Secure Zone Removal

True Image 11 Home
I have, unfortunately, made a secure zone on the hard drive. I can not remove it. It will let me decide where I want the partition containing the secure zone to be allocated but will go no further. I split my hard drive in two to install the secure zone. I want to return to having only one partition on the hard drive. Windows XP Professional.
If I had known this software had bugs in it I would not have purchased it (and that's the printable version).
I have looked through the forum and can not find any solution to this problem.

 

Have you tried removing the SZ from Windows and when booted to the TI CD?

Also, if the Full Mode version of TI doesn't see your computer's hardware correctly, you can download and install the SafeMedia version. It will have to be installed and included on a new TI CD so you can use it.

 

Download Gparted from the following link, and burn it to a CD. Then boot it and then remove the secure zone using Gparted.

http://mesh.dl.sourceforge.net/sourceforge/gparted/gparted-livecd-0.3.4-11.iso

 

One should always use the Manage Secure zone Wizard for making changes to or removing a secure zone.
Follow MudCrab's advice and make the changes when booted from the TI CD if it can't be done from TI in Windows.

It is bad practice to use a third party partitioning tool. This is because the Start up Recovery manager will, if activated, have modified the MBR. These changes are automatically reversed when the proper TI tool is used. Any other means of removal could leave booting problems behind.

Xpilot

 

Thank you for your advice so far. I am using the original purchased cd as a boot disc. Tried safe version - will not remove secure zone, neither will the full version. It shows the space allocated to the primary hard drive partition (so I click on the box at the side) and also the space allocated to the secure zone (which is greyed out). I can not get further than this screen.

 

That's why I offered Gparted as a solution to remove the secure zone.

Then use SuperGrub, and boot the Supergrub CD, which contains a option to fully restore the MS Windows boot sectors (which also overwrites the Acronis boot code), and you are up and running like new

http://forjamari.linex.org/frs/download.php/942/super_grub_disk_0.9716.iso

 

Have you actually installed TI on your computer?
If so open the program and find the manage secure zone wizard and remove the zone from there.
With the TI GUI open have a look in Help About and confirm that the build number is 8053.
If it is an earlier number you should register,download and install 8053. The original version had more holes than a fishing net!

Is it possible for you to post a screen shot? I have never seen a secure zone shown as greyed out...Must have lived a sheltered life!

Xpilot

 

Now that's what I call a Secure zone! Not necessarily deisrable, but secure.

 

TRUTHSEEKER
Have made the cd's but they will not boot. Other cd's will boot as normal. My computer will boot from a cd before the hard drive. Any ideas?

 

SHIEBER
Thanks for that posting, it made me smile and I certainly could do with some of those today.
When you try to remove the secure zone it shows you where you can allocate the extra space to and underneath (greyed out) it shows the secure zone with the number of gigs it occupies. Presumably this is the extra space that will be allocated when the secure zone is deleted - if only I could.

 

Actually it's not very secure at all. All you need to do is download Ubuntu Linux Live CD or install Ubuntu, and mount the secure zone, and you get full read+write access to the partition

I actually use this procedure to delete some images that I have backed up into my secure zone.

 

Download the 2 ISO files that I have linked for you, then use Nero, and make sure you select "Burn Image".

Then boot the CD, simple as that.

 

Just to back track a moment.
If you have not activated the TI start up recovery manager that is one possible problem eliminated and you could safely use a partitioning tool to remove the zone and allocate the space where you want it.
However,have you opened the manage secure zone wizard from the TI GUI while in Windows?
If so and you have selected the delete secure zone button the page asking where you want to allocate the space pops up. Check the box to where you want the space to go. All that should be required is to click next and the proceed screen should pop up and away it goes.

Edit you should only select the box where you want the space to go. The secure zone box, greyed out, should NOT be selected. That could be where it has been hanging.
Xpilot

 

Have you tried to again create a secure zone and then remove it? What's to lose?

 

TPILOT
When I click next the proceed button does not pop up, that has been the problem.
TRUTHSEEKER
I don't know how I have done it but I have finally managed to remove the secure zone using Acronis. The problem is the space has not been reallocated to the primary hard drive. Have used gparted. There are 2 partitions showing, the primary one and an unallocated one. The second is the same size as the secure zone was. Can not delete or resize it. Try to increase the size of the primary partition, will not do it.

I think it's time to contact the boffins at Acronis.
P.S. Have tried to install Acronis on the hard drive but will not do, says there is a problem with Windows Installer.
Acronis was purchased from one of the largest internet websites and has been registered with Acronis so it is genuine.
Once I have sorted this problem the cd is going in the bin.

 

I have finally sorted the problem but no thanks to Acronis (I sent them a query unrelated to this last Friday and haven't had a reply back yet, I did get an automated response but no answer to my query as yet).
I have cloned the primary partition only onto a second hard drive with Norton Ghost (after formatting). I checked that the second h/d functions, formatted the first h/d (which cleared the unallocated space and gave me back all the space on the h/d) and then cloned from the second to the first.
I am going to use the first as normal and back up periodically to the second by cloning with Ghost.
If I can't trust the secure zone to operate as it should I can't trust any image backups made by Acronis.
Now for a refund. I've only had the software for one week.
Thank you to everybody who tried to help me with my problem.
TRUTHSEEKER
I have kept those 2 bootable cd's of gparted and supergrub. You never know if I might need them in the future.

 

I had mixed feelings of ambivalence when I read your message.

Firstly I was happy you finally sorted it out.

But secondly, I am sad to see you give up on Acronis Trueimage so early.

Try to use it more, learn more about it and eventutally you will appreciate how good of a product it is.