Re: Properly backing up my W2K OS



Tim Holland wrote:

Some people are talking about installing either this programme or
Ghost under Dos. Can I do this in the Dos prompt option of W2K?

I think the "some" in this instance is me since I mentioned my mild distrust of doing a Windows backup from within Windows (that would include a Windows command prompt. Never tried it - nor wanted to - but I somehow doubt that it would work).

My preference (with Ghost) is to install Ghost in Windows then use it to make a DOS (real dos) boot-disk containing the Ghost backup facility (with USB access if desired). Boot from that and (using the admittedly crude user interface) do the backup. No open, locked, changing-on-the-fly or otherwise questionable files that may or may not be able to be backed up. Just a one-for-one image that can be verified on the same basis. Easy and quick - why complicate matters?

You can of course, still open the image file from the Windows Ghost installation and extract individual files, directories etc.

Actually, I started with the Ghost boot-floppy but later added the files to a bootable-cd that contains some other tools (Partition Magic, manufacturers' HD test utilities etc). It's a mini-cd that's easy to carry from machine to machine along with my usb backup hd.
.



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