Whats the BEST way to make images of my system Without using GHOst in DOS??

[neil]

Well i have used Ghost in the past. I like almost everything about it, except i can not get my USB HD enclosure to work in DOS. I tried using the DUSE usb dos drivers but i always get memory errors. ITs a no go.
So what i am tring to do is just backup all my HDs onto my External USB HD enclosure. I searched the net a found Drive Image 2002, it seemed to do everything like being able to make images while running in windows also it was compatable with NTFS. But the only drawback was the you can not make an image of the SYSTEM drive while to OS was running.

I kinda have a feeling that it is impossible to backup the system partition while the OS is running.

O'Well, if ne1 has ne ideas, please share.


thank you
-neil

 

[Gaunt]

I think your guess is pretty much right... Not really possible to image the boot drive while the OS is running from it.

I'm trying to think of alternatives that might make your USB HD work, but I'm not coming up with much... does it work under linux? Is there a HD imaging app that works under linux? ... Probably not the way to go, but it's all I could come up with.

Obviously this way isn't optimal, but you could create a partition just big enough to hold your images (and possibly slightly larger future images) on a regular HD, then do you imaging, restart the OS, and copy the image to the USB HD... you'd have to do the same thing in reverse to restore the image though. It's a slow, round-about way of doing it, but it would work.

 

[corkyg]

I have worked around that same problem - a USB data drive. I wanted to duplicate it and put away the clone. Like you say, my system, like yours, will not do USB in DOS, and my drive copying software has to work in DOS. What did I do?

Simple! I removed the HDD from the USB enclosure and temporarily connected it as an internal IDE drive. I made the clone, and then put it back in the USB enclosure. Same thing happens with Firewire drives. Also no go in DOS. Did a clone of a laptop 2.5" drive the same way using a 3.5-3.5 adapter.

 

[Nothinman]

But the only drawback was the you can not make an image of the SYSTEM drive while to OS was running.

I kinda have a feeling that it is impossible to backup the system partition while the OS is running.

Yea, Windows isn't very good at things like that.

Personally, I'd bitch to the USB hd manufacturer if their DOS drivers don't work.

 

[neil]

well i really dont have a right to b!tch. my USB enclosure & usb2.0 pci card are made by ADS technologies, and the drivers that i was tring to get to work was from http://www.pocketech.net/ . I have heard that some people have had success with these drivers with various usb devices. but not me...... heh o'well something will come along... someday.

-neil

 

[sep]

What about a backup software? I know it's not an image, but it could backup your entire system to the USB drive in windows.

Just a thougt!

I currently use Drive Image 2002 to image my primary drive to CD-R (restore OS-App CDs) and Roxi backups data to CD-RW on going. I haven't had to restore, but it looks okay to me.