C: drive.
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  7. whs
    Posts : 26,210
    Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8
    Thread Starter
       #817

    let's me do differential and incremental backups
    Differentials are better than incrementals.
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  8. Posts : 10,455
    Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit Service Pack 1
       #818

    Lady Fitzgerald said:
    Curious the direction this thread has gone. I mentioned the elusive problem I was having with MR to corroborate how an obscure hardware issue can cause MR to go wonky and now we are discussing the evils of data on the C: drive.
    Although this thread is about Macrium it is useful to cover other areas that make imaging easier. Data doesn't really need imaging but an OS and programs do so it makes sense to separate them as much as possible.
      My Computer


  9. Posts : 264
    Windows 7 Ultimate 64 bit SP1 x64
       #819

    I decided to avoid squandering 960 GByte of HDD on a single system partition.
    The MAJOR reason was that for 30 years of my life I have experienced BlueScreens several times a week,
    and although things are better now,
    even once a year is far to often to have windows boot up and recommend/insist that I have to run CHKDSK,
    and I could not bear the thought of having to run CHKDSK on a full sized 960 GB partition

    So I gave Windows a 25 GB partition,
    and Portable Applications a 4 GB partition,
    and my non-portable applications and User data a 10 GB partition.

    After 2 or 3 years I still have not found anything else to use the remaining 920 GB
      My Computer


  10. PCG
    Posts : 50
    Windows 8.1 Pro with Media Center
       #820

    Speaking of separating everything (OS/Apps and data), I'm curious to find out how whs and lehnerus2000 maintain their systems below 30GB (22GB in lehner's case).

    I've been able to streamline my OS drive down to a current size of 33.25 GB. Are the two of you installing some programs on another drive or partition? Is that possible? Are there any general guidelines to follow if doing this?

    I attached a snip of some (not all) programs that are currently installed on my C: drive that I might consider moving if this is possible/beneficial.
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Image your system with free Macrium-installed.jpg  
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