Full Backup

Just installed True Image 9.0. I'd like to clone the primary(C) drive to an external hard drive. The external drive would then be disconnected from the pc and used only as an emergency backup of the entire primary drive, including the system files.

From what I have read in the forums, tellas me that when the primary drive is cloned, the drive is basically erased.

Is there any way that I can accomplish the cloning without destroying the primary drive data.

Thanks for any help.

Moldy1

 

I've never cloned, but I think the erasing of the source is a selectable option. You decide if you want to keep the source drive intact or not.

 

My understanding as well. Anybody who clones a drive and requests the source be deleted before checking the clone deserves whatever misfortune falls upon their system.

 

I totally agree with you, however not all users are proficient nor aware of the consequences. They have total faith in the new software that they have purchased and blindly go ahead with the process.

Reading through some of the posts where new users have come to grief, because of that option, suggests to me that it would be in Acronis best interests to remove it. A bad experience with cloning is not a good advertisement for the product.

 

And I agree with you . For safety's sake it seems the command should be on its own, not a selectable part of the cloning process. If the user is reading the screen the information is provided but as you say if they think it is going to work then they wouldn't worry about deleting the data. As a minimum there should be a big warning advising not to delete the data until the clone is tested but this begs the question, why is there an option given if it shouldn't be used.

I think it would be better if at the end of a successful clone the user is told that the original drive can be stored as a backup or it can be wiped after the clone is tested using the "WipeDisk" command after the clone is tested.

Maybe give an option on this informative screen that will change the volume label to "DisktoWipe" so it can be easily identified. Wouldn't want to wipe the wrong disk after all that work!

 

Cloning is normally used when you decide to swap to a new disk and you want to copy all the information, including your OS onto that new disk.

To use a clone for an emergency is a good idea but you should keep in mind that it will be well out of date unless the emergency occurs within a week of creating the clone.

I would suggest that you back up your current disk in the form of an image and store it on your external disk. That way you can constantly update it in the form of increments or differentials. The images do not take up that much space and consequently you can utilise more of the external disk.

I would also suggest that you buy yourself a cheap disk off eBay and use it to restore the image to that disk. This you can do periodically. That way, not only have you got a disk for that unforseen emergency, but it is almost up to date and you also know that your image can be restored successfully. (Sometimes, a verified image does not restore correctly).
I just restored an 80GB, three partition, disk image to a 20GB one and it works perfectly. (You can restore to a smaller disk as long as the used space on the original is less than the size of the small hard disk).

 

Thanks Eveybody,

I guess that I will leave well enough alone.

Moldy1

 

Hello Moldy1,

Thank you for choosing Acronis Disk Backup Software.

Please note that there are two approaches available:

Clone Disk - transfers the entire contents of one disk drive to another;

Backup - creates a special archive file for backup and disaster recovery purposes;

Please read more in this FAQ article.

Actually, Clone Disk approach is usually used to upgrade the hard drive (e.g. install a larger disk), while Backup approach is basically dedicated for the complete data backup and disaster recovery purposes.

Since you are interested in backing up your hard drive for the disaster recovery purposes, I would recommend you to follow Backup approach.

If you prefer to follow Clone Disk approach, please note that it's impossible to clone only system partition to another hard drive. You can clone the entire hard drive only.

I would like to add that when you clone your hard drive in Automatic mode, the data on the source hard drive is not deleted by default.

If you clone your hard drive in Manual mode, the program will ask you what to do with the old disk:
- Create a new partition layout – All existing partitions and their data will be deleted (but they will also be cloned to the new disk, so you won’t lose them);
- Keep data – leave the old disk partitions and data intact;
- Destroy data – destroy all data on the old disk.

Please remember that in order to clone your Windows system to a different hardware, you should first prepare Windows using Microsoft System Preparation Tool (Sysprep) http://www.acronis.com/homecomputing/products/trueimage/faq.html#30

Please also note that we recommend you to unplug one of the hard drives right after the disk cloning process has been finished, since keeping both original and cloned hard drives connected might cause different boot or drive letter assignment problems.

You can also find more information on how to use Acronis True Image 9.0 in the respective User's Guide.

Thank you.
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Tatyana Tsyngaeva