Computer Audio Asylum: RE: Creating an image file of the system drive by Ryelands Music servers and other computer based digital audio technologies.

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Posted by Ryelands (A ) on February 20, 2010 at 01:53:23

In Reply to: Creating an image file of the system drive posted by smicyta on February 19, 2010 at 22:30:22:

Can anyone help on how to create the image file of the system drive and how to use it later if the system doesn't works?

1. You need to get a suitable utility such as Norton's Ghost, Acronis' TrueImage or my favourite, Drive Snapshot. (You won't read many good reports of 'Ghost'; Acronis is a popular choice; there are others.)

2. Using it, you make an 'image file' of the target computer's system partition. Unlike a data backup, an image file includes boot sectors, MBRs and all the funny bits needed to boot up as well as the OS and program folders.

3. You keep a copy of this file on a separate computer, on a different partition on the target or, better, both.

4. If your system drive fails or, more commonly, you do something you can't recover from, you can restore the earlier state using the utility. You boot up the target by setting the boot device in BIOS to a CD-ROM, a floppy drive or external HDD (typically, you receive or can write a bootable CD using the imaging utility) and run its 'Restore' function. I find it easier to move the drive to a second machine and do the restore there but, whatever route you choose, the end result is the same - you're back where you started in a matter of minutes rather than hours. Reset BIOS and away you go.

5. Best to do a trial run before you need the routine in earnest.

HTH

Dave

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