Does TI image/restore the boot sector?

Hello,

I'm asking this question due to the activation/reactivation required by such programs as Photoshop CS (of which I am a registered user).

If I image and restore a drive which contains the Photoshop CS application, Photoshop requires me to go through the reactivation process. Adobe techs tell me that the only way to avoid that is to use an imaging program that images and restores the boot sector of the drive, along with everything else. Is there a way to get True Image to include this "boot sector" in the image that it creates and restores?

Thanks,

Nick

 

TrueImage will restore the MBR/BootSector if the image taken contains it. Image your entire HDD and you will be good to go!

 

Hey, thanks for the info and the quick reply, Mike! I think I had previously just imaged the C: partition, without specifying the whole disk. There's another (FAT 16) partition on that disk, which hopefully contains the MBR/boot sector. (This is a Dell machine, so I had nothing to do with setting it up.) If this works, it'll make my life easier.

Thanks again,

Nick

 

The MBR is not contained within any partition on your drive. The MBR is located on the first sector of the hard drive and it contains the partition table for the hard drive. (up to 4 primary partitions)

If what you backed up is just a partition, then the image is not going to contain the MBR and in effect, the partition table. Consider this analogy. You went to taco bell and got a bag of stuff. You took out one taco and put it in the fridge. By looking at that taco, can you determine what else was in the bag?

 

OK, good analogy, I guess. I'm kinda new to this stuff, which is why I bought TI.

The only problem I've had is trying to restore an image which has programs that require "activation". More and more programs are requiring it. I don't have a problem with the concept of activation, but in practice it can be a pain in the butt, like when you build a new computer and try to restore from an image of your previous computer and have to reactivate a half dozen programs.

BTW, if you're eating at Taco Bell regularly, I wish you luck.

 

It's OK. I'm a pro!