Re: Any app' that will clear "free space" on XP Pro drive?

Mark Conrad wrote:
Is anyone aware of a defrag app' that can "clear" the free-space on
a XP Pro boot drive, i.e. set the free space areas to hex zero,
without screwing up the regular files and OS on the disk?

Reason I need such an app' is because I am running out of disk
storage space, and am going broke buying drives to store all my
bootable backups.


I find when backups have their free-space cleared, that those
backups then compress down a lot better, take less space on my
storage drives.

Phil Weldon wrote:
Heard of incremental backups?

Mark Conrad wrote:
Yep, they are the kind that don't help if:

1) My boot drive fails.
2) I experiment with a new technique
and it messes up my boot drive.
3) Malware zaps my system files.
4) RAM fails and messes up my system files.
5) Free utility app's zap system files.
6) Defrag' app' misbehaves when moving system files.
7) When I want to quickly change to a different OS
and/or different partitioning scheme for special jobs.

...then quickly change back when the special job is done.

I can't understand why people pay good money for incremental backup
app's when it is so easy to back up documents by drag-and-drop.


I cannot believe people pay good money for incremental backup apps when they
come with the OS and there are many free options...

I personally prefer differentials.. but...

1) Yes - it does - because you will have a full backup followed by the
incrementals...
2) See (1)
3) Hmmm... System Restore would probably fix that - but so would (1)
4) (1) again?
5) (1) again?
6) What do you know? (1) again...
7) (1) again? Yeah.

You cannot have incrementals with a full thrown in there - the more often -
the better.
You should use an imaging applicatin to be most effective with some of those
examples.

How To Use Backup to Back Up Files and Folders on Your Computer
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/308422

Yes - you still need some sort of external media to store the results
on, but you could schedule the backup to occur when you are not around,
then burn the resultant data onto CD or DVD or something when you are
(while you do other things!)

Another option that seems to still be going strong:

Cobian Backup
http://www.educ.umu.se/~cobian/cobianbackup.htm

A lot of people have wondered about how to completely backup their system
so that they would not have to go through the trouble of a reinstall..
I'm going to voice my opinion here and say that it would be worthless to
do for MOST people. Unless you plan on periodically updating the image
backup of your system (remaking it) - then by the time you use it
(something goes wrong) - it will be so outdated as to be more trouble than
performing a full install of the operating system and all applications.

Having said my part against it, you can clone/backup your hard drive
completely using many methods - by far the simplest are using disk cloning
applications:

Symantec/Norton Ghost
http://snipurl.com/13e00

Acronis True Image
http://www.acronis.com/homecomputing/products/trueimage/

BootIt? NG
http://terabyteunlimited.com/bootitng.html

You could use all sorts of other free backup applications and freeware
imaging solutions... Back up over the network or to an external HDD or just
another HDD in the system. You could even backup to CD/DVD in some cases.

As for your original problem - I just don't get it...

Reason I need such an app' is because I am running out of disk
storage space, and am going broke buying drives to store all my
bootable backups.

Wha?
Your backups have to be bootable?
You cannot write them to CD/DVD?
You need to keep EVERY single backup?!

I believe you need to rethink your backup scheme and what you backup.

I deal with many different setups and many different OSes on any given day
and I am not taking up that much space to store the assorted backups to make
my life easier on restoring one OS or another to a working state and then
the data I really want therein.

--
Shenan Stanley
MS-MVP
--
How To Ask Questions The Smart Way
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html


.

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