Cloning Laptops?

Hello,

We want to be able to clone one laptop to several other, identical laptops. The image file size is very small (less than 500megs). I would very much like to be able to make a bootable CD with the image and then just use that CD to clone the image to the other laptops.

I can't figure out how to do this. Is it possible?

Thanks

Kathy

 

Check the messages here:

https://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=48186

It is for doing the same thing but on DVD media.

 

I read the long, long thread and while I can see that you are a brilliant person, I must simply say that this procedure is absurdly complicated for someone like me -- and I don't have some of the programs needed. I don't need a new project, just a solution.

I am dissapointed that TI won't do this obviously useful procedure by itself and with a few clicks.

Thanks for your reply!

Kathy

 

Create an image of the laptop and store it on a network share or external drive. Then restore it to each laptop. This will only work if the hardware is identical or else you will need to use sysprep to prepare the image.

 

Tom,

Thank you for your suggestion but HOW is this accomplished? I have created an image file but how do I install it on the laptops?

All the laptops are identical but they have no OS installed. I would have to install Windows and then TI first? (If so, then it would be no help at all.)

Kathy

 

Flattery will get you everywhere Okay, seriously, with TI unfortunately it is sometimes a chore to get it to do what you want - as you are finding out.

Here is another solution partly suggested by a previous poster:

Make the bootable TI CD.
Get an external usb hard drive to put the backup image on.
Connect the external drive (that has the image) to a laptop.
Boot with the bootable CD on each laptop.
Restore the image to the laptop.

If it works, that is as simple as it is going to get.

 

Create the TI Bootable Rescue CD as Chutsman has suggested and then boot each laptop using the CD. The CD is a Linux environment, Windows is not needed at this point. Navigate to the image file you wish to restore and go. It does need to be on external drive or network share for this to work.

 

Hi Kathy,

Yes, as per the following:

1. Create a TI bootable rescue CD.
2. Create a "Whole Disk" image (tick the checkbox next to "Disk 1" not just the C: partition) to either an external USB drive or the internal hard drive and, yes, you can create an image on the same partition that is being imaged (just ignore the warning message).
3. Use your normal CD/DVD recording software to copy the image file to the previously created bootable rescue CD as a CD-ROM (ISO) compilation as detailed in this <previous reply of mine>.

Regards

 

Oh, thank goodness for smart people like Menorcaman, Chutsman, Thomasjk. I made the bootable CD, copied the TI file and it worked just fine!

Thank you Menorcaman and everyone else. This information really helped me so much.

Kathyy