Image For Windows

Discussion in 'backup, imaging & disk mgmt' started by Stigg, Apr 15, 2014.

  1. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    600 GB to 240 GB HD.

    If you had less data in the partitions, Scale to Target will produce...

    100 MiB SRP
    40 GB partition
    80 GB partition
    120 GB unallocated free space
     
  2. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    All NVMe SSDs support DRAT.

    I recall you did have DRAT issues. Unfortunately, manufacturers don't advertise DRAT support. You can use HWiNFO64, select the SSD, look in Transfer Modes. It should say...
    Trim Command: Supported (Deterministic Read After TRIM)
     
  3. mantra

    mantra Registered Member

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    @Brian K
    Hi
    are you sure HWiNFO64 is reliable ?
    because for all ssd it does report like the samsung ssd 860 Evo
    Code:
    TRIM Command:Supported (Deterministic Read After TRIM, Words = 0)
    so they should be drat outside an old samsung ssd drive is for HWiNFO
    Code:
    TRIM Command:Supported (Indeterminate Read After TRIM)
    I'm asking if HWiNFO64 is really reliable , because googling i have fount this on a forum
    but why image for windows or image for linux don't check if the drives support DRAT ?
    thanks
     
  4. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    I think IFW and IFL do check for DRAT. There is no Write Change Sectors only if the drive doesn't support DRAT.

    What does HWiNFO64 say about your SSDs? Do they support DRAT?
    HWiNFO64 is just reading what the drive says about itself.

    DRAT or RZAT are both OK.
     
  5. mantra

    mantra Registered Member

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    Hi
    HWiNFO64 does say TRIM Command:Supported (Deterministic Read After TRIM, Words = 0) for all my 8 ssd drives like your post #1777 ,and for 1 old samsung ssd TRIM Command:Supported (Indeterminate Read After TRIM)
    thanks
     
  6. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    mantra,
    You can test this by checking the GB of Writes on a SSD. Then restore a fresh image to that drive. Check the GB of Writes on the SSD again. If only a few hundred MB have been written, or maybe a GB, instead of the full amount of data in the image, then Write Changed Sectors Only happened.
     
  7. donaddams

    donaddams Registered Member

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    Does Terabyte Image for Windows for offline backups support SSD external drive formatted exfat
     
  8. n8chavez

    n8chavez Registered Member

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    Yes. I think they do if you use a PE disc. The below if from their site:

     
  9. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    IFW supports external SSD drives formatted exFAT, external USB HDs formatted exFAT. Also UFDs formatted exFAT. Online and offline.
     
  10. donaddams

    donaddams Registered Member

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    great, thanks for the replys
     
  11. mantra

    mantra Registered Member

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    Hi @Brian K
    May i ask you few questions?

    1) enabling use VSS when avaible -> does it create hidden shadow copy in the device manager ?
    2) if i want only to use PHYLock -> should i disable "use VSS when avaible" and it's enough ?
    3) is there a command line , a parameter ,to save the the log in the same ifl64.exe folder or subofolder /log
    thanks

    2)-.> any advises of the other parameters
    https://i.imgur.com/rmXKfNE.png

    3) paramenters for log .. to save in the main program /subfolder log , seeing the letter could change , loading image for windows in a winpe usb
    https://i.imgur.com/04bnfHv.png
     
  12. TheRollbackFrog

    TheRollbackFrog Imaging Specialist

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    I have to jump in here with a reminder... PHYlock is not the same as VSS. Yes, it's capable of freezing the FileSystem, creating some semblance of consistency for it but it is not the same. VSS will offer a chance for any registered VSS WRITER to bring full continuity to any database it may be using (basically flushing all its caches to its disk files prior to freezing the FileSystem)... PHYLock DOES NOT do this. PHYLock will leave almost any database driven process in an incomplete state prior to its freeze of the FileSystem. This will result in a fractured disk-based database, not completely updated, at the time of PHYLock's FileSystem freeze... which means database updates will have been lost across the freeze in the actual image taken.

    If you're not running any serious database applications, you may not notice this, but if you are and you need that image for an important disk restoration, you may be in deep doo-doo.

    PHYLock was designed prior to MicroSloth's VSS implementation as a method to try and get a consistent FileStructure prior to imaging... it wasn't a panacea.
     
  13. n8chavez

    n8chavez Registered Member

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    Just to add to what @TheRollbackFrog said, Terabyte themselves suggests not using Phylock anymore and to use VSS instead.
     
  14. mantra

    mantra Registered Member

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    Hi
    @Brian K , have I to keep enabled the Volume Shadow Copy service to use with image for windows ? i have it disabled right now

    hi @TheRollbackFrog and @n8chavez
    thanks for the information , but have you notited several shadow copies (hidden ) in the device manager ?


    look the screenshot , does somebody what does create them ?
    and i guess i have disable the shadow copy service

    https://i.imgur.com/HVt4BtS.png
     
    Last edited: Oct 8, 2022
  15. TairikuOkami

    TairikuOkami Registered Member

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    For the record, I use EaseUS Todo Backup. I stopped using Aoemi, because they turned pre-os into a paid option, it also failed. Macrium or Acronis do not work with mine security restrictions. I still have to allow SYSTEM to read images.
    Code:
    takeown /s %computername% /u %username% /f "D:\My Backups" /r /d y
    icacls "D:\My Backups" /inheritance:r
    icacls "D:\My Backups" /grant:r %username%:(OI)(CI)F /t /l /q /c
    icacls "D:\My Backups" /grant:r "System":(OI)(CI)F /t /l /q /c
    icacls "D:\My Backups" /grant "Users":(OI)(CI)RX /t /l /q /c
     
  16. n8chavez

    n8chavez Registered Member

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    That's odd. I only have one instance of VSS running while imaging. My guess is something's wrong on your end. Are they there all the time, or only during imaging? What application are you using to image? Any other than IFW? Do you have any others installed?

    Screenshot 2022-10-08 091556.png
     
  17. TheRollbackFrog

    TheRollbackFrog Imaging Specialist

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    I also have a goup of your entries... they are not Shadow copies. If they were, you would see them using the "VSSadmin list shadows" command in the Command Prompt window. If you <right-click> on them, select "Properties," then "driver/Driver details," mine show their source to be mrcbt.sys which is Macrium REFLECT's CBT driver. Again, they are not shadow FileSystems. If you have ever used REFLECT with the CBT option ON, most likely they were created during that installation. Since they're not real shadows, they may be templates of some sort for each of your storage devices that may have been active while REFLECT was on your System (only a guess).
     
  18. TheRollbackFrog

    TheRollbackFrog Imaging Specialist

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    ...and you might want to peruse this ARTICLE concerning these "generic" items. It looks as though Windows creates place holders for its System Restore snapshots in case the user would like to use that feature.
     
  19. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    mantra,

    Yes.

    From your current TBWinRE, find the drive letter of the partition where your IFW logs are stored.
    Copy ifw.ini from C:\Program Files (x86)\TeraByte Drive Image Backup and Restore Suite to the tbwinre folder.
    In ifw.ini I have...

    Code:
    LogFile=D:\My_files\__Tera_scripts\IFW.LOG
    The drive letter of that partition in TBWinRE is I:
    So I edit ifw.ini in the tbwinre folder to...

    Code:
    LogFile=I:\My_files\__Tera_scripts\IFW.LOG
    Then create a new TBWinRE UFD.

    That's OK if you want to use PHYLock.

    I prefer to use VSS in IFW. As @n8chavez mentioned, TeraByte Support does too.
     
  20. mantra

    mantra Registered Member

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    HI @Brian K

    well i will use VSS , to use with image for windows ,have I enable the windows service Volume Shadow Copy ?
    and about all these shadows copies , is it normal ? have you too?
    thanks Brian
    https://imgur.com/HVt4BtS
     
  21. Brian K

    Brian K Imaging Specialist

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    mantra,

    I have 3 Generic volume shadow copy entries in each computer.

    I made no changes to the Service. I just made the IFW PHYLock/VSS tab look the same as the screenshot on page 49 of the IFW user manual.

    In Services, my Volume Shadow Copy "Startup Type" is Manual.
     
  22. Hadron

    Hadron Registered Member

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    I could never get PHYLock to work.
    I remember the very first time I started using IFW, I had trouble with PHYLock. It would time-out.

    I switched the IFW PHYLock/VSS settings tab > VSS Settings to "Use VSS When Available" and had no problems with it since.

    I haven't actually disabled PHYLock in the IFW PHYLock/VSS settings tab > PHYLock Settings by selecting "Disable Usage", but it never gets used.
     
  23. myk1

    myk1 Registered Member

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    So far (I started IFW with version 1.15...) I have used PhyLock. Never VSS. I have never had one problem. If VSS is better than PhyLock, why does TeraByte still maintain it?
     
  24. Hadron

    Hadron Registered Member

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    The normal answer would be, if it's working for you without any issues, then keep using it.
    Having said that, Froggy posted some differences between PHYLock and VSS here.

    Also, is PHYLock still being maintained? I'm not sure.
    The last mention of it in any changelog is Version 3.37 (January 25, 2020).
    Maybe no maintenance has been necessary since then.
     
  25. TheRollbackFrog

    TheRollbackFrog Imaging Specialist

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    @mantra - also remember that the VSS Service is not just for imaging apps, it's used extensively for your WINDOWS RESTORE System feature which, itself, is used extensively when doing automatic Windows Updates. Pls keep that in mind if you want to turn it off and on for any reason...
     
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