Help Needed using Drive Snapshot

Graham.

Probably a stupid question, but I am still trying to understand these DS differentials. I have taken a full image, and then a differential. If I want to do another up to date differential, does that mean I just overwrite the first one, or is there a need to create a new one? Or, maybe I need to delete the first one! As I understand it, unlike incrementals, only one differential should be needed to restore, along with the original full image.
Thanks again.

ken

 

I'm not sure that I've made it quite clear.....or if I've misunderstood what you are saying. Let me just recap:

With DS, you make a differential image which contains all of the changes since the last full image was made. Each differential is independent of the rest and you only need one differential plus the full image to restore. If you want to, you can delete any or all of the other differentials without a problem.

There's no real need to combine the differential with the full image as you only have the two files but, if you wanted to, then you just need to restore the differential and then save another full image .

The way I read what you were saying about SP made it seem as though the incrementals would be combined into the main image but you could still restore to any of the incrementals as they previously existed. I'm not sure if you can do that (can you, Pete?).

Sorry if I've got this wrong.

Graham

 

Hopefully, my post to Easter may have thrown some light on it . When you have your full image and differential it is entirely up to you as to whether you overwrite the differential with the new one or keep a few of them along the way and just delete them when you want a clear-out. There's no need to create a new one but you may find it useful to have more than one and, you're right, you only need the full image and one differential to restore.

Graham

 

THANK YOU!!

All this lingo about incrementals, differentials and the like sometimes borders on confusing as nearly as Paragon's Cyclic backups to partition capsules etc. when you're trying to nail down just what these terms stand for and what they do exactly.

That reply in a nutshell at least clears the air on the differences between the two and especially what the exact DriveSnapshot functions for differentials are meant to do.

Regards EASTER (PS. This is a new science compared to malware research) Many thanks again.

 

The best consolation over having to distinquish between all these terms and their purposes, is that at least the end results for the most part are very good and reliable.

I only today tinkered with making a Paragon (FAT 16) partition Capsule, and it went off without a hitch. Everything worked perfectly thank goodness, i don't know about you guys, but i always hold my breath untill the activity is proven complete.

I'm getting better at leaving the workstation for long periods during imaging & restores where before i didn't dare miss a moment of every tick of the timer.

During all that, doubts in my mind always used to reach an apex. Guess i can have more faith in this technology now that more information is available to both developer and customer regarding these routines. The latest improvements in this technology is grown infinitely better than experiences in the past.
And yes, backups should always be routine now i've learned, because if something can go wrong, you can bet that it will, and at the worse of times, right when you are in the middle of something important

 

Yes Graham. That is EXACTLY the info I needed, and has clarified the whole thing. Many thanks.

Ken

 

Still thinking........

If I have a full image, and then delete something from the system (like a large program) the full image obviously still has that program in it. How does the differential take account of this when doing a restore, and know NOT to include that program in the restore?

Thanks again for your time.

Ken

 

Magic. But it does know.

 

Magic is right I think

 

The differential will have the map of the drive in its current form and will mark those sectors as unused that were previously used in the full image. Anything that has changed since the full image was made will be recorded in the differential. This is why defragging can/will have an impact on the size of differentials as stuff gets moved around the drive and all those changes will need to be in the differential.

But, yes, 'magic' just about covers it .

Graham

 

Ok Graham. That answers the question exactly. Thankyou. I will continue trying to "break" DS, but I am sure better people have tried..........and failed... Incidentally, ...have YOU ever managed to break it? ie. Has it ever let you down in any way?
Many thanks for introducing it to me and I am sure many others.

Ken

 

Glad you like it . No, I've never broken it. I've certainly thrashed it in different ways over the years but it just carries on doing the job.

Graham