Have full backups, can't restore. Rather despirate

[MVR]

This is a first for me. I'm an IT Consultant for a living and consider myself pretty experienced in most things, especially the basics like proper backups and restores. So here's the story. (BTW, when referring to Acronis, I am using Acronis True Image Home 2014).

I had 4 Samsung 250GB EVO drives in a RAID 0 array on an Intel X58 chipset. No matter what I did (adding more drives to the array, etc) it could never break 600-620MB/sec. I actually started with 1, then upgraded to 2 in RAID 0, then to 4 in RAID 0. Each time getting a very small MB/sec and IOps boost, and that was of course because ---->
After doing some research I found that the ICH10 (I think) on the X58 simply had an overall limit of ~600MB/sec and 80-95kIOps, especially since it was SATA 2. No biggie, bought myself a cheap software based RAID card for $150 (link: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1 HighPoint RocketRAID 2720SGL 8-Port SAS 6Gb/s PCIe 2.0 x8 RAID HBA (SAS Tape / RAID Support). I wasn't going to buy a hardware based RAID controller because in the end I'd be spending $700+ and if I'm doing that, I'd just get a new MB & processor.

I bought a couple more Samsung 250GB EVOs and hooked them up to the RAID card and bingo, broke 1500MB/sec (yes that felt really cool). The RAID card says it can do up to 4.xGB/sec at best and my goal is to break ~2.3GB+/sec. Ok, so far all I've done is add the RAID card and 3 other EVO drives to a RAID 0 test array, I still have my OS C: drive running on the 4 * 250GB EVO's so I was still booting and could access my new RAID array for a quick set of tests. Easy enough, now it's time to use Acronis to create a system image (I have one from every day, but made one last most recent one) as I've done with hundreds of systems. Next pull the 4 drives off the Intel controller and create a 6 drive RAID 0 array on the HighPoint card. Had to turn off Intel RAID changing to ACHI and fiddle with BIOS to get the card to post in BIOS so the CTRL H would bring up the configuration, a little confusing but got it to post and very easily created a 1.5TB 6 EVO drive array.

Ok great, I was happy/excited, could barely wait to re-image the OS and run disk benchmark tests (so I'd be tempted to buy 2 more drives for an 8 drive array) -- Next, loaded/booted off the Acronis boot disk (done this a dozen times on this same system), found my image of C: drive (of which I made several and had several revisions on 3 different drives - like to play it safe). I run the re-image from Acronis, takes about 6 hours or so, gets to 1% remaining, then says it failed. No good reason shown in error log. So I figure it doesn't like my RAID array or the card. No big deal, I have backup after backup of my C drive. So I put the 4 EVO's back on the Intel MB controller, recreated the array - and again, same result Acronis. It won't re-image, fails at the end. Crapola. I should at least be able to restore exactly what I had! Tried older images, and older images, same result.

I have run the "Validate archive" test with Acronis on all my backups and it says they are all valid.

So figuring maybe it didn't love my Intel controller 4 EVO drive array anymore , which had been working perfect for a very long time, I try to re-image to a standard single hard drive, not in RAID mode. Same problem. Fail.

Turns out I have a 3-4 month old Windows Backup.. Alright, going to be sad to go back in time a bit, but the good news is I can mount my Acronis.tib image and get any files I want that have changed so things should be ok. But don't have a Windows 8 disc and I was too stupid to create one because, to be honest, Acronis has never ever failed me before.

A little history on my Windows versions, started with Windows 7 64. Did the Windows 8 64 upgrade online for $40 (back when they were offering it new online). Then Windows 8.1 of course and every Windows Update. Pretty standard stuff. I am pretty sure my Windows 8.1 is PRO, I could be mistaken and it may be Home. Either way I'd think I could figure it out (is there a way to figure out which version you have by looking thru the OS drive, as I said, I can't image it without fail but I CAN mount it as a disk or browse/extract the files)....

So, I've tried it all with Acronis, even trying to take the image and convert it to a Windows Backup Image AND a VMWare virtual machine on my laptop just so that I'd have it temporarily booting and could attempt to do more backup types (like a recent Windows Backup, and create a restore disk). However VMWare converter which supports Acronis .tib images, and I think windows system image backups, just doesn't want to play nice. So on this topic, any advice from anyone on getting my .tib or windows backup converted to a VMWare virtual machine?

Note: I've also used Acronis' convert Acronis .tib backup to a windows image backup and it fails at the end.

So back to the old Windows backup image that I hoped not to use because of the age. I got several builds of Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 disc images so I can boot and run the restore (everything is 64bit by the way). I created the disks, boot my machine with them. It sees all my drives just fine, I ask it to restore the windows image backup and every time it tells me that the backup was created with a different version or type of Windows, explaining that it could be Vista 32/64, Win7 32/64, Win8 32/64 (you get the idea). Of course, I know what my system is (was ) --- Windows 8.1 Home or Pro 64bit - upgraded from Windows 7 via the online upgrade.

Picture being me 5+ weeks into this. Quite the level of frustration here. I have many backups, including a Windows System Image.. Yet nothing I do can seem to restore it. I'd love to get the Acronis (preferred) or Windows image running under VMWare then create a restore disk and give that a try, but VMWare, which usually I have luck with, really isn't favoring me. Keeps saying invalid image, and specifically "Invalid parameters" when trying to convert the Acronis .TIB to a VMWare usable image or machine.

As I mentioned earlier, I can mount the Acronis image on my laptop and I have everything. My complete C drive. So here is another question that I really don't have expertise on, and please if anyone does I'll send you a Christmas card for life if you can give me explicit directions on how to accomplish it ---
---- I can copy the Acronis disk DATA (not exact disk image, but everything that was there) to a drive. But of course I have no master boot record, or the other usual stuff that it wants to know it is a boot drive.. I am almost positive that I had a GUID format type and... Well the rest I can't be completely certain about. One thing that is confusing to me is that the Acronis image has a MBR as a separate disk or piece of the backup. I can choose to restore with or without it, but the thing is, when I restore with it, it wants to put the MBR on a different drive -- giving me no choice.

--- Sorry back to the point, can I copy all the drive data (which looks to be completely there) to a drive, and use a tool to rebuild or reset the drive so the BIOS thinks it is a boot drive again and load everything all hunky dory. I found a pretty good article here http://www.pcworld.com/article/2054425/pcs-fail-be-ready-with-the-best-boot-drive-programs.html but after 30+ attempts spanning many images, of two types - which takes 8+ hours each just to tell me it failed RIGHT at the remaining 1% (Acronis) or that I don't have the right restore disk version (Windows)... I'm so completely mentally drained I barely have it in me to go thru these tools and try anything. Instead turning here to trusty AnandTech forums users in the hope that someone can guide me to the right answer faster than me going thru these tools. As I mentioned, I have quite a bit of expertise with computers, but admittedly I've not kept up well with all that latest tricks dealing with restoring hard drives.. Partially because Acronis has been saving me and fixing almost everyone of the 100+ computers I support among my clients for 5+ years. I think I've gotten so used to things working, and doing so many backups that I just haven't had to delve deeper to more tricky restores.

In case anyone asks about why I am risking RAID 0 across so many SSD's, the answer is: Since I have a daily incremental or differential Acronis backup, I've never been too worried. I've done RAID 0 SSD's since my first 3 Intel X25 drives and those ran for 2 years without a blip. Intel is cool enough that their SSD support software supported TRIM and the maintenance with RAIDed drives. Samsung Magician software says it can't find a Samsung drive once you go RAID. But I was willing to risk that and do a manual trim from the Acronis cd boot disk 6 EVO drives now and then. My goal was insane speed using cheap parts. And really, I don't think my problem is with the HighPoint RAID controller or the drives. I moved my OS from non-raid to raided drives back and forth with Acronis several times when tinkering and never had a problem.. But now I'm stuck. 5 weeks of trying.

Sorry for writing the novel - wanted to include every detail possible in the hopes that someone can help. Ideally my solutions by priority would be:
1. Restore the most recent Acronis .tib image, or just restore the files from it (I know that part works) and then make the drive bootable.
2. Get the image running in VMWare on laptop, do a windows backup, create a restore disk/usb disk, attempt restore on PC.
3. Figure out why the images won't restore (Windows boot disk version? / Acronis screwing up and no clue why).

If I can just get this image booted again to anything (i.e. VMWare on laptop), I'm sure I can make the right restore disks again, back it up 20 different ways, then try to image it over to my big bad 6 drive EVO array so I can finally enjoy the insane speeds I've been seeking. But for now, I'd accept booting of a USB 1.0 external drive that has 5MB/sec of throughput if I could just freaking boot and make new backups.

Thanks to anyone for help.

 

[Ketchup]

I haven't used Acronis in quite some time, and I apologize if have missed something in your post, but couldn't you just:
1. Create your array with the Highpoint card
2. Install and update the Windows you were running
3. Pull the data you need off your latest image

 

[VirtualLarry]

Is it possible that the "last 1%" that it is failing on, is trying to restore that MBR image / boot record to a different drive than your primary OS programs + data image? And maybe that drive is no longer there?

 

[inachu]

Wait....... You have a HD image spanning multiple hard drives via raid?

Sure its possible I would never do that. 1 drive for backup only and use several for raid.

Sounds cool to do those things but you just complicated things. Remember the old rule of : K.I.S.S. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[inachu]

You could download windows PE and I think you can use it to transfer the MBR to the HD.

 

[PliotronX]

Sorry for writing the novel - wanted to include every detail possible in the hopes that someone can help. Ideally my solutions by priority would be:
1. Restore the most recent Acronis .tib image, or just restore the files from it (I know that part works) and then make the drive bootable.

This is what my firm typically does, we use the "explore image" function (of our imaging software, not Acronis) almost exclusively and extract only documents, photos, PST's, etc.. I have only had to revert to the image once to pull a license key. I'd say give up on restoring Windows and just install afresh, I like to do this at least once a year. In the days of bitrot and Win9x, I'd do it around half a dozen times

edit- forgive me if Acronis doesn't allow the functionality, the VM method might be worth a shot in this case. Have you contacted Acronis? They might have some insight.

 

[Ketchup]

I would also like to add that, considering the situation you are currently facing, maybe you should take this as a little bird suggesting that you migrate to a RAID 5 array.

 

[MVR]

Hi guys, thanks for the answer. Here is where I am now. I finally contacted Acronis and got a little help. The first thing I learned was that the True Image Home 2014 version has no ability to add a driver from the Acronis Recovery boot disk. But with some tricks I was able to still get to my drive. It just wasn't pretty. The first thing they did was give me a free copy of version 2015 beta, which you'll be able to buy in a week or 3. It has the ability to load drivers (as did their premium 2014 version, but I didn't realize it --- and it is also totally lame to charge extra for). So, talking to a string of people with extremely heavy Indian accents (Very nice people tho, just had to ask them to repeat things a dozen times), the I talked to Billu said first we need to get you version 2015. I will email you in no more than 40 minutes with links to download to the beta and a key. And he asked me to reply to him with he log files that Acronis generates. Which by the way, showed a couple problems. One of you was right, but it wasn't the only thing stopping my image from moving over -- will answer that in reply to quotes below.. Anyway, 3 hours later I was still waiting for my email. Called them again and they swore he sent it, but nothing in inbox or spam.. So they sent it again and got it.

Considering the sizes of my images (around 500GB), decompression time and moving data around via network and MEGA SLOW USB 3 5TB drives, I pretty much spent the next 20 hours just getting the data in place and learning their completely different new interface.

So I burned both the Acronis 2015 Recovery boot disk, and their new WindowsPE based + Acronis tools boot disk, got all my data together, and went in to reload the PC again with Windows 8.1 Enterprise Free Edition just so I could have an OS to help me do things the way I wanted. I installed Acronis 2015 again, which they only gave me one key for and it was already on my laptop. They have a very nice system that lets you register you serial #, login and select "I am on a new PC or have reloaded my PC" which deactivates it on the laptop.

It found my non-initialized 1.5TB SSD array just fine, it ran a process on mt .tib image file to make it compatible with version 2015 --- and my gut tells me it may have fixed some oddities in the backup, but I won't know that for another 2 hours. It is imaging now, with my entire PC sitting almost idle on a highly compressed .tib file because the backup drive Acronis is reading from is only serving 48MB/sec. So on to reply to the quotes.

I haven't used Acronis in quite some time, and I apologize if have missed something in your post, but couldn't you just:
1. Create your array with the Highpoint card
2. Install and update the Windows you were running
3. Pull the data you need off your latest image

Sure, that is easy peasy. But I've not reinstalled this computer in almost 5 years. I have thousands of dollars worth of software on it, some of which I've lost the serial #'s for, and TONS of programs that are so perfectly customized the way I like them that not even windows easy transfer would catch half of them. I have logins to FTP sites that are saved in the FTP program that I've also long forgotten... So long story short... If it takes me 7 weeks of trying to figure out how to restore it, I'm gonna wait and use my head. There was too much I didn't know about certain things like crossed MBR's, GPT disk type irregularities, etc -- So I knew there was a detail I was missing, and I wanted to learn what it was.

Is it possible that the "last 1%" that it is failing on, is trying to restore that MBR image / boot record to a different drive than your primary OS programs + data image? And maybe that drive is no longer there?

Ding ding ding! The very last few things it does is set disks to be bootable, changes their priorities, and sets the MBR. But in this case, I was both getting an MBR error that I shouldn't have been getting, I was getting another that was "I'm told" possibly related to 2014 version not being quite ready for lots of SSD's on a non-standard motherboard based RAID controller card.

Wait....... You have a HD image spanning multiple hard drives via raid?Sure its possible I would never do that. 1 drive for backup only and use several for raid. Sounds cool to do those things but you just complicated things. Remember the old rule of : K.I.S.S. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have 7 1.5TB drives on another RAID card running in RAID 5. Acronis images a differential backup every single night. I even have 1 Acronis backup scheduled to run once a month, onto my 1TB Google drive account that uploads.. This is in case of mega system failure.

You could download windows PE and I think you can use it to transfer the MBR to the HD.

This is where I started to get real lost. I read a ton more after writing my first post and learned a little bit on how to do this. But now that they gave me version 2015 and it can build a WinPE USB or DVD boot disk, I'll have what I need if I have to do this. I am really hoping I won't.

edit- forgive me if Acronis doesn't allow the functionality, the VM method might be worth a shot in this case. Have you contacted Acronis? They might have some insight.

This still may be on the table. I already tried it but I was getting lost in the steps of extracting my .tib Acronis file, fixing it, converting it to a virtual hard drive (not too hard, Acronis can convert back and forth), and turning it into a virtual machine. If I can do that, then I can stablize the OS and boot into it, while in a VM -- then I could do a Windows System Image and move it back to my main system.

I would also like to add that, considering the situation you are currently facing, maybe you should take this as a little bird suggesting that you migrate to a RAID 5 array.

I don't listen to the little birds, but I am careful. Heck before I installed the RAID card, even tho I had a backup from the night before, I made 3 new backups and put them in 3 different drives.

What was really really odd was, I couldn't get it to image to the new RAID card --- fine ok, no panic.. I'll just remake my Intel 4 SSD drive array and it would of course re-image back to them since it had been running flawlessly on them for a long time... Oh crap, that was failing... Well then for sure it will image to a single hard drive. I tried 6 different non-raid drives and same error. Just imagine doing a re-image that takes 6-8 hours to finish and trying 20 different configurations in the hopes of it working..

Well hells bells. I just checked it 30 minutes after it had 2 hours left to go, and it failed. Meaning this time it failed right in the middle of the recovery. So now I'll figure out where the heck they moved the view error logs part to and go from there.. Generating a system report now, I am willing to bet they merged the log into that.

I knew my hopes for luck where too high today. I'm going to import a different image file, run the validate image and reconfigure and see if I can figure out the MBR issue, etc.

If I hit 8 weeks on this I'm taking on a new profession. I'm not qualified as a 20 year IT person apparently...

 

[MVR]

Sigh.. I won't know till I do a retry and read the logs, but this first fail may be as simple as me mistakening doing a move instead of a copy on the image file after I renamed it, and Acronis maybe had a hold on it which ran for a while.. Will know more in a while.