include empty partition in full back up ?

Discussion in 'Acronis True Image Product Line' started by redmike, Apr 8, 2005.

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  1. redmike

    redmike Registered Member

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    "There is also a two-step method for writing to DVDs. Acronis True Image 8.0 can create an image of the hard disk as a single file on the hard disk itself, and then you can copy the file using your own DVD-writing software to the DVD. We recommend you to set the image archive splitting size to 2,000 MBytes on the Image Archive Splitting screen, as generally the maximum size of a file stored on DVD is 2 GBytes. The Acronis rescue disk will also be able to restore this file from the DVD if necessary."

    I followed the above advice and have the backed up and verified the segments on my hard disk.

    Questions ..

    All MS programs are on C
    Other programs are on F
    Data is on G
    D was empty but now contains the back up files.

    I didn't include the D partition in the full back up because it was the drive that I was going to back up to. My concern is that if I do ever do a full restore will there be confusion because the D partition wasn't included in the original back up ?

    Where to store the information ?

    I had intended to buy an external DVD drive but it seems that this would be very hit and miss and not the best thing to do. If I install and internal DVD burner would that be a very safe way to go ?

    I don't have a dvd burner and don't need another hard drive unless it's to store the back up so the above would be a "comfortable" solution :)

    In the event of a system crash would I simply (given all the possible things that could go wrong) put the recovery disc into the drive, boot up and copy from the internal DVD burner to the hard drive ?

    thanks for all the help !

    Mike

    Windows XP SP2
     
  2. Acronis Support

    Acronis Support Acronis Support Staff

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    Hello redmike,

    Thank you for your interest in Acronis Disk Imaging Backup software.

    The image file(s) can be stored on CDs, on DVDs, on a local/network drive or on an external drive. After booting from the rescue CD you will need to point to the location of your image archive and proceed with the restore procedure.

    The only limitation is that you cannot restore an image to the same drive it is stored on.

    Thank you.
    --
    Irina Shirokova
     
    Last edited: Apr 8, 2005
  3. redmike

    redmike Registered Member

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    thanks, I've now read so much about CDs; local network drives and DVDs in the last few days and the various problems involved that your comment above now leaves me completely confused or perhaps I should say that I feel like I've "lost the thread" as we say in English o_O

    Do the various problems of backing up and restoring from DVD only occur when one backs up directly from the hard drive to a DVD ?

    That is to say (as I read it above) that if I first back up to a partition on my hard drive, then afterwards I can use any system (including an external USB DVD) to make my safety copy and just get Nero or whatever to do a compare/check ?

    I would be quite happy to always back up first to a partition and then copy it - all I want is a clone somewhere that I can go back to if my system falls down.

    regards,

    Mike
     
  4. MiniMax

    MiniMax Registered Member

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    Hi Mike - I am not sure, but you might encounter a small problem with that backup if you ever need to do a "bare-metal" restore. As I understand it, selecting multiple partitions for imaging (as opposed to selecting the whole physical disk) means that the all-important Master Boot Record (MBR) on the disk is not included in the image. This means, that if you ever need to restore the image onto a blank disk, the MBR will be missing and you will not be able to boot from the disk. It is fixable, but it is something to be aware of.

    I understand you concern about imaging the same disk that you are writing the images to, but I do not believe it is a problem for True Image. As I understand it, TI will - at the very start of the imaging process - activate a special HD driver extension (I think it is called a filter driver) that intercepts and monitors all write operations to the disk. I am not sure of the details, but the effect is that TI is presented with a consistent, non-changing view of disk during the imaging process, even though it itself have been writing gigabytes of TIB data to the drive. So when you later explorer the image, the D partition will be there - but empty, exactly as it was when you started the imaging process.

    At least that is how I think it works. I will leave it to you to verify it :)
    I would not say "only occur", but it certainly seems to be the most frequent case.
    Yep! Although I recommend this method which mentioned in a different thread:
    1. Before burning the TIB-files to DVD, create a checksum listing of the TIB-files.
    2. Include the checksum listing on each DVD you burn (it is only 100-200 bytes in size). Consider including the checksum program itself on the DVD (50 KB).
    3. After burning to DVD, recalculate the checksums from the TIB-files on the DVD and verify them against the saved listing.
     
  5. redmike

    redmike Registered Member

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    I believe I found the the thread and read through the "method" but the there is almost no info given with the file md5sum.exe which is what I downloaded. I put it on the C drive and tried to combine what little info they give with what you wrote but couldn't really understand the "method". This is largely attributable to my lack of experience both in dos and with "checksums" etc.

    I will have my files on my "d' drive in a folder called acronis bu - the dvd which I don't have will probably be on H ..

    If you would write a sort of "checksum for idiots" type of explanation I'd much appreciate it.

    Mike
     
  6. ratcheer

    ratcheer Registered Member

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  7. redmike

    redmike Registered Member

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    thanks, it's definitely more user friendly - once you can figure out how to download it - I got taken to T-shirt sales etc first :)

     
  8. redmike

    redmike Registered Member

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    I just ran the program on two of my drives (just to learn about it) and it created a long lists - had no choice but to check "recursive" as without it nothing was available for the program to work on.

    So will the program check one list against another ?

    The DVD list against the TBI files ?

    I couldn't see a "total" list or anything similar when I opened the md5 file in a text editor. Obviously (I hope) one doesn't have to check them manually :)

    My files are in a "safe zone" which I guess was a mistake as the program can't see into it - ah well - all a learning process.

    thanks,

    Mike
     
  9. MiniMax

    MiniMax Registered Member

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    Create a list of MD5 checksum for your images:

    Code:
    H:\Documents and Settings\MiniMax
    H:> cd /d O:\Images
    
    O:\Images
    O:> md5sum *.tib
    e495d86de22d2e13cb71c844c2e00b9a *Maxtor intern1.tib
    71d266ecc7d2700d821c32f9c6d9467e *Maxtor intern2.tib
    f1297c72b344ec9cc1bb54fb020d28fb *Maxtor intern3.tib
    6fd3af51d6c66e5b2576923dc5ae7bec *Maxtor intern4.tib
    9c3caecc2da67d7435e843d4b16f4bd7 *Maxtor intern5.tib
    744e28eb2c3600cf1f9f8cb1a8d6b4e7 *Maxtor intern6.tib
    02ffb1fd548bfdb198ad5561e5209966 *Maxtor intern7.tib
    6989050ab07599c1d3de4fbcb939ed52 *Maxtor intern8.tib
    Having the list on the screen is nice, but not very useful ;) Instead, redirect the output from md5sum to a file:
    Code:
    O:\Images
    O:> md5sum *.tib > Maxtor.md5
    
    O:\Images
    O:>type Maxtor.md5
    e495d86de22d2e13cb71c844c2e00b9a *Maxtor intern1.tib
    71d266ecc7d2700d821c32f9c6d9467e *Maxtor intern2.tib
    f1297c72b344ec9cc1bb54fb020d28fb *Maxtor intern3.tib
    6fd3af51d6c66e5b2576923dc5ae7bec *Maxtor intern4.tib
    9c3caecc2da67d7435e843d4b16f4bd7 *Maxtor intern5.tib
    744e28eb2c3600cf1f9f8cb1a8d6b4e7 *Maxtor intern6.tib
    02ffb1fd548bfdb198ad5561e5209966 *Maxtor intern7.tib
    6989050ab07599c1d3de4fbcb939ed52 *Maxtor intern8.tib
    Copy your images, the md5sum program, and the checksum listing to DVD(s).

    To check the images after the copy, switch to the DVD, and use the --check option:
    Code:
    O:\Images
    O:> R:
    
    R:\
    R:> md5sum --check Maxtor.md5
    Maxtor intern1.tib: OK
    Maxtor intern2.tib: OK
    Maxtor intern3.tib: OK
    Maxtor intern4.tib: OK
    Maxtor intern5.tib: OK
    Maxtor intern6.tib: OK
    Maxtor intern7.tib: OK
    Maxtor intern8.tib: OK
    
    R:\
    R:>
    If one of copied images were damaged in transit, the program will show this as:
    Code:
    O:\Images
    O:> R:
    
    R:\
    R:> md5sum --check Maxtor.md5
    Maxtor intern1.tib: FAILED
    ...
     
  10. Menorcaman

    Menorcaman Retired Moderator

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    Alternatively, use Easy MD5 Creator's "Create" option to calculate a single MD5 checksum file for a selected number of .tib files. Include this file in the DVD compilation along with the corresponding .tib files. After the burn is complete you can run Easy MD5 Creator, browse to the MD5 checksum file recorded on the DVD and open it. Easy MD5 Creator will then verify each of the associated .tib files on the DVD and inform you whether they are corrupt or not.

    CREATION

    1. Download and install <Easy MD5 Creator>.
    2. Run Easy MD5 Creator, select "Create an MD5 file based on existing files" and then click "Next".
    3. Browse to the folder on your hard drive that contains the compilation for your bootable rescue DVD, select the .tib files required by <Control + Clicking> on them then click "Next".
    4. Browse to a folder that you wish to save the checksum file in, enter a suitable filename e.g. TIbootDVD.md5 and then click "Next". Easy MD5 Creator will then create a checksum for each of the files previously selected and save them as "<filename>.md5". Exit Easy MD5 Creator.
    5. Create a DVD compilation and include the <filename>.md5 checksum file in the DVD volume. Burn the compilation to DVD (R or RW), using less than maximum write speed to ensure a more reliable burn.
    6. If your image spans two or more DVDs then just create additional .md5 checksum files corresponding to the files being being burnt and add them to their respective compilations.

    VERIFICATION

    1. Load the DVD into your DVD recorder/player.
    2. Run Easy MD5 Creator, select "Open a MD5 file to verify that files are not corrupt" and then click "Next".
    3. Browse to the .md5 file in the root of the DVD, select "Open" and then click "Next". Easy MD5 Creator will then verify each .tib file on the DVD (other than the .md5 file itself) against the checksums produced in stage 4 above. Anything other than a "Perfect" result indicates a faulty burn.

    Enjoy!

    EDIT

    Seems that Easy MD5 Creator V1.4 can't handle files larger than 2,048,000 KB (as calculated by Windows).

    Regards
     
    Last edited: Apr 14, 2005
  11. redmike

    redmike Registered Member

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    Which check sum program are you using here ?

    I am now confused (obviously easy to do :) by which check sum program is which.

    thanks,

    Mike
     
  12. redmike

    redmike Registered Member

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    Hi,

    I tried the program and it says my files are too big.

    I wanted to check a 4 GB file created by Acronis on my pc against the one created and verified by Nero thats on DVD.

    Any ideas ?

    thanks,

    Mike
     
  13. Menorcaman

    Menorcaman Retired Moderator

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    S..t!!! Sorry, my fault :oops: .

    I've always burnt my images as DVD-ROM (ISO) compilations and therefore set the split size to 2000MB. Never used Easy MD5 Creator on files larger than that before but, having just checked it on a 4000MB .tib file, I confirm your findings.

    Apols for throwing you a curved ball.

    Regards
     
  14. redmike

    redmike Registered Member

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    no problem I'm grateful for all your help !

    I wonder which program minimax is using in the post above yours ?

    I have the summer program but can't figure out how to use it.

    I can always remake my backups and set them at 2 GB.

    Quite amazing with XP technology now - compared with the Plug and Pray days !

    I bought a dvd burner yesterday (my first) installed it - rebooted and it all worked immediately. Didn't even have to load new Nero software !

    No fingers or legs crossed - no scouring the Internet for drivers etc- great !

    thanks

    Mike
     
  15. MiniMax

    MiniMax Registered Member

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    http://etree.org/md5com.html

    I am an old, old CP/M, DOS, RT11, VMS, and Unix hacker, who loves my command line :)
     
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