Backup Complete Computer - Create an Image Backup

Hi Brink, and thanks for your reply

Did you noticed that both folder have the same modified date (in your screenshots)? That makes me think that even if the first image is moved to other folder when one creates a new image the tool somehow scan all the drive for previous images, and probably modifies them. (Im just guessing)

Now, I did one more experiment which suprised me even more:
I did a 5th image... and now I have:

1st and 2nd images: of 20GB
3rd, 4th and 5th images: equal or less than 8KB

How come that to create the 5th image today could afect the 2nd image that I created last week, and convert it form a 8KB into a 20GB image??

If this helps, Im on Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit, fully updated

whs said:

Greg, What a saga. Question: Have you ever tried a recovery with the images? If not, I strongly recommend that test. Make a small (2GB) test partition, copy some data in, Image, take some data out, recover, check whether all your data is back. I always do that because the recovery step may have more surprises in stock.
When you do it, there is one detail I would be interested in: Is the Recovery CD released from the reader after it has been loaded. Reason that I ask is that one user had the recovery CD stuck - and his image was on DVDs. Fatal.

Hi WHS, it's on the todo list but it looks like I"m rolling back a snapshot,lol. I borked the stinkin Image/Backup app somehow. It's stuck in "Backup in Progress" mode. I'm sure I goofed it myself. I was using the F: drive prior to our discovery of how to get the multiple images. Prior to this, I had copy/pasted images onto another HD for extra Image backups. I went to do the Backup/Image routine, set all the options of changing the drive letter to another bigger drive, set the schedule time for 11:00 PM last night and when saving the settings at about 10:50 PM it automatically started the Backup/Image Process. It appears that when one changes drive location and that location does not already have a Backup/Image, then MS decides that it needs one to save the settings. I'm sure you can guess the rest of the story. The one that started after saving the settings was 10 minutes prior to the scheduled Backup/Image meaning it was not done when the scheduled Backup/Image time was to begin and therefore has me bent over at the present time. It did manage to Image the Win 7 partition but not the XP partition. My choices now are

1) Reboot and see what happens
2) Roll back to the previous snapshot and start again
3) Roll back to the previous snapshot and go back to manually copy/pasting Images

I'm leaning toward the last option

Brink, in your browsing the net, have you run up on any other in depth articles about the Windows System Imaging of Win 7? I posted the link to one from MS but it's just a tad more detailed than the help file in said app. I'm looking to see if there is a way to beat this auto Backup/Image setting that one has to enable in order to keep the multiple Images. The drawbacks to me are, the Backup files folders part has to run in conjunction with the Windows System Image part. I'm not to bright on this but it seems pointless to run Backup and Windows Imaging too. If I needed to restore something from a backup, I would much rather restore using the Image than the Backups. If I needed to restore let's say just some data files which were quite small in files size, I would attach the VHD and recover the small files from the Image. Doesn't that make sense?

Yes, it makes sense if you make images very often.

Most people prefer to make an image only occasionally.

In between that, they do folder/file backups ( as it's less to backup and quicker).

If I follow what you are asking - you want to keep multiple backup images?

I don't think you can do that from the GUI, but you can from the command line.

Greg, I have been wrestling with the Windows backup and imaging facilities both in Vista and Win7. Problem is that one never really understands what they are doing. That's why I am now going with the easy option for imaging which is free Macrium. Before I was using Norton Ghost, but that also took me half a year to understand all the intricacies. With Macrium it took me 15 minutesd. Here is a short tutorial about the basics and here is a much more extensive video tutorial about the whole imaging/recovery cycle. I suggest you have a look at it. It will make your life a lot easier.

Hi whs,

Nice tutorial.

Have you made yourself a WinPe recovery disc including Macrium ?

You get a lot more functions than you do on the Linux recovery disc.



No option with the free Macrium version to create an image from the boot cd - but you can't do that with win 7 system image either.

You can do it with Paragon Backup & Recovery Free Edition ...

Hi Siw2, no I have not made a WinPe disk. I think first time I tried I ran into some problem. I like to keep things simple. I did, however, play with Paragon. It has a lot of nice functions but is not much easier than my Norton Ghost that I still use in Vista (only because I always used it there).
Question: why would I want to create an image from the boot CD?

There is a download here supplied by Nick ( the founder of Paramount Software, which includes Macrium)

http://updates.macrium.com/reflect/winpe

It says BartPE on the folder - it runs beautifully in VistaPE 2.1 and Win7 PE 3.0.

much easier than trying to make BartPe disc.

It also allows you to restore individual files from an image - instead of the entire image, gives access to command prompt, network configurator, and a comprehensive auto startup repir feature - which is different from the one provided by windows.

Not as good as the Boot Corrector in the Paragon apps., but interesting nevertheless.

You probably wouldn't need to create an image from boot cd - because you always have recent images already made. It can be useful for those who haven't , and can't boot in - they can image the drive for safety , before attempting something that may lose their data. Or one might want to do a sector image to use forensically elsewhere, e.g. to recover deleted data, etc. A lot of people have been saved by the ability to do that.

It is a function that is provided in the Paid Macrium version - but not in the free one.

Thanks Siw2.