Introducing AX64 Time Machine - hybrid imaging/snapshot software

Just tried latest beta, no boot from hard drive (error Apisetschema.dll not digitally signed) and 10 mins for hot restore, but restore worked ok. Gone back to 1120 and booting from hard drive now ok. windows 7 64 bit

 

Tried it for a couple of days, but hot restore took over 20 min's when I needed it (slower then a cold restore on my system) so I am trying 1120 again. Used 1120 for months with no problems.

 

My experience:

Yesterday I tested Version 1.4.0.18
I made a Backup and generated a Recovery Media (CD); no Boot Problem !
I did not try to restore ...


Today I tested Version 1.4.0.19
I made a fresh Backup and generated a new Recovery Media (CD); no Boot Problem !
This time I tested the restore too. It worked fine, BUT the restore took a lot
of time comparing to the old AX64 1.3.0.7
(more then 15 minutes !)



My setup: SSD Samsung 840 Pro 512 GB, Motherboard ASUS P8Z68 DELUXE, RAM 16 GB, Windows 8.1 64

 

I am trying to follow as I can the threads in this immense forum subject and decided to give a try with this programe.
I used a friend laptop to make a test and downloaded the AX64 1120 trial version from the internet site together with Macrium reflect trial in order to compare both programes.
Every time I was running MR I've got BSOD with this remark:
"Your PC ran into a probleme......KERNEL AUTO BOOT INVALID LOCK RELEASE"
The BSOD appeared also but from time to time when performing a backup using AX64 programe (not every time)
The laptop is running WIN8.1 64bit.

When I saw the thread above, i removed AX64 v1120 and installed the proposed Beta one.
I ran several times both programes (full backup only) and couldn't see that AX64 is faster than MR. The running time seems to be almost equal with few seconds to MR advantage.
In addition, I got from time to time :
"The computer was shutdown improperly. Backup will take longer than usual"
which was very frustrating since the full backup time was almost twice the backup time with MR.

Just for comparison, his C drive is 40GB and and is 22.7Gb full .
A full backup with MR took 19 to 19.5 minutes. and with AX 20.7 to 21.3 minutes.
When I've got the remark " The computer was shutdown improperly...." the running time using AX became 35 minutes approximately.
I cannot test restore since it is not my own PC........

Is this longer time due to the Beta programe?
How to perform Differential backup using AX?
From this first test (only) I'm feeling more comfortable with MR than with AX64.

Any advice.
Thanks

 

I've been using AX64 1120 since its release...I like to 'mess' with my system, registry, files etc...(W7 x32) and it has never let me down, if I fcuk it up AX64 saves me....Perfect software imho,

 

That's what I am still currently using. (Windows 7-64 bit).

I'm still not totally comfortable with this software and until I am pretty convinced that these new betas work great on Windows 7-64 bit, I'm not going to upgrade.

 

Samy, MR and AX64 are quite different and serve different purposes; at least for me. Many of us here use both programs. (I happen to use MR Pro, not the free version because I do like to do differential and incremental image backups.)

AX64 doesn't do "traditional" differential or incremental backups; at least as I think of them. MR is a what I call a traditional file and image backup program. I merely use it as I'm paranoid about image backups and I use it as a backup to AX64. AX64 uses what I think of as "snapshots"; though, they are in a sense incremental.

AX64 I bought because I like to install programs to test them out or test out different browsers and I've had updates to different programs in the past hose my PC. AX64 for me is for testing programs and for "rolling back" (or "rolling forward") changes that I've made. It has 2 things that for me are unique: 1) going forward and backwards in "time"; 2) fast "hot" restores from within Windows that normally take minutes or less.

I highly recommend both products.

 

Well, I am surprised that I have not had a reply yet.

I did try 1.4.0.19 and it does not work with XP Pro 32 bit.

I tried it as I get an error with 1.4.0.18. The error I get in 1.4.0.18 version happens when I try to create a rescue disk. I get the following error.

AXTMApp.exe Application Error. Unknown Software Exception 0xc06d007e occurred in app at 0x7c812f03. Am I the only one who has tried to create a new Rescue DVD in WinXP Pro 32 bit? I have gone back to ver 1.3.0.7 and all is OK but I would hate to think that no more updates will work on XP.

 

OK, well I did go back to 1.3.0.7 but felt that the new version also did support XP. I wonder what ISSO will say?

 

AXTM 1.4.0.18/19 do not support Windows XP.

Denis

 

OK, so am I now frozen at 1.3.0.7 forever?

 

My view on this is that XP must be supported, so I'll be pushing this to be fixed.

Isso

 

Hi Samy,

Alexhousek in post #6308 on the same page has given you an excellent reply, I am not sure that anyone can do better than him.

As Alexhousek mentioned AX64, is two programs in one:

1. Imaging
2. Snapshots

Best Regards,

Mohamed

 

Hi Denis,

Many thanks!

Best regards,

Mohamed

 

Hi Acadia,

For me a pre-boot console is like the console of FDISR or Rollback Rx, which sits on top of Windows. Even if Windows is broken or bootmgr is missing the pre-boot console works. The only time the pre-boot console doesn't work, is in case of hard disk failure or MBR rootkit.

Whereas, the Boot Configuration Data (BCD) Store is part of Windows. Anything installed in BCD Store will not function if Windows is broken, bootmgr is missing, or the BCD is corrupt. The AX64 "Local Storage" is part of the BCD Store and is installed in the BCD Store.

Best regards,

Mohamed

 

When using the local storage option, is there a way to edit the time it will wait for input before going to the default (Windows 8.1)? I'd like to set it to something like 3, 4 or 5 seconds.

Edit: Found it, Control Panel > System > Advanced system settings > Start-up and Recovery (settings)

 

Hi Alex and Mohamed

Thanks for your comments. I am now just beginning to understand the programe capability.
What caused me to err is the programe GUI that has only one command button "Make Backup".
I tried 10 consecutive backup tests and got very different running time and files size for the same C drive . For example:

2Days 3Hrs ago..........21mn36sec...........16.4 GB
1Day 18hrs ago..........16mn50sec...........1.3 GB
3Hrs 23mn ago..........33sec..................22.4 Mb
2Hrs 21mn ago..........22sec..................4.27 Mb
2Hrs 5mn ago...........3mn....................1.67GB
2Hrs 1mn ago...........18sec..................2.68 Mb
1Hr 55mn ago...........11sec..................1.9 Mb
1Hr 39mn ago...........2mn 7sec.............66.0 Mb
1mn ago..................25sec...................5.26 Mb

1. Why such diversity between the "images"
2. Which one is Backup and which is Snapshot - since to create each one I simply clicked on "Make backup". How to differentiate them.
3. can I restore the drive C from each one of the above "image". How?
4. Can I delete any backup (from above ones) without loosing the other files.

Again many thanks

 

I have just tried 14019 by making an image and then immediately (hot) restoring it. There was no problem. Seemed the same as 1307.

Made a recovery USB stick which completed but very slow at the end of the process. Tried rebooting from it but it did not succeed. First there was the windows logo and just a just a hyphen on the screen - thought it had stalled but then the gravity balls started. The screen cleared and the mouse cursor appeared but nothing else happened so forced a reboot.

I am confused over the local storage. I installed it but not sure what I did. There is no change to the boot up procedure and the option to remove it is greyed out.

I am using Win 8.1/64 fully updated.

 

Hi Samy,

Answer 1: Each incremental backup image is an snapshot. AX64 automatically creates an hourly incremental backup and then it merges them automatically too. Here is how automatic merging (consolidation) works:

http://ax64.uservoice.com/knowledgebase/articles/205407-how-the-automatic-merging-works

Answer 2: The first full backup is the initial baseline backup, the rest of the incremental backup images are snapshots. You can rename the automatic incremental backup image in AX64 explorer, doing this will stop it from automatic merging, until such time you delete it.

Same you can make manual incremental backup image either giving it a name or not. Again, doing this will stop it from automatic merging, until such time you delete it.

Answer 3: Yes, you can. Open the AX64, right click one of incremental backup image and then click restore. In advanced option before restore, if you want to you can restore the "MBR" too.

Make sure before you restore, you turn off all the security programs, as they tend to sometimes upset the AX64 restore.

Answer 4: Yes, you can delete the incremental backup image from the AX64 explorer and it will merge with the next incremental backup image. If you do outside the AX64 explorer, let us say from the Windows explorer, it will break the chain of incremental backup images.

Best regards,

Mohamed

 

Hi David,

Not sure what is happening, you are having the same trouble making a bootable Recovery Media, which I had. But let us first work on the "local storage". There are two options, "Install" and "Unisntall".

Is "Install" greyed out?

If not, then can you install it again, and see what happens to boot menu during bootup?

If AX64 shows during the boot menu during bootup, can you then boot into AX64 Recovery Media?

Best regards,

Mohamed

 

What does "External volume modification detected." actually mean? It seems to happen a lot for me even though I have no other OS or such and I have it set up so that only the applications in the AXTM installation folder has access to modify data in the AXTM destination folder so no other application can have edited that unless from outside the OS and I don't have anything other than Windows 8.1 installed on this machine... It just seems to randomly pop up now and then without reason, is there anyway to fix this as it's pretty annoying.

Could it be because I installed the AXTM local storage recovery? I tried booting into that just to see if it worked correctly but after booting into it I clicked Exit Browser and booted straight into Windows 8.1 and started another backup and now it takes forever because "External volume modification detected. Backup will take longer than usual"

Also, why does it take longer, does it make another full image? If so, if this External volume modification happens every time, that would mean long backups and huge images? I don't really understand what the external modification implies and what takes such a long time to do, I just hope it doesn't need to create a full image each time because then it would simply take too much data for my liking.
Edit: Found the answer to the above question myself, since the baseline image is around 46GB and the new image after the external modification thing only was 700MB I assume it makes an incremental image and not a full image, which is very nice. the 11 minute 34 seconds backup isn't very nice though.

 

Mohamed, you can have the rank "pro-backuper".

Denis.