System image to usb flash drive

tnm

New member
Member
VIP
Local time
10:55 PM
Messages
110
Hi,

Searched on the forum, but cannot find an answer I'm happy with.

Q: Can I save a system image to an external usb flash drive?

Q: If I can save an image to a flash drive can I use windows built in programme?

Q: Can I also save my files alongside the image if I can save such image to an external usb flash drive?

Todd
 

My Computer

Computer type
Laptop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Sony Vaio FZ38M
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Tnm, first in most cases you have to have a large usb flash drive. It also has to be formatted ntfs

how big is your usb drive?

Rich
 

My Computer

Computer type
Laptop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Toshiba Laptop Qosimo X870
OS
Windows 7 Pro x64 SP1
CPU
Intel Core I7
Motherboard
Toshiba Qosmio
Memory
16 Gigs
Graphics Card(s)
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670M
Monitor(s) Displays
17.7" laptop
Screen Resolution
1600 x 900
Hard Drives
256 Gig SanDisk SSD for C
256 Gig Intel SSD for D
Internet Speed
50/25 FIOS
Antivirus
Vipre (all you can eat for 10 machines)
Browser
IE and FF
Other Info
I have dos 6.22, wfwg 3.11, win98, 2000 and xp VHD's available for testing. MS's Virtual PC works great.
Tnm, first in most cases you have to have a large usb flash drive. It also has to be formatted ntfs

how big is your usb drive?

Rich

I haven't bought one. I was thinking of getting a 64gb flash.
 

My Computer

Computer type
Laptop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Sony Vaio FZ38M
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Built them myself, Science Experiments !
OS
Win7 Enterprise, Win7 x86 (Ult 7600), Win7 x64 Ult 7600, TechNet RTM on AMD x64 (2.8Ghz)
CPU
AMD fx8350 4ghz, AMD-32 2400mhz, AMD-64 3200mhz, AMDx64 2.8G
Motherboard
SIS 755, ECS-K8M890M-M (Ult 7600), GigaByte & others
Memory
2gb, 4gb on the Ult 7600, 4gb on Technet RTM, 32gb on FX8350
Graphics Card(s)
Draw my own Graphics, several nVidia cards
Sound Card
on motherboard
Monitor(s) Displays
19" flat scr, 28" I-Inc widescr,22" Emprex Widescr, 23" Acer
Screen Resolution
1280 x 1024, 1440 x 900, 1920 x 1080
Hard Drives
6 pata Ide HD's & 2 Sata HD's
added 80gb external on Ult 7600 computer,
numerous extra 1tb, 2TB, 3Tb SATA HD's
A collection of ext HD Docks w/ HDs
PSU
430w, 550w, 600w, 700, 800, etc
Case
All Generic Full Towers
Cooling
Open Air & a few fans, some w/ colored LEDs
Keyboard
Compaq & Dell recycled from GoodWill
Mouse
Made in China Optical Wired Mouse
Internet Speed
Fast Cable InterNet
Antivirus
AVG Free on 24 different Desktops, NO Problems!
Browser
IE 8 is preferred, but use FireFox sometimes
Other Info
Linksys Routers, switches, & Hubs
Too Many USB Flash Drives to count, Biggest is 64GB !
Eight computers in my home network.
Sixteen computers at my business network.
Linked via TeamViewer !
Lots of old used spare computer parts everywhere!
Thanks.

Is it not advised to use windows own programme to back up?

My only concern with a flash is the size of it. Might end up losing it.

A 64gb flash is around £50. Wondering if getting an external HDD is any better?
 

My Computer

Computer type
Laptop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Sony Vaio FZ38M
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Built them myself, Science Experiments !
OS
Win7 Enterprise, Win7 x86 (Ult 7600), Win7 x64 Ult 7600, TechNet RTM on AMD x64 (2.8Ghz)
CPU
AMD fx8350 4ghz, AMD-32 2400mhz, AMD-64 3200mhz, AMDx64 2.8G
Motherboard
SIS 755, ECS-K8M890M-M (Ult 7600), GigaByte & others
Memory
2gb, 4gb on the Ult 7600, 4gb on Technet RTM, 32gb on FX8350
Graphics Card(s)
Draw my own Graphics, several nVidia cards
Sound Card
on motherboard
Monitor(s) Displays
19" flat scr, 28" I-Inc widescr,22" Emprex Widescr, 23" Acer
Screen Resolution
1280 x 1024, 1440 x 900, 1920 x 1080
Hard Drives
6 pata Ide HD's & 2 Sata HD's
added 80gb external on Ult 7600 computer,
numerous extra 1tb, 2TB, 3Tb SATA HD's
A collection of ext HD Docks w/ HDs
PSU
430w, 550w, 600w, 700, 800, etc
Case
All Generic Full Towers
Cooling
Open Air & a few fans, some w/ colored LEDs
Keyboard
Compaq & Dell recycled from GoodWill
Mouse
Made in China Optical Wired Mouse
Internet Speed
Fast Cable InterNet
Antivirus
AVG Free on 24 different Desktops, NO Problems!
Browser
IE 8 is preferred, but use FireFox sometimes
Other Info
Linksys Routers, switches, & Hubs
Too Many USB Flash Drives to count, Biggest is 64GB !
Eight computers in my home network.
Sixteen computers at my business network.
Linked via TeamViewer !
Lots of old used spare computer parts everywhere!
More advantages of using internal drives include:

1. Internal HDDs take up less room to store.

2. Internal HDDs are usually better quality than the ones in external HDD enclosures.

3. You need only the dock and, in the case of 3.5" docks, only one PSU instead of having an enclosure and PSU for each external HDD.

I love the internal docks in my desktop machine; no cables to keep track of and no worrying about finding a place to put an external dock or knocking one over while a HDD is in it.
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Custom Build
OS
Win 7 Ultimate 64 bit
CPU
Intel i7-3930K
Motherboard
ASUS P9X79 WS
Memory
Kingston HyperX Genesis 32GB Kit (8x4GB Modules) 1600MHz DDR
Graphics Card(s)
MSI R7850 Twin Frozr 2GD5/OC Radeon HD 7850 2GB 256-bit GDDR
Sound Card
Asus Xonar Essence STX
Monitor(s) Displays
3x Asus VG248QE 24", Vizio 32" TV
Screen Resolution
1920 x 1080, ?
Hard Drives
Samsung 128GB 840 Pro SSD (1),
Samsung 4TB 850 EVO SSDs (4)
Samsung 4TB 850 EVO SSDs (16) external backup drives used in 2.5" hot swap bays in the computer.
PSU
Corsair HX750w
Case
Antec Two Hundred v2 (modified)
Cooling
Cooler Master GeminII S524 120mm (fan replaced with a 140mm)
Keyboard
Logitech G510s
Mouse
Logitech M525 (two in use)
Internet Speed
=< 32Mbps down, 8Mbps up
Antivirus
AVAST!, MBAM, SAS, Spybot S&D (all but MBAM free) Glary Util
Browser
IE11
Other Info
LSI 9211-8i HBA card (8 SATA III ports), 2.5" & 3.5" Hot Swap Bays, HooToo HT-CR001 PCI-E to USB 3.0 Internal Hub + 6 Slot Card Reader, and LG Model CH12LS28 BD-ROM Optical Drive. Also, ScanSnap S1500 ADF duplexing scanner, Canon 9000F flat bed scanner, Corsair SP2500 2.1 speakers, Samsung CLP 415nw laser color printer, Cyberpower PP2200SW UPS
Hi,

I should have been clearer from the outset:

I have a laptop, and look to purchase a back up device for a system image and files.

Portable external HDD or usb flash? I need you experts to make this an easy purchase for me :)
 

My Computer

Computer type
Laptop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Sony Vaio FZ38M
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Hi,

I should have been clearer from the outset:

I have a laptop, and look to purchase a back up device for a system image and files.

Portable external HDD or usb flash? I need you experts to make this an easy purchase for me :)

Oopsie! Sorry about that!

Get a USB powered external HDD (those have a 2.5" HDD in them). You will die of old age doing images to a USB flash stick. I was going to do a test to see if a USB stick would work to receive an image and restore it to the computer but aborted the image when Macrium Reflect said it was going to take over an hour and a half to make an image that normally takes around 20-30 minutes using a USB external HDD (actually an internal type HDD in a USB dock but it's all the same to the computer). Also, you can get more capacity with an external HDD.

To answer an earlier question, we see a lot of reports here from people having trouble getting Win 7's imaging function to work reliably. Most here, including me, recommend the free version of Macrium Reflect instead.

re: our being experts. Keep in mind "ex" is a has been and "spurt" is a drip under pressure. ;)
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Custom Build
OS
Win 7 Ultimate 64 bit
CPU
Intel i7-3930K
Motherboard
ASUS P9X79 WS
Memory
Kingston HyperX Genesis 32GB Kit (8x4GB Modules) 1600MHz DDR
Graphics Card(s)
MSI R7850 Twin Frozr 2GD5/OC Radeon HD 7850 2GB 256-bit GDDR
Sound Card
Asus Xonar Essence STX
Monitor(s) Displays
3x Asus VG248QE 24", Vizio 32" TV
Screen Resolution
1920 x 1080, ?
Hard Drives
Samsung 128GB 840 Pro SSD (1),
Samsung 4TB 850 EVO SSDs (4)
Samsung 4TB 850 EVO SSDs (16) external backup drives used in 2.5" hot swap bays in the computer.
PSU
Corsair HX750w
Case
Antec Two Hundred v2 (modified)
Cooling
Cooler Master GeminII S524 120mm (fan replaced with a 140mm)
Keyboard
Logitech G510s
Mouse
Logitech M525 (two in use)
Internet Speed
=< 32Mbps down, 8Mbps up
Antivirus
AVAST!, MBAM, SAS, Spybot S&D (all but MBAM free) Glary Util
Browser
IE11
Other Info
LSI 9211-8i HBA card (8 SATA III ports), 2.5" & 3.5" Hot Swap Bays, HooToo HT-CR001 PCI-E to USB 3.0 Internal Hub + 6 Slot Card Reader, and LG Model CH12LS28 BD-ROM Optical Drive. Also, ScanSnap S1500 ADF duplexing scanner, Canon 9000F flat bed scanner, Corsair SP2500 2.1 speakers, Samsung CLP 415nw laser color printer, Cyberpower PP2200SW UPS
Hi,

I should have been clearer from the outset:

I have a laptop, and look to purchase a back up device for a system image and files.

Portable external HDD or usb flash? I need you experts to make this an easy purchase for me :)

Oopsie! Sorry about that!

Get a USB powered external HDD (those have a 2.5" HDD in them). You will die of old age doing images to a USB flash stick. I was going to do a test to see if a USB stick would work to receive an image and restore it to the computer but aborted the image when Macrium Reflect said it was going to take over an hour and a half to make an image that normally takes around 20-30 minutes using a USB external HDD (actually an internal type HDD in a USB dock but it's all the same to the computer). Also, you can get more capacity with an external HDD.

To answer an earlier question, we see a lot of reports here from people having trouble getting Win 7's imaging function to work reliably. Most here, including me, recommend the free version of Macrium Reflect instead.

re: our being experts. Keep in mind "ex" is a has been and "spurt" is a drip under pressure. ;)

Thanks!

Can you recommend any under £100?
 

My Computer

Computer type
Laptop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Sony Vaio FZ38M
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Hi,

I should have been clearer from the outset:

I have a laptop, and look to purchase a back up device for a system image and files.

Portable external HDD or usb flash? I need you experts to make this an easy purchase for me :)

Oopsie! Sorry about that!

Get a USB powered external HDD (those have a 2.5" HDD in them). You will die of old age doing images to a USB flash stick. I was going to do a test to see if a USB stick would work to receive an image and restore it to the computer but aborted the image when Macrium Reflect said it was going to take over an hour and a half to make an image that normally takes around 20-30 minutes using a USB external HDD (actually an internal type HDD in a USB dock but it's all the same to the computer). Also, you can get more capacity with an external HDD.

To answer an earlier question, we see a lot of reports here from people having trouble getting Win 7's imaging function to work reliably. Most here, including me, recommend the free version of Macrium Reflect instead.

re: our being experts. Keep in mind "ex" is a has been and "spurt" is a drip under pressure. ;)

Thanks!

Can you recommend any under £100?

I've owned only one external HDD in my life, a Western digital 160GB I got around 12 years ago and permanently retired earlier this year (it was too small for my needs anymore so I wasn't using it much and I needed to clean house), so I can't really recommend anything other than to say go to a reliable online vendor and check the user reviews on external HDDs in your price range to see which ones get the best reviews and are the most popular. As already mentioned, I use internal HDDs in docks, internal and external, but you would probably find a USB powered external drive to be far more convenient.
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Custom Build
OS
Win 7 Ultimate 64 bit
CPU
Intel i7-3930K
Motherboard
ASUS P9X79 WS
Memory
Kingston HyperX Genesis 32GB Kit (8x4GB Modules) 1600MHz DDR
Graphics Card(s)
MSI R7850 Twin Frozr 2GD5/OC Radeon HD 7850 2GB 256-bit GDDR
Sound Card
Asus Xonar Essence STX
Monitor(s) Displays
3x Asus VG248QE 24", Vizio 32" TV
Screen Resolution
1920 x 1080, ?
Hard Drives
Samsung 128GB 840 Pro SSD (1),
Samsung 4TB 850 EVO SSDs (4)
Samsung 4TB 850 EVO SSDs (16) external backup drives used in 2.5" hot swap bays in the computer.
PSU
Corsair HX750w
Case
Antec Two Hundred v2 (modified)
Cooling
Cooler Master GeminII S524 120mm (fan replaced with a 140mm)
Keyboard
Logitech G510s
Mouse
Logitech M525 (two in use)
Internet Speed
=< 32Mbps down, 8Mbps up
Antivirus
AVAST!, MBAM, SAS, Spybot S&D (all but MBAM free) Glary Util
Browser
IE11
Other Info
LSI 9211-8i HBA card (8 SATA III ports), 2.5" & 3.5" Hot Swap Bays, HooToo HT-CR001 PCI-E to USB 3.0 Internal Hub + 6 Slot Card Reader, and LG Model CH12LS28 BD-ROM Optical Drive. Also, ScanSnap S1500 ADF duplexing scanner, Canon 9000F flat bed scanner, Corsair SP2500 2.1 speakers, Samsung CLP 415nw laser color printer, Cyberpower PP2200SW UPS
Back
Top