Re: Can't boot. Trying recovery console. How long to 'examine disk

Anna wrote:
(The issue here is Bill's questioning as to the effectiveness of a
disk-cloning program vs. a disk-imaging program for the purpose of
restoring
a system, presumably because of a defective HDD or a corrupted or
otherwise
dysfunctional HDD).

Right. More below...

"Bill in Co." <not_really_here@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:%23B8DGa%230IHA.3756@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Well, not so relatively rare for me, as I often try things out, and then
find I want to go back to a clean system. THAT is my main use. So
maybe that's the point that was overlooked here (my apologies for the
misunderstanding). I mess around with my system quite a bit, trying out
various software programs, and sometimes find I want to go back to a
clean
system, and use the image restore capability of TI to do that, and not
all
that infrequently! THAT was my point.

And, if I understand this right, using a disk *cloning* program just to
do
that (i.e., NOT with the primary intent of *making a bootable backup
drive*) is a bit "tangential" to its main purpose - since with a
*cloning*
program like Casper, you would always be recloning the backup partition
BACK to the source drive partition for a restore operation, IF you intend
to use this program as I have indicated. Is that not correct?

But also, as I understand it, you CAN do that restore operation with
Casper (for JUST the C: partition) on a multi-partition drive, by
recloning that partition (previously cloned over to the external USB
drive) BACK to the source drive partition (replacing it after rebooting).

But it seems to me that the normal method for this purpose (of what I use
it for - testing out programs, and restoring a backup) would be imaging.


Bill:
Let me say, as I've said repeatedly, that I have no problem with those
users
who prefer a disk-imaging program for backup/restoration purposes rather
than a disk-cloning program such as the Casper program I've been
recommending. But it's my belief that as a general proposition for the
vast
majority of PC users the disk-cloning approach is a more practical
approach
for establishing & maintaining a comprehensive backup system that will be
used on a routine basis.

Getting to your specific points...

There is *no* problem - *no* obstacle in using a disk-cloning program for
the purpose you have indicated, i.e., "(returning) to a clean system". In
our line of work which involves testing out various programs &
configurations, hardly a day goes by where we're not using a disk-cloning
program to do precisely that.

And you mean that having made the clone, one subsequentally copies the
backup clone BACK to the source drive, I presume here.

For some reason I tend to think that is a bit atypical for the normal use of
*cloning* software. I tend to think of *cloning* software being
(principally) used to make a backup disk clone, which will then be pulled
out and swapped with the (bad) source drive, (unlike if one were using
imaging). But maybe that's an incorrect assumption. More on that below.

What would give you the idea that a
disk-cloning program (as opposed to a disk-imaging program) would be
incapable of doing so or be inadequate to that task? Or somehow inferior
in
time or effectiveness in doing so? That is simply not the case and I can't
imagine how you concluded that.

A clone is a clone is a clone. Using the Casper program as an example the
user can clone the contents of one HDD to another HDD either on a
partition-by-partition basis or the entire disk in one fell swoop.

OK - that was one point that I still wasn't sure about - sorry. More
below.

Why do you conclude that "the normal method for this purpose (testing out
programs and restoring a backup) would be imaging", inferring that somehow
the disk-cloning "method" is "abnormal" for this purpose?
Anna

I was just under the impression that a disk *cloning* program was intended
to make the destination *drive* identical to the source *drive* (and not
just a partition), so that you could pull the destination drive out, and
swap it with the (bad) source drive.

And in my case, I can't really do that at the drive level, since my 250 GB
source drive consists of several partitions, and I always ONLY backup the C:
40 GB partition to a much smaller destination drive (80 GB in total) in the
external USB enclosure. So I never can (nor do I want to, anyways) clone
the entire 250 GB source drive completely over to the destination drive in
the external USB enclosure. Nor do I want the other half of that 80 GB
destination drive touched during my backup operation (but I guess it won't
be, from what your saying, as long as I simply elect to do a partition to
partition cloning operation).

So as you said above, Casper can apparently also do JUST do a
partition-to-partition copy (like BootItNG, for example, running in
Maintenance Mode, for partition copying operations). OK then.

So in summary, I guess if we view *cloning* as a partition-to-partition copy
operation, and not necessarily a *drive-to-drive* copy operation, then I
guess there is no real practical difference here, EXCEPT that, of course, if
one uses *imaging*, one cannot ever bootup that backup drive, of course.

Anyway, maybe I've got it straight by now. (if not, pse let me know).

Thanks,
Bill


.

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