Recommendations for Disk Imaging Software?

Discussion in 'backup, imaging & disk mgmt' started by MarcGabi, Apr 13, 2011.

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  1. aladdin

    aladdin Registered Member

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  2. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    Wow, you are having a bad day.

    Both of us!

    I only need one PE disk. With TBOSDT you can update the IFW exe in the disk. Takes a few seconds only. But even old IFW exe files will restore images made with the latest version.

    With the PE build, do you have the files in C:\tbwinpe (no spaces)
     
  3. zfactor

    zfactor Registered Member

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    wow the memory usage between ifw and macrium is huge, macrium was making a backup using over 170+mb of ram. ifw is using just under 13mb but macrium used less than 50% cpu and ifw is using 80 or more right now. i upped the memory limit in ifw and its going much faster now but using way more cpu
     
  4. zfactor

    zfactor Registered Member

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    okay got the pe disc working. is there a way i can add the tbi viewer to the pe disc??

    also will it allow me to restore to a different size drive and repartition it for me. say i make a image from a 250gb drive and want to rstore to a 500gb drive but i only want a single partition can it do this??
     
    Last edited: May 16, 2011
  5. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    Yes, when making the ISO there is an option to add extra files and folders. Add tbiview.exe.

    Easy. On the second last screen there is "Resize after Restore". You can resize up or down. IFW will show the Resize limits. Min and Max.

    How did you do it? Once you have done it successfully it is easy to make others.
     
  6. aladdin

    aladdin Registered Member

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    It is easy Brian, just follow the instructions in the link you provided. You have to input your user name and serial key.
     
  7. zfactor

    zfactor Registered Member

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    what is the proper place to put the tbi exe and do i need to add everything in its folder to the image or just the one file? will it pop once it boots to the winpe disc up or i assume ill browse to it and run it from the cmd box correct? thanks
     
    Last edited: May 16, 2011
  8. loyukfai

    loyukfai Registered Member

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    The IFW/WinPE process seems quite involved. I'll be trying an IFL and see how it goes first.

    With regard to the interface, everybody has his/her preferences. The lack of an integrated interface doesn't necessarily mean IFW is less functional or more difficult to use. But I do think some people, including me, generally expect a main screen and that's why I raised the point.

    OTOH, it's fairly straightforward. For instance, it has a "Change" option rather than incremental and differential which I never quite understand.

    Besides, I don't expect my home members to setup the backup process and do the restoring by themselves, so it shouldn't be a problem. Besides, the lower price is an important point in swiveling me from Reflect to IFW. With the discount it's basically $10 a copy for IFW and $20 a copy for Reflect.

    It took about 2-hr to backup about 150GB of data with encryption.

    I can feel that IFW has slowed down the box, is there an easy way to mark it a low priority process...?

    I agree, but NAS is getting common at homes and except the business versions, they aren't backing up to a network drives.
     
  9. loyukfai

    loyukfai Registered Member

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    IFD doesn't work for me as it couldn't detect the external drive connected to a SATA PCMCIA card.

    IFL doesn't work either, stuck at something "loading udev uevents".

    Is IFW the only option for me then...? I have a 64MB USB thumbdrive and would like to make use of it...

    Cheers.

    Edit: The second run is sweet, IFL works now and is able to see the external drive.
     
    Last edited: May 16, 2011
  10. moontan

    moontan Registered Member

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    IFW/IFD/IFL "Change" option is actually a *differential* backup.


    the difference between incremental and differential backup is this:

    an incremental backup only includes the data from the *last* backup.
    that last backup can be either a full backup or the last differential backup.
    the potential problem with 'incrementals' is that you need all the pieces of the 'puzzle' for the restore to work.
    let's say you have the Full Image backup followed by 'incremental' # 1, 2 and 3.
    if your incremental #1 is corrupted then #2 and 3 are useless...

    a differential backup only includes the changes from the Full Backup.
    contrary to the example above *differential* backups #2 and 3 would still be working even if #1 were damaged in some way.
    *differential* backups only need the Full (or Base) backup to work.


    in the case of differential backups, the only thing to watch for is that the filesize of the combined Full image + a *differential* backup can be greater than if you were to create a brand new Full backup.
    it's no big deal in most cases but it's something to keep in mind.

    btw, IFW/IFD/IFL only does *differential* backups.
    it doesn't do *incrementals*.
    of course, IFW/IFL/IFD do Full (or Base) backups.

    anyway, page 142 of the manual has more info about this.
    take the time to read it, it is actually quite interesting. :)
     
    Last edited: May 16, 2011
  11. zfactor

    zfactor Registered Member

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    if anyone knows or i can wait till brian gets back on where would i place the tbiviewer on the pe disc? and is it the whole directory or just that one file? thanks
     
  12. moontan

    moontan Registered Member

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    an easy way to find out is copy the exe to any directory/folder.
    if it runs you should be good to go! :)

    i think you would need both the tbimount and tbiview.

    i'll test it and brb.
     
  13. moontan

    moontan Registered Member

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    i copied both exe to a folder on my desktop and they seemed very happy to work.

    i think you're good to go with just those 2 exe. :)
     
  14. zfactor

    zfactor Registered Member

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    that was using the winpe disc?? so you added them to the desktop folder on the winpe disc or am i wrong?
     
  15. moontan

    moontan Registered Member

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    no, i just tested it on my desktop.
    they should be fine to run from the pe disk by themselves.
    they are basically portable.
     
  16. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    zfactor,

    Try this. Create a folder called zfactor. Put any portable apps you like in this folder. I've even added portable Firefox so I can surf the web while using the WinPE CD. But seriously, add tbiview.exe to this folder (I haven't done this but I assume it will work). Also, add the A43 folder as this makes navigation much easier.

    http://www.alterion.us/a43/

    At the end of your startnet.cmd file you will see

    :: Launch Image for Windows
    cd \program files\ifw
    start imagew

    Add these lines

    cd \zfactor\a43
    start a43

    So you will have...

    :: Launch Image for Windows
    cd \program files\ifw
    start imagew
    cd \zfactor\a43
    start a43


    When you build the ISO it will stop to allow you to add files/folders. Add the zfactor folder. I think it goes in the Mount folder (it's been a little while since I've done this).

    When you boot the WinPE it will open IFW and A43.
     
  17. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    KOR,

    Not me, it was zfactor who had an initial issue. I was interested to know how he fixed it.
     
  18. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    loyukfai,

    I'm pleased you got IFL to work. I can't use IFD in my main computer with a USB external HD either. It is BIOS related. My old test computer works fine with a USB HD and IFD.
     
  19. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    This is how to run IFW from a Win7 DVD...

    I used a Win7 32 bit DVD to restore an image stored on a hard drive but I'd
    expect a Vista DVD to work too.

    Create this folder, C:\pebuilder
    Inside the above folder, create a folder called plugin

    From the TeraByte Unlimited menu in All Programs, run PE Builder Plugin
    Installer
    In PE Builder Type, choose Bart PE (Windows XP Based)
    In PE Builder Location, choose C:\pebuilder
    Fill in the Product Key fields
    Tick Preserve key for writable media
    Click OK

    Open C:\pebuilder\plugin\ifwv2 and make sure imagew.ini is Read-only and
    contains your name and serial number

    Copy two files from the above folder, imagew.exe and imagew.ini, to a USB
    flash drive (Put them anywhere on the drive. Just keep them together).

    Boot from a Win7 DVD
    On the Install now window, click Repair your computer
    After the search completes, click Load Drivers, plug in your USB flash
    drive, click OK.
    Navigate to imagew.exe on the flash drive. There will be two imagew files
    (extensions aren't shown). Imagew.exe will be Application Type. Now the
    secret. Right click imagew (the Application) and choose Run as
    administrator.
    Cancel "Open"
    Cancel "Add Drivers"
    Close "System Recovery Options"
    Minimize "Install now"

    IFW is now ready to use. You may have to drag the title bar to make it fit
    the screen better.
     
  20. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    zfactor,

    I just tried tbiview.exe in WinPE. I can explore a .tbi image but I can't extract files. Maybe you can find out if this is possible. I used a CD not a flash drive.
     
  21. zfactor

    zfactor Registered Member

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    well ive switched brian. just bought 3 lic's to ifw (yes i know they are good for 3 each but i need 9 total for now) and i may get more after more testing working well for me so far. im trying to do what you said with the pe disc now and will let you know how that works out.

    thanks you got me to convert...

    yeah i hope it works because i would need to copy files from the image to the c: drive..
     
  22. moontan

    moontan Registered Member

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    don't you have to use tbimount for this?
     
  23. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    You can use both. I vary.
     
  24. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    When you have sorted out the current situation let me know if you would like to automate your backups/restores. I've discovered many ways of doing this.
     
  25. zfactor

    zfactor Registered Member

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    great thanks i just need to figure out how to get files out of a backup and copied back to the c: drive like pics and docs etc.. otherwise im liking this a lot more than last time i played with it..

    do you know if they have any plans for the taskbar icon to show the progress of the backup?
     
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