hard disk and dvd writer Please Help

Discussion in 'all things UNIX' started by cet, May 11, 2010.

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  1. cet

    cet Registered Member

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    I phoned to the PC shop and they told me that my hard disk is under guarantee.Since the hard disk has got 28 bad sectors I can change this hard disk(.this was a samsung hard disk but they tell me that seagate is the best now).But in order to change this hard disk I have to give this disk to them and wait approval for a week!!!! So that means I will not be able to use my PC for some time and also I have to format the sensitive data.I do not like the situation.Is there a way to completely copy this system to another hard disk(that means I will have to give extra money and buy another hard disk) Since this system has both Windows XP and Linux on it and the MBR is altered before with easyBCD the Microsoft Experts!! at the shop tell me that they really do not know what to do !!!!! They say: we can only copy the Windows part with Acronis.
    The only thing I want is to copy this hard disk to another one and use it as before.
    Is seagate hard disk compatible with Ubuntuo_O or what do you recommend me to buy
    I also want to buy a dvd writer(now I only have a cd reader) could you please recommend me a dvd writer that works out of the box for Ubuntu.
    If everything goes wrong I will definitely be NOT installing Windows again.I will only install Ubuntu.I do not want to go through those long steps again.
    So if the only operating system is going to be Ubuntu, then everything should work on this PC.That is why I am sensitive about choosing the hard disk and the dvd writer.
     
  2. mack_guy911

    mack_guy911 Registered Member

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    well if they change hardisk at free of cost which i wonder i suggest yes go for it

    yes seagate hardisk are one of best hardisk they come with 5 years of warranty i have 3 seagate hardisk on my 3 computers no bad sector yet

    harddisk1) = 7 years +
    hardsk 2) = 5 years +
    hardisk 3 = laptop hardisk 5 years +

    for dvd writer i suggest samsung is one of best choice

    option 1 backup your data and do fresh install of windows by guys then install mint on it which is customised ubuntu linux ie every thing of ubuntu which are needed are already pre -installed like flash media codec ......printer java Medibuntu Repository is default given many things one more great thing about this distro is its made on ubuntu so you find its solution in ubuntu forms as well i.e what ever work on ubuntu also work on linux mint

    please check

    http://linuxmint.com/rel_isadora_whatsnew.php#mintinstall


    option 2 clone your hardisk to another one in cloning or creating image of your system become same as the previous one

    a) you can buy a big hardisk (3.5 size) with usb casing or usb built hardisk they come pretty cheap in pricing also very good what matter is their physical size is bigger than laptop hardisk size also some of them need external power supply but at price they come nearly half price of laptop size hardisk + casing


    b) you can buy one more laptop hardisk (2.5) which is expensive but small in size with external usb casing ......casing come pretty cheap you can create image/clone your hardisk to usb one

    one more advantage you have in this type of hardisk is that if your hardisk is fail to respond you can change it with new one

    please check this one there is free disk cloning tool come with seagate give you little idea of about cloning i am not sure because i never use it but it has very good reviews

    http://support.seagate.com/kbimg/flash/laptop/laptop.html

    for cloning there are many good tools like clonzilla paragon acronis ........ett

    please check this thread

    http://www.dedoimedo.com/computers/free_imaging_software.html

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEyAtFJR8fI

    if its done properly then you get your system back same as the day you created the image copy of both systems of linux as well windows

    edit: there is one more advantage of additional hardisk is that you can run your linux from usb with installing it to your usb drive ..........yes linux can run and booted from usb if your bios support boot from usb drive

    there are many cloning imaging tools i am not expect on that so i cannot comment which is best i tried clonezilla ....once and Norton Ghost long time back they work for me i also got paragon i backup with it but never restore so cannot comment please take advice form experts like mrk regarding that also i suggest you to back up your drive without image cloning as well it will helpful in extreme case if back dont restore properly atleast you got every thing about your important data back

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUu9InlfD_c
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHwFx0EfO04
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEyAtFJR8fI

    also cloning device of same hardware least chances to give trouble but different might give trouble because device driver install during the time of boot are different

    conclusion:-

    let important file backup encrypted online or write on dvd then repair your pc with new drive then let xp guys install backup then buy another drive same as your internal drive clone it for further

    why because if you clone now it might clone bad sectors aswell if done sector by sector cloning second you face hardware compatibility issue like your hardisk is samsung you clone it to seaget then device drivers mismatch because cloning does not install drivers they cause problem
     
    Last edited: May 11, 2010
  3. Ocky

    Ocky Registered Member

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    Another alternative (to back up and restore Ubuntu) is the program Remastersys. I have used it successfully in both Karmic and Jaunty.
    See Mrk's tutorial http://www.dedoimedo.com/computers/remastersys.html

    Use backup mode and make sure the backup is no more than 4GB. In this connection you can exclude folders that contain large files under 'Files to Exclude =' for example:-
    /home/cet/Music /home/cet/Videos /home/cet/Pictures /home/cet/Downloads
    You can backup those to DVD or memory stick.

    Unfortunately the Remastersys site was recently hacked, but you can get the program from Sourceforge in the meantime. .... http://remastersys.sourceforge.net/
    http://sourceforge.net/projects/remastersys/files/ ( remastersys_2.0.17.1_all.deb for Karmic and Lucid). Will work on all debian based distros incl. Mint.

    For me this was the easiest solution.
     
  4. mack_guy911

    mack_guy911 Registered Member

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    Ocky solution best use Remastersys create cd then repair install xp then use Remastersys created cd it give you distro as it is now then clone or create image of both at once

    ocky which software you suggest for cloning or creating a image file which will lead boot both windows and linux at once
     
  5. Ocky

    Ocky Registered Member

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    mack_guy911 Like you mentioned Clonezilla should do a clone of an entire disk with ntfs and ext3/4 partitions as long as the new disk is the same size or larger than the cloned one. I don't have experience with Clonezilla, only with Acronis which I found to be excellent - but it costs. Best and easiest method - use only Linux in future.:argh:

    http://www.tuxradar.com/content/how-clone-hard-drives-clonezilla
     
  6. cet

    cet Registered Member

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    Thank you for all your help.
    I made my decision and
    I ordered a 500GB Seagate hard disk.After I move to that new hard disk I will try to replace my old disk which still has the guarantee,and I will use the new Samsung disk as the external hard disk.
    But I am still not sure about installing windows on the new HD.I love Ubuntu and I can do everything I had done with WindowsXP.I am not sure I need windows.Is it wise to install Ubuntu as the only system on a 500GB harddisk? Does Ubuntu crash from time to time?
    After using Ubuntu I feel like moving from hell to heaven.No resident antivirus,easy to use and faster bootup and shut down and no defrag etc.
    If I only install Ubuntu as the operating system should I format it as ext3 or ext4.Because I have been using easyBCD to boot both systems,the only choice I had was ext3 before.
     
  7. linuxforall

    linuxforall Registered Member

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    I have four dead Seagates here and one WD, Seagate also issued hdds with bad firmware causing premature failure. I do have ancient IBM 11 year old SCSI still running. As for best, it depends, my luck with Samsung Spinpoint Enterprise class have been very good, not only are they the fastest HDDs around beating out even WD Velocitiraptors but they run cooler as well which is critical for hdd life.
     
  8. mack_guy911

    mack_guy911 Registered Member

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    one thing i find useful also given on 11th slide of Seagate please check that ocky and cet

    http://support.seagate.com/kbimg/flash/laptop/laptop.html

    that drives should be of same company will be good

    cet i suggest buy a same drive if you are buying Seagate for backup or for your hardisk then also for laptop buy Seagate

    size may differ but buy same company both drives samsung or seagate buy same 2 hardisk

    ie Seagate 500 Gb and seagate 200 Gb will go ok but ....
    Seagate 500 Gb + samsung cause pain specially cloning and imaging

    why please check above link slide 11th page clone disc column give a justify answer
     
    Last edited: May 14, 2010
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