Drive Snap: Drive Snapshot Frontend

Discussion in 'backup, imaging & disk mgmt' started by markymoo, May 5, 2008.

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  1. osip

    osip Registered Member

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    Yeah, understandable, and probably the angel is an exaggerated overkill with FDISR on board. IFW/IFD or DS together with FDISR are my bottomline ...
     
  2. markymoo

    markymoo Registered Member

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    @Brian K

    If you disable your floppy drive in the BIOS. Using NTFSDOS your D will show as C the same as in Windows. Also when you boot off a USB stick that becomes C. You also got to take into consideration if you got other system drives that are still bootable. ie. A second hard drive with a primary bootable drive that you not aware of is still bootable, having an old Windows on in the past. It will be given a earlier driver letter than a secondary partition on the 1st drive. You format it but the MBR is still there and active. That's why the drive letter's can become screwed up and good idea to wipe the MBR for a data drive.

    btw whatever happened to your dos system restore from a hidden partition you was developing using TBOSDT?
     
    Last edited: May 8, 2008
  3. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    I still don't understand my drive letters in VistaPE. They aren't following the sequence you posted.

    My only primary NTFS partitions are the C: and the hidden partition. The remainder are logical volumes and the ones on the second HD are being assigned drive letters before those on the first HD. I do have three hidden FAT primary partitions but I don't think they are showing in VistaPE. My partitions aren't simple.

    As you mentioned, drive letters on another persons computer is going to be a big problem in your creating an automatic restore CD for them. I can't think of a solution for everyone. Good luck.

    I've sorted that out. First you need a DOS partition. eg 8 MB is all you need but it works with larger partitions. TBOSDT can "copy" this partition and converts it into a bootable file. At this stage you can delete the DOS partition. This file can be edited in UltraISO and your batch files added. When you run the file from Windows it restarts the computer and alters the MBR so the file boots into DOS. The first thing that happens in DOS is the MBR is reset to the original so Windows will boot at the end of the restore. Then your batch file runs to restore your image and the computer restarts.

    It works with Snapshot, IFD and Ghost 2003.
     
    Last edited: May 8, 2008
  4. markymoo

    markymoo Registered Member

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    Yes but you enlightened us to excluding FDISR archives with Drive Snap and Drive Snapshot, Yet having a smaller system partition and restoring a small image can be very fast on a decent pc and you got to ask is there any point having FDISR archives taking up lots of GB of space on the system partition, meaning longer time to back up and a bigger image and the risk of it going down and you got to back it up anyway so no better off but worse off. If you use Eaz-Fix you suffer from alot fragmentation. I put up with it but and had image backups as a failsafe. In the end a small system partition that can be defragmented fast and can be imaged fast with a automated fast restore is much less grief. A small partition under 50Gb is the way to go and just use daily differential backups. If you have alot software to install you install it on a D partition and don't fill up the system partition past 70%.

    which is what i said happens. logical drives take priority over others because they used to be primary as the MBR still has that info. you will have a RAM disk of C in VistaPe no doubt too. i tell you why it's weird Vista and XP assign letters in different ways. DOS is like the XP way. I think if you make a BartPE disk you find it have some sense to it. There also a bug with Vista and XP dual boot. You boot into Vista and all your system restores from XP are deleted.

    I don't have to be concerned about VistaPe. The ones to concern about is the O/S you in and how it is in DOS ensuring the USB is unplugged. A recovery adds a RAM drive.
     
    Last edited: May 8, 2008
  5. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    Yes, a DOS restore CD would be easier to make. Less drive letter confusion.

    There is a good TeraByte video on this. If WinXP sees the Vista partition when WinXP is booted, the Vista restore points are deleted. The solution is to have the Vista partition hidden from WinXP when WinXP is booted.
     
  6. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    markymoo,

    As a rule of thumb, NTFS drive letters in DOS are one up from WinXP. So if it's E: drive in WinXP, it's F: drive in DOS. Unless you have jumbled letters like mine. But DOS starts from the first NTFS partition and calls it D: drive, the second is called E: drive, etc. So if you know the partition number, you should be able to work out the DOS drive letter.

    Do you think you will be able to create a Snapshot DOS recovery CD that all (most) people will be able to use for an automated restore?
     
  7. markymoo

    markymoo Registered Member

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    @Brian K

    Yes it was me that mentioned it, i just haven't got round it yet fully. Where there's a will there's a way. It seems most are really mainly bothered about a dos restore. Thank you for that. I told you to turn off your A drive in the BIOS and you find your C drive in NTFSDOS is the same C as it is in Windows. What drive letter is your image drive in Windows and in DOS?

    I just fixed some bugs and written a help file and was doing the BartPE plugins give us chance.

    On another note making differentials with Drive Snap is such a breeze.
     
  8. osip

    osip Registered Member

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    the advantage which I was thinking off is when you have a lot of FDISR snapshots in system drive with the result of big images, using excludes means that you´re ripping down sys drive with the working snapshot to a small compressed ordinary .sna file without MBR problems...Then, with archives on other place you can restore every single excluded snapshot from the archives and be back in business...and to have a small image with this possibilty is´nt bad....Think I have to test it...
     
  9. markymoo

    markymoo Registered Member

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    @Brian K

    What is it for you that you can do in VistaPe that you can't do in BartPe? Is it hardware detection? or do you find it easier to make a VistaPe?
     
  10. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    Hey, I don't want to do that. Too "much" work. I'm happy with the C: drive being D: drive in DOS.

    My backup images are in F: drive in Windows and J: drive in DOS. It's no big deal as you know. You just need to sort out the drive letter before you write the restore batch file.
     
  11. markymoo

    markymoo Registered Member

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    yes i was just making a point they be the same as they were all jiggled with VistaPE and that as we said before the system partition you boot up in windows will always be C in dos just claims it as D in NTFSDOS because of A even if you force it to use C it still wont even with /L:C

    Yes but i was just wondering what sort of setup you got there on the reasons i discussed why you drive letter is 4 letters along even using NTFSDOS. Is that with the USB drive as well? The only reason it be like that is some logical are being seen as Primary due to info in the MBR still.

    Yes that is one solution if you use FDISR that is a good way. I was saying that restoring a small partition is less hassle for me and do away with any type of FDISR recovery solution(what's the word...) and keep all the installation software on another partititon. You setup XP so it installs Program Files to D. So when you install software it automatically installs to D:\Program Files keeping the system partition small. If the system goes down i just got 1 image to put back not have to mess with archives etc. If i deleted your Program Files you wouldnt lose any personal data. It can all be replaced.

    On your plan you remove the FDISR $ISR archives breaking down the image size but you got to have another solution to backup the $ISR which you use FDISR for then it becomes a waste of time having the $ISR on in a serious disaster as you need an image to restore anyways. You might as well have a good regular image solution it less hassle as it can be restored back on in 20 mins or less depending. You take daily differentials which dont take up much space for the different changes and can restore to anyone of the differential days. i think you should just perfect one instead of using 2 backup ways.
     
    Last edited: May 8, 2008
  12. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    Here are my drive letters...

    Only the first two are primary partitions. The final five are logical volumes. It seems ALL NTFS partitions, even hidden NTFS partitions, are given a drive letter.

    No USB stick was attached.
     
  13. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    Does anyone want instructions on how I make an automatic Snapshot restore floppy/CD? It's not easy.
     
  14. markymoo

    markymoo Registered Member

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    @Brian K

    If it anything out of the ordinary then you may be loading a CD-Rom driver or device driver in you dos disk or have logical that are really Primary.

    http://support.microsoft.com/kb/51978
     
  15. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    Neither of my CD drives have a drive letter in DOS.

    I've used ntfsdos.exe on several computers and it always does this. WinXP is D: drive and subsequent NTFS drives (in physical order on the disc, nothing to do with primary or logical) are E: F: G: H: etc.
     
  16. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    http://support.microsoft.com/kb/51978

    This applies to FAT partitions, not NTFS. Microsoft DOS can't see NTFS partitions without the addition of ntfsdos.exe. It's not DOS that is assigning the NTFS drive letters. It's ntfsdos.exe.
     
  17. markymoo

    markymoo Registered Member

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    that's the way. you will notice in IFD you see partititons listed and they letters in order. so no worries.

    sure but i was giving you info on how DOS accesses partitions. NTFSDOS mounts NTFS and reads the BIOS and the partition number so it ALL not a problem. i was just elaborating for you that the drive letter isn't a big deal. you can assign a drive letter to any physical drive or partition.
     
    Last edited: May 8, 2008
  18. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    IFD is easy. It doesn't use drive letters.

    When you look at the ntfsdos.exe drive letters and their partition numbers it all makes sense. For example ntfsdos may say...

    Mounting NTFS partition(0x81:1) as drive: G

    This is the first partition on the second HD and may be F: in Windows but it's G: in DOS. When you look it's easy to sort it out.
     
  19. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    I think it is a big deal in trying to make a recovery CD to suit many people. Their drive letters in DOS are likely to be different from their mate's drive letters.
     
  20. markymoo

    markymoo Registered Member

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    @Brian K

    It's a big deal on that but i mentioned IFD about getting the drive number and partition by the number. Let's say you have the SATA cables mixed up and your boot drive is drive 1 but you can change the boot priority in the BIOS so drive 1 becomes the boot drive it will become C. Whatever drive has the boot info becomes C or you wouldn't be able to boot up Windows. You load up Windows and your boot drive is displayed as 1 not 0 in drive software. If i make 2 primary partitions wether it's 2 drives or 2 partititons and use NTFSDOS and use your scenario they will be always D and E no matter what. If you have your images on L and i don't know where they are i can still find them. I haven't shared everything in mind so forgive me.
     
    Last edited: May 9, 2008
  21. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    No problem markymoo.
     
  22. Kaupp

    Kaupp Registered Member

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    @markymoo

    I'm just wondering are you going to do anything about 120 DPI?

    regards
     
  23. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    markymoo,

    You did give me good answers even though you were sleep deprived. I can't do that. Yes, let's keep to the thread topic.
     
  24. osip

    osip Registered Member

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    well,markymoo, there´s difference in FDISR snapshots and archives, that´s the main importance (I´m here talking about the great discontinued FDISR classic) ...Compressed .arx archives you can export or store wherever you wish. Snapshots are regular system copies under $ISR on system drive...Most ppl use primary snapshot with a small secondary snapshot to keep images in acceptable size. Others have more snapshots and archives in addition to that on other drive. In this case an image could be huge...On the other hand it´s enough to have one small image with FDISR installed to be able to get back in business with access to archives on other drive.
    Using Drive snap exclude could be an easy way to image working snapshot in even more compressed way than FDISR:s own compressed .arx archive,...Also,in this way by using BartPe restore, you have a working system image with FDISR in it ready to restore archives when booting to win...and the sys image will be in a small size. If you already have a small sys image with FDISR this is probably too much huzzle, that´s all you need even if the image is old...It´s enough with one working image to get back...Using drivesnap would be a current image in .sna and also storable on whatever media DVD included...Needed or not is up to the user I just see some extra options...
     
  25. markymoo

    markymoo Registered Member

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    i had a few other priorities in line with it and as the demand for DPI 120 is low it won't be soon. i see what i can do.

    @osipi

    using the exclude sure sounds a way to cut down the image size but i thought if you exclude $ISR and took an image of C then FDISR won't work as it needs that folder. correct me if i'm wrong it's been quite awhile using FDISR. i think what you got planned using FDISR and Drive Snap sounds good. i think with you being a regular user of FDISR you can answer that better than i.
     
    Last edited: May 9, 2008
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