backup image - newbee - Macrium

Discussion in 'backup, imaging & disk mgmt' started by FanJ, May 28, 2014.

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  1. FanJ

    FanJ Updates Team

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    Hi,
    A new PC has arrived. Win7 Pro 64 bit, Dutch. I have to learn everything from scratch ...
    Internal: one SSD and one HDD.
    I have also an external HDD, LaCie. And there is an WD external HDD.

    Windows tells me to make backup image.
    If I want to let it do to the external LaCie HDD, should the LaCie HDD formatted FAT or NTFS? (at the moment it is formatted FAT by XP).

    I have a Macrium Reflect Pro licence (not long ago bought it when some of you posted about a discount; thank you!). I have never used Macrium. I have to learn Macrium from scratch too.
    Some questions:
    - Full backup image onto external HDD?
    - External HDD formatted FAT or NFTS?
    - Making a bootable Macrium CD or ...?
    - whatever I forgot ...

    Any and all advices are more than welcome!

    Big thanks in advance!
     
  2. Peter2150

    Peter2150 Global Moderator

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    Welcome to the Macrium Club.

    To start.

    If you have the space I'd do a full back up first to the 2nd internal and then the external. Big difference in speed.

    I format all my external drives to NFTS

    On the CD. Yes make a bootable CD. I'd use PE 5.0 on that machine. Also install it in the preboot menu. Boy does that speed up loading

    There is a lot of debate about verifying. I don't bother as I have seen images that verified fail to restore correctly. What I do is have a video somewhere on my system. Once I image I then mount the image and see if I can
    play the video. I have never had an image fail when I could.

    One other thing Practice. Both imaging and restoring.

    Pete
     
  3. Minimalist

    Minimalist Registered Member

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    I would create system image backup using Macrium Reflect.
    I would create it on internal HDD and then copy it to external one.
    External HDD should be formated NTFS to support large files.
    You should also create Macrium boot CD in case system becomes unbootable.
     
    Last edited: May 28, 2014
  4. trott3r

    trott3r Registered Member

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    Completely agree with hqsec: internal drives are so much faster than external ones.
     
  5. FanJ

    FanJ Updates Team

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    Thank you Pete, hqsec, trott3r,

    Thanks! Things go very slow on my end and I have to read all your advices.
    I guess that I will have later more questions, but I do want to thank you all! (hoping that I didn't forgot to thank others).
     
  6. timcan

    timcan Registered Member

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    Hi, Macrium has a good knowledgebase also.Most articles have step by step screenshots to help.
    http://kb.macrium.com/KnowledgebaseCategory53.aspx
    Hope this helps.
     
  7. focus

    focus Registered Member

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    @FanJ What hqsec has here is almost exactly what I do. I would add a couple of notes.

    Create both types of bootable CD's Linux and WinPE. Linux boots much faster for a simple restore, WinPE is a more fully functional interface when you need to make an offline backup. Test your CD's after creation to make sure they boot! I've worked on a couple of systems where the CD's would not boot after creation, even though Macrium said the creation was successful. I always use a CD to do a restore, even though you can initiate the process within the Macrium GUI. I had a GUI restore go bad on me once and that was the last of that.

    One of the nice things about the paid version is that you can set it to automatically verify an image as a part of the image creation process. In the free version you have to do a manual verify off the restore tab.

    Macrium recommends you use their automatically created Image ID. I uncheck this box and name the image to something with the disk name and the date. This makes it much easier to understand your images on your backup drive.
     
  8. FanJ

    FanJ Updates Team

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    timcan and focus,
    Thank you for the additional advices and link !

    Things go slow here, sorry; haven't yet installed/used it. I have looked at that FAQ link and printed some of the articles.

    Pete.

    About PE 5.0. I looked at http://kb.macrium.com/KnowledgebaseArticle50082.aspx . That article is talking only about PE 3.1 and 4. Is that article a little bit outdated? Do you get PE 5.0 offered in some way by Macrium Reflect?

    I guess that I have to find how to change settings in my Gigabyte mobo BIOS to boot from CD, if at all needed; but I guess I have to.

    About formatting an external drive:

    If you have a new one, I guess it may be better to format it first (just in case any crap may be put on it); or? Any special advice on that?

    The older external LaCie drive is another thing. I guess that I did things wrong with formatting that one. I found some articles at Sevenforums:
    Convert FAT or FAT32 Volume to NTFS
    http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/11106-convert-fat-fat32-volume-ntfs.html
    No progress yet made on that at the moment.
     
  9. Peter2150

    Peter2150 Global Moderator

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    Yes that articls is out of date. When you make the recovery environment stuff, there is an option box, and when you click it you can chose which one you want. Also I love having it in the Windows Preboot menu. It boots up so fast. Hasn't given me any trouble on any my machines, bot WIn 7 and XP.

    Pete
     
  10. FanJ

    FanJ Updates Team

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    Thanks Pete. Yep, I installed it yesterday and there was indeed that option box to install PE 5.0.
    First time I ever installed Macrium Reflect; still have to learn a lot about it and get familiar with it.
     
  11. Peter2150

    Peter2150 Global Moderator

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    There is also an option to install it in the Windows Preboot setup. Once you do that you will never look back. I have it that way on 3 WIn 7x64 macines, and a tablet with Tablet XP. Works like a charem
     
  12. FanJ

    FanJ Updates Team

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    I noticed the thread started by Kent: https://www.wilderssecurity.com/threads/macrium-reflect-image-verification.365006/

    Couldn't a file-intregity-checker like for example ADinf32 (old review) give you also some "comfort" that things has be gone OK? I mean for test purpose, run ADinf32 before an image backup and then run it again after a restore. You will probably want to run a registry-integrity-checker also in the same way. (Any advices on such a tool?).
    Yesterday I did my first Reflect restore and noticed that ADinf32 warned about changes in Master-boot record and Boot record on my C-drive. To see what actually has been changed (if ADinf32 was right), you will need a special tool for that.

    Sorry, at the moment I don't have the time to look at it further.
     
  13. MrBrian

    MrBrian Registered Member

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    Yes, but some files will probably have changed since the backup was made.
     
  14. Peter2150

    Peter2150 Global Moderator

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    Hi FanJ

    Going the route you are suggesting is going to cause you endless confusion. Taking a good image and restore, I compared my system using AJCSOfT's Dirc Sync. I mounted the image and then compared the virtual disk with my c: drive, I could verify that indeed the they critical files, and data where the same, but there were over 2gb of stuff that changed. Windows logs, other log files, prefetch, etc. All the stuff that changes from one boot to the next.

    As I posted in the other Macrium thread the quickest and what I found thru experience, the simplest and very effective means of checking an image is simply mount it and play a video file you have tucked away. With a very large number of restores under my belt, I have never had an image fail to restore properly when I could do that.

    Pete

    PS. The only way to gain confidence in that is to take images, test them, and then restore them. As I've said elsewhere, when you truly have a problem requiring a restore, there will be stress. That is not the time to learn the restore. You need to practice practice and practice.
     
  15. FanJ

    FanJ Updates Team

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    Hi MrBrian and Pete,

    Thank you both. I understand your replies.
     
  16. FanJ

    FanJ Updates Team

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    More newbee questions if you guys would allow me:

    I upgraded my Reflect Pro today from 5.2 to version 5.3.7086 (released at 10 July 2014). Preboot menu was already installed as Pete recommended.
    See replies 312 and 313 at https://www.wilderssecurity.com/threads/macrium-reflect.356309/page-13

    1. Does it get automatically all needed things (like PE for example; I had PE 5)?

    2. Should I make new bootable CDs?

    (3. OK, I have made new bootable CDs (PE and Linux).)

    4. Does it happen that the Linux version number is different from the Windows version number? Again see reply 312 and 313 at https://www.wilderssecurity.com/threads/macrium-reflect.356309/page-13

    5. About making the Linux bootable CD, which options do you use: Compatibility Mode, Debug Mode?

    6. When just only testing whether the Linux bootable CD is starting, how to get back to Windows?

    Sorry for all the newbee questions, and thanks in advance!
     
  17. Peter2150

    Peter2150 Global Moderator

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    Hi FanJ

    I am chuckling as I discovered that just letting the desktop update doesn't update the local boot environment.

    But if you made the new CD's then you defacto updated the on board environment. I did it on one machine tonight, but just had it make an ISO. Tomorrow I will update the other machines, and make the appropriate CD's

    I didn't bother with the Linux disk. When the PE environment is available I just use that.

    I can't answer 5, but on 6 if all you are interested in is seeing the linux CD boot, but don't want to it go all the way, then I'd just use the power reset, and let windows reboot.

    Pete
     
  18. FanJ

    FanJ Updates Team

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    Hi Pete,

    Thank you.
    Although I have some questions, maybe they belong more in the other thread.

    About
    If the CD is in the computer and your computer is running from it, and if you restart the computer, then your computer is once again running from the CD (Linux or PE, whatever CD you have in). Isn't it? Do I understand things wrong?
     
  19. Peter2150

    Peter2150 Global Moderator

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    What I do is as I hit the power reset I open the CD tray. Then the computer will boot from Windows. Also it depends on the computer. My desktops have no bios setting perse, so even with the CD they boot from windows. As my boot sequence starts, I use F8 and it pulls up a boot menu, and there i select the CD. But to do what you asked about, I just use the power reset, and open the CD tray. Same effect.

    Pete
     
  20. FanJ

    FanJ Updates Team

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    Thanks Pete.

    I have two other questions, if you don't mind.
    The first one I posted here in the Macrium Reflect thread.
    The second one is about settings when making a bootable CD/DVD PE5. Which checkmarks should be set? See screenie. Thanks in advance!

    Macrium_2014_07_17_03.gif
     
    Last edited: Jul 16, 2014
  21. Peter2150

    Peter2150 Global Moderator

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    I am laughing as I look at that image. I should pay more attention myself. That prompt for key isn't a bad idea, but what happens to me half the time is once the boot starts I turn away and that prompt to press a key comes up, and I am not paying attention, so the boot switches back to windows. I think next time, I may not check that myself.

    Pete
     
  22. FanJ

    FanJ Updates Team

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    OK, and what about that last option "Enable multiboot MBR/UEFI USB support"?
     
  23. Peter2150

    Peter2150 Global Moderator

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    My mother boards have UEFI Bios, but the disks are mbr based. I've never bother with that option and haven't had any issues.

    Pete
     
  24. oliverjia

    oliverjia Registered Member

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    Check that option and you'll be able to boot off any computer, either ones with traditional BIOS, or the new ones with secure boot/UEFI.
    When I used MR, I always have it checked.
     
  25. Peter2150

    Peter2150 Global Moderator

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    Thanks oliveriia
     
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