Imaging Basics

I used my Acronis True Image 9.0 software tonight for the first time. Twice on a new hdd (with OS installed) it would not allow me to back up or clone the disk. I can't even get into that now.

I successfully created the backup and installed it to one of my computers. But when Windows went to load I got the BSOD. The message was to disconnect any newly changed hardware . . . which brings me to my question.

I want to use my image of a "core" Windows XP installation for my home computers. This way I don't have to reload drivers, printers, scanners, shortcuts, change file locations etc. every time I reload a machine - which I do with some regulartiy. If True Image is copying the entire disk then it is also copying drivers -etc.- that won't work on other computers.

How do I use this program so that my image is universal. I'm recalling the days that my school would purchase a few hundred laptops and image them so every student basically had an identical PC. But we didn't all physically have the same computer. So what's the key to making one image work on different machines with different hardware?

Thanks for the help.

Po

For the record I plan on changing the Windows key so each computer has unique key (since they're already paid for) and I am in compliance with the EULA . . . in case anyone was wondering.

 

If you have fairly similar hardware such as same motherboard, you can look into Sysprep which is a Microsoft tool. AFAIK, it deals with PNP devices. Windows also offers an option to do a repair which reportedly has corrected some new hardware problems.

Acronis sells Universal Restore but you need TI Workstation to use it, not TI Home.

You may be able to search for threads on the forum with better info than I'm writing here.

While you are complying with Windows EULAs, you should know that you need a TI license for each computer it is used on, even if just entails running the Rescue CD version on the machine.

 

Hello powlaz,

Thank you for your interest in Acronis Disk Backup Software.

Please accept our apologies for the delay with the response.

I just wanted to confirm that seekforever's reply is 100% correct.

The point is that Microsoft System Preparation tool (sysprep) mentioned above by seekforever allows replacing drivers only for Plug-and-Play devices (sound cards, network adapters, video cards etc.). As for system HAL and boot device driver, they must be identical in the source and target computers (see Microsoft Knowledge Base articles 302577 and 216915).

If you want to be completely sure that the restored operating system will boot and function normally on the computer having hardware configuration different from that of the original machine, we recommend that you use Acronis True Image 9.1 Workstation in conjunction with Acronis Universal Restore for your purposes.

Acronis Universal Restore technology provides an efficient solution for hardware-independent system restoration by replacing the crucial HAL and hard disk controller drivers. Please read more information on how to use Acronis Universal Restore in Acronis True Image 9.1 Workstation User's Guide.

We also recommend that you download and install the free trial version of Acronis True Image 9.1 Workstation to see how the software works on your particular software\hardware configuration.

If you want to obtain the free trial version of Acronis Universal Restore then please submit a request for technical support using Ask a question before you purchase Acronis software link. Explain your wish to obtain the free trial version of Acronis Universal Restore and provide the link to this thread in your request.

Note that, as seekforever mentioned above, according to Acronis software licensing policy, you should purchase one copy of Acronis program per every computer where it will be used.

Please visit Acronis online store to purchase the full version of the product. Note that we have a flexible system of discounts and the amount of the discount varies depending on the number of copies you want to purchase. In case you are planning to purchase many copies, please contact our Sales Team at sales@acronis.com.

If you have any further questions concerning Acronis software, please feel free to submit a request for technical support or post any of them on this forum. We will certainly try to help you in resolving any issues.

Thank you.
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Alexey Popov