Windows XP ASR question... using a backup file off a network drive

[dchilder]

So, I backed up my laptop using Windows XP Pro's Automated System Recovery, which makes a backup file and a floppy with disk parition info, etc. The problem: I put the backup file on my desktop HD (through a LAN), because the file was 9GB. When using the ASR to fix my laptop, Windows wouldn't allow me to view any network connections to locate the backup file. Because of this, the ASR process essentially fails, and I've got to do a clean Windows install. I then use the backup file to duplicate most of the information from my original installation, but because this doesn't use the ASR disk, things are still a little screwy with my system. I can't put the backup file on my laptop HD, because the first thing the ASR process does is to format the laptop hard drive, which would erase the backup file.

Does anyone know of a way to access a network drive to utilize a backup file during the ASR process? Any help would be appreciated!

David

 

[Lord Evermore]

If the floppy disk uses DOS to boot, then you can modify it to load DOS network card drivers and to map a network drive to a drive letter, and then ASR will just see the network drive as a drive letter.

 

[dchilder]

The Windows ASR backup disk isn't used to boot the computer. Rather, you boot with the XP media, and tell it that you are using ASR to recover from a backup. XP uses the ASR disk to get info on the disk partitions, along with some other OS info, I believe, but it more or less tries a new install of windows until you later direct it to the backup file, which overwrites some of the system files. You don't get a chance to add anything like drivers, with the exception of adding RAID and other storage drivers, as in regular XP installations.

As an aside, this problem clearly makes the Windows utility a little less useful. I've tried PowerQuest's Disk image, but I had problems with that too... anyone recommend anything else for my future backups?