best paid backup and recovery software

Discussion in 'backup, imaging & disk mgmt' started by ams963, May 18, 2011.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. ellison64

    ellison64 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2003
    Posts:
    2,587
    Thanks..
    Do you know what Active@DiskImage 5 policy is?.I've just download a trial ,but wont install until I know what their activation policy is.
    ellison
     
  2. napoleon1815

    napoleon1815 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Sep 9, 2010
    Posts:
    734
    Sorry, no...that's one of the tools I haven't tried. There are a few Active@ users on here who I am sure can assist you.
     
  3. MerleOne

    MerleOne Registered Member

    Joined:
    Mar 6, 2006
    Posts:
    1,336
    Location:
    France
    Just a regular license key, no online activation. But for each minor update, the license key changes (or may change) and is sent to you registrated e-mail address. Major version updates cost are quite reasonable.
     
  4. napoleon1815

    napoleon1815 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Sep 9, 2010
    Posts:
    734
    Thanks...good to know. I keep meaning to check it out...looks really good and everyone seems to like the boot CD.
     
  5. ellison64

    ellison64 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Oct 5, 2003
    Posts:
    2,587
    Thanks...
    I think ill trial this one in that case :)
     
  6. twl845

    twl845 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Apr 12, 2005
    Posts:
    4,186
    Location:
    USA
    After trialing Active@Disk Image for 3 days I purchased it. Nice! :)
     
  7. zfactor

    zfactor Registered Member

    Joined:
    Mar 10, 2005
    Posts:
    6,102
    Location:
    on my zx10-r
    really they change the key every time a minor update is released with active@o_O that kind of sucks imo especially for people like my mom who i set up and have it ready for her she is in a different state from me so i cant do that easily for her and would have to talk her through it each time as well as many of my older less pc knowledgeable clients... i just bought it and own 3 copies now and was going to get it for my mother to use but may have to rethink it now. i need something i can install and forget..
     
  8. twl845

    twl845 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Apr 12, 2005
    Posts:
    4,186
    Location:
    USA
    If I'm not mistaken, Sandboxie started doing that a while ago. I understand the reason was to keep the software from being pirated.
     
  9. MerleOne

    MerleOne Registered Member

    Joined:
    Mar 6, 2006
    Posts:
    1,336
    Location:
    France
    I am not 100% sure the key changes for minor versions. It did change for Active@Filerecovery Pro. I know that when a new version is released, I just apply the license key provided with the download link and it works.
     
  10. zfactor

    zfactor Registered Member

    Joined:
    Mar 10, 2005
    Posts:
    6,102
    Location:
    on my zx10-r
    for me that is 100% fine but for people who are not very knowledgeable or business' etc that can get to be a real pain in the neck imo. i fully appreciate the full version key changes but for minor versions to me is a bit much.
     
  11. claykin

    claykin Registered Member

    Joined:
    Sep 30, 2007
    Posts:
    132
    I'm a paid Sandboxie user and have installed several updates over the last 18 months. Has never asked me to re-register. I have V3.56 installed currently and it shows registered and activated.
     
  12. twl845

    twl845 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Apr 12, 2005
    Posts:
    4,186
    Location:
    USA
    Maybe Sandboxie never went through with it, but that was the plan. I stopped using it for that reason.
     
  13. sk7v2

    sk7v2 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jan 31, 2011
    Posts:
    13
    Location:
    USA
    The new scheme uses an activation key. You can use one activation key for all home computers. It silently re-activates every six months. Tzuk was very tired of the blatant piracy.
     
  14. claykin

    claykin Registered Member

    Joined:
    Sep 30, 2007
    Posts:
    132
  15. sk7v2

    sk7v2 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jan 31, 2011
    Posts:
    13
    Location:
    USA
    Anyone with a valid key would not notice a change. Valid old keys are checked by the activation server & activated. The scheme is pretty lenient while allowing Tzuk to blacklist keys that have been distributed.
     
  16. twl845

    twl845 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Apr 12, 2005
    Posts:
    4,186
    Location:
    USA
    That's much better. It was explained to me back then that you would get a new activation key each time. Thanks for the update. :)
     
  17. The Seeker

    The Seeker Registered Member

    Joined:
    Oct 24, 2005
    Posts:
    1,338
    Location:
    Adelaide
    How anyone could pirate software from a one man operation I'll never know.
     
  18. mango

    mango Registered Member

    Joined:
    Sep 9, 2004
    Posts:
    88
    Ive used acronis true image and been satisfied with it, until the latest builds.

    Week ago was doing a restore on a tablet from bootable usb.

    Let it run and restarted when it finished. The tablet stopped on the hp logo and the text "press esc key for startup menu". No way into bios, recovery, boot order etc. The caps lock diod error code was motherboard failure.

    Removed the drive now got into bios and set usb to first boot and booted arconis.
    Inserted drive again and did the exact same restore, now it booted from the drive again.

    Nothing like having an expensive pc turn into a brick then working again in a couple of hours.
     
  19. BackupBob

    BackupBob Registered Member

    Joined:
    Mar 24, 2008
    Posts:
    1
    I have used Acronis for years. It does everything I want and then some, when it works.

    The problem is that it doesn't seem to work any more. True Image Home 11 has created backups that cannot restore, it has failed trying to back up a temp ~ file that I cannot find, and it takes a day or longer to back up perhaps 50 gig from a NAS device.

    I have been fighting with Acronis for months over the problems. Tech Support is limited. It can take weeks to get a reply from someone overseas who does not seem to understand what I have written. Their on-line forum offers fixes with new builds but the fixes don't seem to work.

    I have a paid license that, according to the software and to Acronis' Website, is good for over 190 more days. This weekend my jobs failed with an error telling me my trial period has expired. I opened a ticket with Tech Support.

    They replied within two days. I received a very nice tutorial on how trial copies have limited features and are only good for a fixed period of time. The tech never noticed that I had been using the product for six months, or that the failure occurred after I attempted to search for updates.

    Backup software should run in the background without constant attention, once you get it set up. I am really tired of fighting Acronis all the time.

    Since my "trial" license has expired I have no backup protection and I plan to ask for a refund of the $57.98 I paid them. I am now looking for a replacement product. I see that Macrium Reflect gets a lot of good comments so I will start by downloading a trial of that product.

    Paragon looked promising but a number of reviews told of problems with it. Storage Craft's Shadow Protect is just too expensive per machine.

    Any other product suggestions will be greatly appreciated. I don't mind paying for the product. I just want it to work reliably.
     
  20. TheKid7

    TheKid7 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jul 22, 2006
    Posts:
    3,571
    I use Image for Windows/Image for DOS/Image for Linux and am happy with them. In the Terabyte license agreement, it says that for 'home use', they may be used on three computers for one license purchase.
     
  21. claykin

    claykin Registered Member

    Joined:
    Sep 30, 2007
    Posts:
    132
    Image for Windows is great, but if you are looking for a layman "set it and forget it" solution, you may be disappointed. I'm seriously hoping that V3, whenever that may come, will bring help for end users who just want to be users and not script writers.

    Macrium does work. I was very critical of their haphazard support. Seems that some users who required support love or dislike them. At the end of the day its a bargain for what it does and its reliable.

    Storagecraft Shadowprotect is kind of the king of the hill. Not that its perfect, but it offers a lot of options, especially for Enterprise users. Its also very reliable and the recovery CD is awesome.

    Another good solution is Symantec Backup Exec System Recovery (now called Symantec System Recovery). Its a big install (and very bloated IMO), but I must say it works and the recovery environment is fairly good and easy to use. http://www.symantec.com/business/system-recovery-desktop-edition

    Honestly, from my perspective, I would pass on the other offerings.
     
  22. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

    Joined:
    Jan 28, 2005
    Posts:
    12,115
    Location:
    NSW, Australia
    I don't envy the plight of newcomers to image/restore apps. Windows7 usually has a 100 MB System Reserved partition which can make life difficult when restoring images. I've written a list of terms which people will come across when using these apps. No wonder newcomers make mistakes when there is so much to understand.

    Active partition, Boot partition, System partition, Hidden partition, Partition type, Master Boot Record, First Track, Disk Signature, boot sector, boot.ini, booting files, Drive Letters, System Reserved Partition, BCD Edit, Unallocated Space, partition without a drive letter, Resize partition, Partition Sector Offset, Partition Alignment, Verify, Validate, Image, Recovery point, Clone, IDE cable, Jumpers, SmartSector Copying, AES encryption, Compression, Custom CD, booting from a CD, SATA/AHCI drivers, network card drivers,
     
  23. wat0114

    wat0114 Guest

    Just try before you buy, whatever you do, because despite the terrific track record of ShadowProtect (my favorite by far) this could happen to you or similarly with IFW/IFL/IFD, this could happen to you. The same, of course, goes with other products.
     
  24. claykin

    claykin Registered Member

    Joined:
    Sep 30, 2007
    Posts:
    132
    I hear ya and I'm sure some layman users can be duped by imaging apps that don't prompt accordingly.

    Those terms are all very well known to me, yet I don't want to be forced to write and test scripts to make a job run. i.e.

    -full/differential backup job set run on a schedule
    -maintaining retention and deletion of old backup sets
    -email confirmations sent to one or more email accounts confirming success/fail (without having to place my account credentials as clear text in a script!)
    -and copying the successful (only) jobs to a secondary location (without having to place user account credentials in a script as plain text). Secondary location possibly offsite.

    Seems to be too much of a problem for IFW. Not just one of these requests, but most of them!

    I can do all of these with Shadowprotect, Symantec or Macrium. And its not hard to recover a Win7 boot partition with the reserved partition. Even a Truecrypt partitions isn't hard.

    What's hard is the way IFW handles automation.

    That said, I want to be clear that IFW is a solid/reliable imaging app.
     
    Last edited: Aug 22, 2011
  25. wat0114

    wat0114 Guest

    Well, um, I wish I could say the same :(

    I can say for certainty IFL has been very good.
     
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.