Linux ext2/ext3 support -- 256-byte inodes, and ext2/ext3 backup drive

I'm currently using TI 9, and don't really want to upgrade, since TI 11 and TI-2009 apparently can't reliably restore backup sets made with TI 9. (Why NOT?!?!?)

However, I've run into a problem that apparently requires an upgrade. I just did a fresh Fedora 10 install, and discovered that TI 9 won't back up the ext3 partition, apparently because Fedora uses 256-byte inodes instead of 128-byte inodes. (In TI 9, "properties" for the partition shows "File system error: Unsupported file system version".)

Happily, I read here and here that the latest builds of TI-2009 have finally fixed that problem!

Unhappily, I read here that TI-11 dropped support for using ext3 drives as backup devices! Arrgh!

Now, as it happens, I use an ext2-formatted external USB drive as my main backup device. So I'm worried: I don't want to buy TI-2009 if it can't use my backup drive! (It is bad enough that it won't read my existing TI9 backup sets!!)

So, please tell me: Does any version of Acronis TI have good support for Linux-formatted ext2 & ext3 partitions? I.e., will it both back up partitions formatted with 256-byte inodes (as well as 128-byte inodes) (without backing up the free space!), and will it properly recognize and use ext2 (and preferably ext3) formatted drives as backup devices?

(Ideally, it should handle ext2/ext3 backup drives with 256-byte inodes, but I can live without that for now.)

If TI-2009 doesn't do this now, then will it ever, and if so when?

If the answer is "never," then can someone here please email me suggestions for other backup products?

Also, the pricing for TrueImage 2009 Home is confusing. The price is variously given as $49.99 or $79.99, and the upgrade price is show $29.99 but it is not clear what products qualify for the upgrade price? Does my copy of TI 9 qualify me for the upgrade price on TI-2009?

Thanks,
Dave Burton

 

Acronis will only "officially" support images created one version back (TI 11 images are supported by TI 2009, for example), but usually older images work okay. I'm pretty sure people have posted here that they've restored TI 8 images with TI 2009.

Most Linux distributions currently being released are defaulting to 256-byte inodes.

If you want to keep using TI 9 and don't care if you have 128-byte inodes, you can probably create and format the partitions using the "old" standard for Fedora before you install it and then select those partitions during the installation (don't let Fedora reformat them). Ubuntu will let you do this. I've never used Fedora.

As far as I know, Acronis has no plans to add backing up to Ext3 partitions back into TI. TI 10 was the last version to support it. Echo Workstation also does not support it.

As far as I know, any previous version of TI will qualify for the upgrade version. When you install, TI will ask for the TI 2009 serial number and the one from the previous version (TI 9, in your case).

 

Well, I'm glad that they finally got around to supporting 256-byte inodes (four years late). But dropping support for backup drives with ext2/ext3 file systems is soooo disappointing!

It seems very, very strange to me, too. After all, the TrueImage boot CD is built on Linux, is it not? So it seems that ext2/ext3 would be the easiest file systems for it to support!

Why on earth did they remove that support??

Dave

 

Hello Dave Burton,

Thank you for your interesting in Acronis True Image

You can find this info in Acronis True Image Home 2009 user guide chapter 1.3.3 Supported file systems:

- FAT16/32
- NTFS
- Ext2/Ext3
- ReiserFS
- Linux SWAP

If a file system is not supported or is corrupted, Acronis True Image Home can copy data
using a sector-by-sector approach.

The Ext2/Ext3, ReiserFS, and Linux SWAP file systems are supported only for disk or
partition backup/restore operations. You cannot use Acronis True Image Home for file-level
operations with these file systems (file backup, restore, search, as well as image mounting
and file restoring from image), as well as for backups to disks or partitions with these file
systems.

MudCrab we appreciate your knowledge in Acronis software.

Best regards,
--
Dmitry Nikolaev