May I image a second computer once?

I'm using TI v10 on one computer. I'd like to somehow quickly make an image of a laptop hooked to the same router. Just once since it's a new installation. How can I do it? I know the license is for one computer, so I'm just looking for some ideas as to which way to go. I don't really want to use another software since TI is serving me so well, yet I do need one image, and be able to restore if the need arises. Any chance?

The computer with TI installed is XP-sp2. The other one is Windows 2000.

 

Technically I think it is against the license policy since TI is for use on one computer only - not for use on two computers if you only use it once.

However, if you wish to remain legal I think you could download the trial version for the laptop and make the image using the time-limited Windows version. Also make the trial version's recovery CD which will allow you to restore a previously made image at any time ( the trial version CD won't let you create an image).

 

Thanks! That does seem least illegal and totally sufficient for this use. I have to check that the W2K laptop can write CDs! I forgot to check.

Alternative. How about I run TI on the XP computer normally, and image that W2K laptop over the LAN. Is TI able to see the other computer as a partition (I hope I'm using the right word) or just a folder, like C$ or My Documents or something which would not be useful at all.

 

You can't make a full image of another computer that way. TI must run on the computer being imaged.

Of course, you could use the Recovery CD you already have to boot the Win2K system and make the image that way. It's not "legal" by the license, but it will work.

 

You mean boot W2K computer using my TI recovery CD for XP? Whoa, you think it'll even boot? Because it's non-Windows?

 

Yes the recovery cd is Linux and is machine/os independent.

 

Thanks, Thomasjk.
I remembered that I have an old USB Amacom drive which came with some sort of utility which permits to synchronize whole disk. The original intention of the Amacom drive is to be able to physically replace my laptop XP drive when that fails. That indicates to me that the Amacom drive is bootable. Let's say I format that drive (I haven't used it since I got TI for XP).

Now I can use Amacom software to copy the W2K box HD, which I can then plug into XP and image what will be drive F, probably, with TI to USB drive I normally use for XP backup.

To recover W2K, I can't use Amacom, as I don't believe that W2K machine can boot from a USB drive, but combining it with that one W2K Linux boot CD it might work. What do you think. Other than the slight violation of TI trial version, does it sound like a workable solution or am I missing some big step?

 

Sounds like theft. Stealing just once doesn't make it not stealing.

It sounds like you haven't read the license or the user manual for ATI. It would be prudent to at least read the latter before you proceed, and probably moral to read the former.

 

As Shieber said its a violation of the license agreement. That said you won't be able to use TI to do anything with a W2K copy made by the Amacom software.

 

Ok, I yield with my head down

 

Violation of the license agreement? Yeah, sure.

Acronis never made good on my TI8 and TI9 license agreements, which was to provide me with functioning programs, not the unfinished experiments they left me with. Instead, they tried to force me to upgrade to version 9 and later to 10 so I could get what they promised and never delivered in the prior versions.

I would have zero reluctance to use any copy of TI that I paid for on as many machines as I felt the need to. When Acronis makes good on versions 8 and 9 (which will be never) then I'd maybe worry about the legal and moral questions regarding their license.

 

The EULA that came with my copy of TI8 says:

Note how it says the license is to the original purchaser and transfering requires permission from Acronis*. Not a word about transfering the license from one computer to another if both computers are owned by the same purchaser.

That makes sense, because if you can't pingpong your license between your own computers, you could not legally restore a backup of a system partition to a new computer when the old one dies.


So if you want to stick with the small print:

Uninstall TI from the first computer and install it on the second. Make an image of the second computer, uninstall TI, and reinstall it on the first machine.

If you make a backup image of the system partition of the first computer, you can restore the image instead of reinstalling & reconfiguring TI.


Or you could just use your TI boot disk to image the second computer without bothering to uninstall it from the first one. Technically this violates the license, but the end result is exactly the same as when you use the EULA-compliant workaround.

Or just download & burn a Linux boot disk like ebcd.pcministry.com or sysresccd.org and use the built-in imaging app. Now you can image and restore any computer you like without ever having to worry about licensing details.



*) If I want to sell my copy of TI to someone else - that means transfering my license - I can legally do so without getting permission from Acronis. The laws of my country say I can, and when law and EULA are in conflict, the law prevails

 

I understand your anger and you might have a case to recover damages from Acronis, (the amount you could recover is probably the cost of the program) if Acronis hasn't lived up to the warranty of merchantability -- however, none of that entitles anyone to violate license agreements or to use goods without license to do so. In fact, advocating the crime wgere it can be reasonably expected that the crime might follow from the encouragement, that itself probably constitutes a criminal act.


sh

 

Crime? Advocating a crime? Criminal act? In most countries breaching a eula is not a crime. Violation of contract is a matter for civil law, not criminal law.

 

Thanks a lot. I just downloaded it and when I sift through the instructions I can use that.
And sorry for stirring the pot, I just came for advice and a revolution began

 

LOL ! Good point. Some people take this WAAAAAY too seriously.

 

Revolutionary!! You will probably be pulled aside by Homeland Security for extra questioning the next time you try to board an airplane.

Since you aren't trying to be a thief, I say don't sweat it. Use the program as you need and keep paying for upgrades and full installations on other systems, and you are a good customer. Recommend it to friends and try to get more customers for Acronis.

 

If it was me, I'd boot off the TI v10 CD (which technically is not installing the software), do your one-time backup, and be done with it. For a one-time event, I wouldn't lose too much sleep over it but you could email Acronis and request permission to do it this way.

If you really want to be fully legal, buy a 2nd copy at NewEgg for $40 (or $32 for a downloadable copy). This will give you the flexibility of doing regular backups on your laptop - something you should be doing anyway and certainly something you should do before you do any OS patching.

I have multiple licenses for most of my application software at home (some isn't installed on both systems).

.../Ed