Re: cloning to a larger drive
- From: "Patrick Keenan" <test@xxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 2 Jun 2008 00:59:55 -0400
"Bill in Co." <not_really_here@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message news:u$TfjxFxIHA.4492@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Brian A. wrote:"Bill in Co." <not_really_here@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:%2382IDJFxIHA.576@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Patrick Keenan wrote:"Jo-Anne Naples" <naples@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:uMAIOpDxIHA.5124@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
I'm using Windows XP with SP3. I have a 60GB internal hard drive in my
5-year-old Dell desktop computer and am planning to buy a couple USB
external hard drives (I have USB2) to be used for cloning the internal
drive, in case of a crash or other disaster of that sort.
My questions:
1. If I buy a substantially larger external hard drive, will I be able to
clone my internal drive multiple times til the space is filled, or is this
something one can do only once--with subsequent backup/clones writing over
the earlier one? If only once, I'm guessing I wouldn't need huge external
drives. I don't have many photos on my computer, and I don't store music
on it.
2. If I clone the internal drive to the external one, can the external
drive be used to boot the computer if the internal drive fails? If not, do
most cloning programs create a bootable CD? (The programs I've been
thinking about are Acronis True Image and Casper--both suggestions posted
here in response to an earlier query of mine--although I suppose I should
consider Norton Ghost as well.)
You will not want to do this with CDs, they don't have enough space. You
will use one or more DVDs instead.
IF even that. (Takes quite a few DVDs to backup everything), at roughly 4 GB
each.
3. If the internal drive fails, I assume I'd have to acquire another one
and then clone the external drive to the internal one--right?
4. Before acquiring a new internal drive, would I be able to do all my
usual work on the computer using the external drive?
As you can see, I'm a novice at this kind of thing...
Thank you for your help!
Jo-Anne
Cloning is the process of producing a working copy of a hard disk. What
you're suggesting is creating an image file for backup purposes.
Yes, you can create multiple image files on one drive - but in reality, this
is not efficient. You will very quickly fill the target drive.
Instead, create one image and then use the incremental-backup features of
the imaging software to create partial images of just the changed files.
OR simpler yet, just rewrite the entire image again and you will NEVER have
to keep track of partial images, nor rely on them all being there (and which
ones to use, etc).
As Patrick points out:
<quote>
It's also not a good idea to have one single image that replaces earlier ones,
as if the source corrupts, and you create an image that replaces the previous
good ones - you're not in a good position. You need to be able to go back
to before the damage.
</quote>
OK. But I think that's a bit of a "long shot" (that that would indeed occur):
Unfortunately, it's not a long shot. It happens. I've personally seen it happen, and I've read posts recently in one of these groups where a user had it happen.
As I pointed out before, either the source or the backup drive might fail, but both at the same time? - seems pretty unlikely. So you always have one to fall back on.
Yes, both can fail at the same time, and a copy of a corrupted install is of limited value.
Just as it seems *quite* unlikely that you would go ahead and start a backup if your source drive is corrupt. You'd likely know, by then.
Unfortunately, this is not necessarily the case. It happens.
Aside from that. Acronis and Ghost both require the drive space to be two
times+ to create a new image that replaces the present image. Both apps first
create an entire new image, and once completed delete the present one.
Are you so sure?
Yes.
HTH
-pk
I seem to recall having the backup partition practically filled, and yet still being able to overwrite an existing image (with the same file name). So, I don't think that's *necessarily* true. (IOW, when you write the new image, the old one can be directly overwritten, right then and there, meaning its first erased, of course).
That
requires that the drive space be large enough to contain the present image and
the new image which will replace the present one, once the new image has been
completed the present (previous) image is then, and only then, deleted.
In addition, aside from creating one bootable, restorable image of your hard
disk and system configuration, there's no point in backing up system and
program and temporary files over and over again. This is a waste of time
and space.
15-20 minutes ain't bad - to cover ALL bases (and that includes programs,
system files, and user data - the whole banana. That way you will never be
caught off guard).
You need to also be aware that it's not good practice to rely on a single
backup set. You should use several. Create an archival image to one or
more DVDs - make more than one copy and store one in another location.
Personally, I believe CDs and DVDs are old hat. It's much cheaper, less time
consuming and easier to use removable drives.
Yeah, me too. MUCH easier to do, too, and you don't have to keep a stack of DVDs around either. :-)
It's also not a good idea to have one single image that replaces earlier
ones, as if the source corrupts, and you create an image that replaces the
previous good ones - you're not in a good position. You need to be able
to go back to before the damage.
As to external hard disks: I think pre-assembled external drives are
overpriced and you can't tell what really matters - the drive inside.
Where I am, bare 500 gig drives are around $90, and good-quality USB2 cases
start around $30. It takes about five minutes to assemble them.
HTH
-pk
--
Brian A. Sesko { MS MVP_Windows Desktop User Experience }
Conflicts start where information lacks.
http://basconotw.mvps.org/
Suggested posting do's/don'ts: http://dts-l.com/goodpost.htm
How to ask a question: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/555375
.
- References:
- cloning to a larger drive
- From: Jo-Anne Naples
- Re: cloning to a larger drive
- From: Patrick Keenan
- Re: cloning to a larger drive
- From: Bill in Co.
- Re: cloning to a larger drive
- From: Brian A.
- Re: cloning to a larger drive
- From: Bill in Co.
- cloning to a larger drive
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