Failed HD Recovery Services ?

Robert Leaman · Post by **Robert Leaman** » 11 Jul 2006 6:51 pm

I have an external Western Digital hard drive that has its own power supply (120VAC) and connects with a USB2 cable. When I turn it on, it appears in the Explorer window and when I turn it off it disappears. I never disconnect the USB2 cable. It needs no drivers and/or any other software for operation. That's where I keep my drive images. If I have a restore need from nothing, I install a minimal XP, turn on the WD drive, and restore from the image.

Jeff Agnew · Post by **Jeff Agnew** » 12 Jul 2006 4:04 am

Thanks, Lou. Brain fart -- meant to say TrueImage.

Dave Potter · Post by **Dave Potter** » 12 Jul 2006 7:37 am

Chip -

Sorry to take so long to reply. I know some of your questions have already been answered, but I'll try to recap, with comments, as I've been known to do

.

Is Acronis a stand alone HD via a USB port?

Acronis TrueImage is software you load on your hard drive. You run it whenever you want to use one of its features, like making an image of any of your drives.

It's quite feature-rich, and I don't really use them all, I normally just make entire images. I used Powerquest DriveImage7 for my backups previously. What I like a lot about TrueImage is that it does most things, including making drive images, under Windows. This means that you can start a backup and go on to do other things while that's being done in the background - the imaging process is transparent to whatever else you're doing.

In contrast, DriveImage7 must re-boot to it's own dos-like environment to complete a backup, and the computer can't be used for anything else until that process completes, which can take a long time on a large drive.

Another useful feature of TrueImage is that you can open any of your saved disk images under Windows (as opposed to a proprietary environment)and restore files or folders which may have become corrupted, either to their original location, or a different one, without restoring the entire image. Of course, TrueImage also offers the capability to make a bootable "Rescue Media" to use in the event one is unable to boot Windows to restore a drive image.

What I'm trying to figure out, as Jack mentioned, "It's not a matter of IF, but WHEN your OEM HD will eventually bust", what's the point of using an external HD storage unit? It'll bust too?

Eventually, everything will.

The "external" aspect is only coincidental, for me. The obvious advantages of any external drive are that you don't have to open your PC case to install it, it's portable - you can pick it up and take it somewhere else, maybe to connect it to a different PC, and you can turn it off when its not needed.

I elect to use two different HDs to store my image backups for added security. In the event I need to restore my C: drive, and one or the other of my two backup drives fails at the same time, I still have some options left. I bought the external 300GB drive because I already have 3 HDs inside my PC case and things are a bit crowded in there - didn't really need any more heat either

.

I'm sure the Acronis is a faster way to save stuff than going CD, and you probably can set it up to wipe-out what's on there and replace with the 'new' all in one move [so there's no accumulation and duplication]?

Nope - no duplication. Restoring a drive image simply makes the drive look exactly the way it was when you created the image.

The images I make of my C: drive are around 33GB each, and I keep 3-4 of them at any one time. Acronis can make both entire or incremental images, but, either way, that's way too many 650MB CDs to make any sense to me. Even saving the images on DVD would still make a handful of DVDs, and get expensive before long. So, I chose the dualing HD route.

I know this has gone long, but hope it clarifies things a bit.

[This message was edited by Dave Potter on 12 July 2006 at 08:54 AM.]

Chip Fossa · Post by **Chip Fossa** » 12 Jul 2006 12:23 pm

Thanks all you guys; Jeff, Robert, Lou, and Dave.

Let me see if I got this right.

You still need an external HD or CD or DVD to store stuff. Sounds like Acronis just makes it go quicker whether downloading or uploading. I can understand IMAGE now. Not sure what 'transparency' means.

But if you wanted to, you wouldn't necessarily need TrueImage. You could just send stuff over to the external HD [like I was doing with Maxtor]. TrueImage is just a smoother way to do it?

I'm at about 17GB used up out of an 80GB HD.

I guess I'll have to start by buying another USB HD. Maybe I'll get a Western Digital this time. I doubt I'll by another Maxtor.

Dave Potter · Post by **Dave Potter** » 12 Jul 2006 3:20 pm

Chip -

You still need an external HD or CD or DVD to store stuff.

Not "external", necessarily, you just have to backup to somewhere other than where the data being backed up is located, and, the farther away from the data being backed up, the safer you are (external vs another internal drive).

Sounds like Acronis just makes it go quicker whether downloading or uploading. I can understand IMAGE now. Not sure what 'transparency' means.

Downloading or uploading isn't really applicable; when making an image of a drive, you're just doing stuff on your own system. "Transparent" the way I used it just means it happens without you're having to be further involved, and you can do other Windows stuff while it's doing its thing.

But if you wanted to, you wouldn't necessarily need TrueImage. You could just send stuff over to the external HD [like I was doing with Maxtor]. TrueImage is just a smoother way to do it?

Sure, you can always just copy your data to somewhere else to protect it. You don't need any backup program to do that. But, system crashes are often the result of corrupt system files, i.e., Windows files, and, you're not backing up those files if all you're doing is saving your data files.

But the main advantage of making an image of your entire hard drive is that you not only have a saved copy of your data, but also all the operating system files that run your PC, in a compressed format.

I'm at about 17GB used up out of an 80GB HD.

So, using TrueImage as an example, with the default level of compression to make the image of your drive, your backup image would be about 9GB, to be saved to the medium of your choice.

Hope this helps.[This message was edited by Dave Potter on 13 July 2006 at 12:32 PM.]

Lou[NE] · Post by **Lou[NE]** » 12 Jul 2006 3:29 pm

In contrast, DriveImage7 must re-boot to it's own dos-like environment to complete a backup, and the computer can't be used for anything else until that process completes, which can take a long time on a large drive.

Dave,
Were you using and older version of DriveIMage? I have V.2.0.0.402 running on XP Media Center, and I don't have to reboot to complete a backup. I do have to boot to the install CD for a restore, but it's not DOS-like at all.

Just curious,

Lou

Dave Potter · Post by **Dave Potter** » 12 Jul 2006 5:15 pm

I was using DriveImage7, Lou.

I switched to TrueImage when I became aware that there was an imaging alternative that runs in Windows.

Chip Fossa · Post by **Chip Fossa** » 13 Jul 2006 8:49 am

Dave,

Thanks again for that even longer and more in-depth explanation. I started with my 1st PC in Aug/98 and have learned as I went. I've come a long way so to speak, but this saving and backup I've always been a bit in the dark about.

But thanks to you fellas, it's starting to make more sense.

I greatly appreciate the help.

Chipper

Dave Potter · Post by **Dave Potter** » 13 Jul 2006 11:17 am

Chip -

Glad to help, if I can. I stumbled into this computer adventure back in the 80s, with my wife's original "IBM PC", then at work with a "Zenith 100", and, on from there.

Never one to turn down a challenge, I've crashed 'em more times than I can count fooling around inside the registry when I didn't know what I was doing, but, I learned from every one of those crashes. Guess I still haven't learned my lesson, I still play around with the registry, so I make backups.

I'm not the resident expert here, but I'll try to pitch in if I think I have a clue (and sometimes, even when I don't

). And, I'm not immune from my own problems with this business - I can't access my ISP's newsgroups anymore - keeps asking me for a username/password when it never used to, and nothing I feed it works. Still working on that.

Have fun!

Dave
Often wrong, but never in doubt.[This message was edited by Dave Potter on 13 July 2006 at 12:27 PM.]

Chip Fossa · Post by **Chip Fossa** » 13 Jul 2006 5:29 pm

Hiya Dave,

You said, "Back-up somewhere other than where the data being backed-up is located."

Other than another HD (EXT/INT) or CDs, DVDs, what other choices are there for storage?

God, I hope I ain't making another dummy of myself. Too many dummys ain't good.

cf

Ken Lang · Post by **Ken Lang** » 13 Jul 2006 5:57 pm

You guys are scaring me, so I just ordered a 250GB external hard drive from Best Buy. ($140) a good price.

We have 4 computers in the house so I can back them all up on the new drive and still have plenty of room left over.

Boy, things were a lot simpler when we only had a pen and a notebook to keep things in.

Chip Fossa · Post by **Chip Fossa** » 13 Jul 2006 7:08 pm

I'm with you Ken.

Dave Potter · Post by **Dave Potter** » 14 Jul 2006 5:24 am

Chip -

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:<HR>You said, "Back-up somewhere other than where the data being backed-up is located."

Other than another HD (EXT/INT) or CDs, DVDs, what other choices are there for storage?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>You're right, those are the choices. All I was trying to say was that it's not a good idea to store backups on the same drive you're backing up. You probably wouldn't be able to access your backup if the drive failed.

One other point to consider is that if the drive where you have Windows loaded fails, and they all will, sooner or later, you need to have some other way to boot so you can access your backups. Of course, the Windows XP install disc is bootable, but using the "Repair" option available there doesn't always work, at least, it hasn't for me. About all that's left using the install disc at that point is a total re-format and re-install of the operating system, and doing that means reiinstalling all your software as well.

I personally prefer to use such less drastic remedies as may be available to me, and in the above scenario, I'll use the bootable rescue CD I've made with TrueImage software to boot my PC and then restore either the entire drive, or just the files/folders I need to, from the most recent image I've made of that drive.

I hope I ain't making another dummy of myself.

Nah. We learn stuff by asking questions.

Mel Culbreath · Post by **Mel Culbreath** » 18 Jul 2006 7:53 pm

Chip,

<Other than another HD (EXT/INT) or CDs, DVDs, what other choices are there for storage?>

I used to have a Colorado tape drive for backup. It was real slow but held a lot of information.

They also have some "sticks" that go in your USB port but they won't hold enough to do a complete HD backup on.

Mel

Eric West · Post by **Eric West** » 22 Jul 2006 11:43 pm

Tell you what, a CD burner used to backup things like your whole "mail folder" within Netscape or IE is a good idea. Pix and music too. all pdf files, as accessed through a "find files": *.pdf, *.mp3, or anything. 700 megs for a couple cents.

As for the "bad HDD". if it spins and merely will not boot, it's a good candidate for making it a drive not identified in the bios as a "boot drive". Simple enough. You don't have to worry about it 'booting' by accessing files on it. Sometimes a drive can be "started" by having it plugged in, loose and jiggled around enough to get it to "run", copy it and SMASH IT.

THATS ANOTHER IMPORTANT POINT.

DESTROY IT. Don't throw it in the curbside trash. Somebody could send it to the same recovery company and get 6000$ worth of your personal information off it.

I got a free curbside throwaway in my travels, and after HDD2ing the HDD, the people are REAL lucky that I'm the guy that got ahold of it.

I've used the same HDD through two MBs, and it's a copy of an Win98 OS off yet an earlier HDD.

EJL

erik · Post by **erik** » 23 Jul 2006 2:54 am

I have a Maxtor 10g drive. It has been in use for 5 years now, has endured high operating temperatues for 2 months of every year, fails to boot about once a day, but is still going... though slowly. Depending on how important your data is I would try hitting the side of your case with a fist, turning the computer on and off multiple times. This works for me.

I will start backing up my mp3s to a data disk. That and my registry fixer is all I care about.

------------------
-johnson

Dave Potter · Post by **Dave Potter** » 23 Jul 2006 4:50 am

That and my registry fixer is all I care about.

Now, you've done it...

Chip Fossa · Post by **Chip Fossa** » 24 Jul 2006 12:33 pm

Erik,

I don't know if your post about "banging the side of the case" was for me, and I appreciate that advice, but my Maxtor's sides got hit with the sides of the trash can months ago.

Too bad, too. I just love fixing things with a hammer; when all else fails.