How to correctly backup/restore the entire system

I've been playing around with the trial of true image home 9 to see if it fits my needs but I'm getting a bit confused on how this works. Here's what I intend to do with true image:

I want to format my computer, reinstall windows xp, update it, configure it and install all the software I need. After that I want to make a backup of all this to DVDs. After that, whenever I want to reinstall windows for some reason I simply want to be able to put the dvds on the drive and restore the system, without having to reinstall, update and configure everything again.

For instance, on "Media Components" for the backup options, what exaclty do "Place Acronis True Image Home (Full Version) on media" and "Place Acronis One-Click Restore on media"? Like I said, I just want to place the dvds on the drive and then restore the system, should I select the "one-click" option?

Could anyone tell me the steps necessary to backup and then restore and tell me about any specific options I should choose? Doesn't need to be very detailed...

 

I can not answer you directly as I gust installed Acronis True Image 9 last nigh, made my first backup disk this AM It failed with errors.

After trying with min reading and failing, I went back to the books.

This is my adivce:

The program will do all you want it to do and more. Can even Backup and restore files to a non operating system hard drive from a boot disk. should meet your need to reinstall a complet windows system that will be ready-to-go.

READ the discription of each operation, feature and function.

You will find a buffet of selections.

First scan the fully expanded HELP files. then go to help, select web support, select FAQ's read them for more details. then download the users guide, also located at the web support site.


Acronis True Image 9 IS A COMPEX program that shiuld not be browsed through.

 

Hello Nazgulled,

Yes, TI Build 3633 can do that but you will need to boot into the Acronis, Linux based, rescue environment in order to restore your system disk/partition. You can enter the rescue environment either by commencing the restore from within Windows and then rebooting when prompted, creating a Secure Zone and activating the Startup Recovery Manager (which then allows you to press F11 during system boot although, personally, I don't recommend this option), a TI bootable rescue CD or from a bootable image on DVD (created by including the Media Components). However, be aware that Build 3633 currently has a number of known problems with various types of DVD media. Best you read this previous thread titled <TI 9.0 Home Build 3633 - Imaging Direct to DVD> for more details.

Including the "Full Version" media components with the image being created to DVDs allows you to boot into the Linux based rescue environment from the first DVD of the image set and commence restoring from there. If you also include the "One-Click Restore" option then, after booting from the first DVD, you can use the "One-Click Restore" to simply restore the image to the same location/hard drive layout that it was created from. WARNING - If using the One-Click Restore option, any partitions that have not been included in the image being restored will be deleted from the destination drive. So, if you intend to use this feature, make sure you image the whole drive not just an individual partition.

Hope the above info helps.

Regards

 

About the one click restore, you mean something like this:
http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/9400/snap14ik.th.jpg

cause I didn't quite understood the differences and I would like to know if I should include it or not (and just leave the full version) on my backup dvds.

 

could you try and explain the difference a little better?

 

Im not sure what your example is showing. If it's about how to select the "whole" disk rather than just one or two partitions then you need to make sure the checkbox next to the Disk number is ticked, as per the screenshot below.

You can omit the One-Click Restore from the media components when creating the image if you don't want to use that particular capability.

Regards

 

the thing is, I don't know if I want that option or not, cause I don't understand exactly what does it do...

After I do a fresh install and configure everything, I want to copy drive C only, not the full hdd, cause I don't need to backup my linux system. I just want to have a way to save everything after installing windows/many programas and configure everything, so later I can just "reinstall" windows everything else from the backups, instead of really reformart and reinstall windows and all the other programas.

So, does "One-Click Restore" allows me to skip the loading of the full version, clicking restore, selecting the tib file, clicking next and then proceed? That's my question, or is this function for something else?

 

Hi nazgulled,

Yes, when you click on the "One-Click Restore" TI will restore the image on the DVD(s) to its original location without further user intervention. HOWEVER, as I warned above, any partitions of a multi-partition disk that are not included in the image will be deleted from from your hard drive if you restore it via the "One-Click Restore" button.

Because you intend only imaging the C: partition of your disk you could, if you wish, omit the "One-Click Restore" when adding the Media Components to your DVD image. Should you decide not to omit it then just make sure you restore via TI's normal "Full Version" user interface if the image isn't of the whole disk. Otherwise you'll be asking how to recover your deleted Linux partition .

Regards

 

Now I get it... and I don't to include the one-click restore then... thanks.