Raxco FD support

Hi,

I'm a little puzzled about exactly where we are with support for FD now can some-one help as I am slowly going mad.

I have a copy of FD bought from Raxco, but it will not run on Vista. Previously I upgraded from XP so used an XP snapshop to reactivate the license. BUT a few days ago I had a hard drive corruption (caused by iTunes!) and the end result is a total loss of my C drive and all its snapshots so I cannot do this again. I do have an archived snapshot safe on a network drive, but because I cannot load FD (because its a pre-vista build that I had updated with a patch build) or load a trial (because it says that my trial has expired) I cannot access it. Is there ANYONE who will respect my original purchase and give me a link to a Vista compatible build? I can prove my purchase as I still have the email receipt. I have tried contacting Raxco but just got a very unhelpful email back from them pointing me towards an out of date Leapfrog page.
Thanks,
Gareth

 

Hmm very odd. Just a few seconds ago I received an email from another person at Raxco giving me a link to the desired new version, yet I still have an email from them saying that they cannot help me.....

Oh well - theres the answer - yes they do support it but only if you get the right person...

 

Send Raxco an email - they will send you a single file installer for Vista. They did for me a couple of weeks ago (Susie is the right person)

 

evansgo,
Save the installation file of FDISR very well, because the next version won't have any archives (+ freeze storage) anymore.

The new "FDISR Rescue" will be something like Returnil, DeepFreeze, ShadowDefender, PowerShadow, ShadowUser, ...
- without multiple snapshots and that is the end of having different work environments.
- without archives and freeze storage and that is the end of any restoration flexibility.

The development of FDISR Workstation has been terminated by Horizon DataSys and that is the end of an unique piece of art, because there is no replacement at all.

 

Hey Erik, Maybe for you its fading but many use FDISR without freeze and are really satisfied with it.

 

There is nothing special about freezing, which I explained already in other posts.

Freezing is nothing but a copy/update from archive to snapshot, which can be done MANUALLY just like any other similar copy/update from archive to snapshot.
What makes a frozen snapshot different is that the copy/update happens automatically during reboot and that freeze offers a previous re-freeze.

I can replace my frozen snapshot with a normal snapshot and do a manual copy/update from archive to snapshot after each reboot and that would do exactly the same thing as a frozen snapshot.

What HDS did was removing archives from FDISR and that means also that the freezing was removed, which was just a logical consequence.
Forget about the word "freezing" it was just a normal copy/update like any other copy/update in FDISR.

The file "Freeze Storage.ARX" = archive of a frozen snapshot, any other archive of a snapshot has also the extension .ARX, in case you didn't know.
Freeze/Unfreeze/Import/Export = copy/update under a different name with minor unimportant differences, that's all.

 

The freezing issue was not desperately important to me either, but I am much less satisfied with the plans to cut it down to One snapshot and do away with archives, this will impact how I use the program.

 

Bingo, Bingo, Bingo, except that this is one person who WILL NOT upgrade to any version that does that, if any version like that even ever comes out of Raxco.

Acadia

 

That's right, you might get a FDISR without freeze OR FirstDefense-ISR Rescue, if you upgrade.

 

Don't get it,are you saying that they will do away with archiving options? If thats the case........SHAME on RESELLERS and LEAPFROGG to kill this beautifull piece of art. I just don't believe, its hopefully bad gossip hanging around here on Wilders.

 

Ok, read it for yourself:

http://support.horizondatasys.com/ics/support/default.asp?deptID=4443&task=knowledge&questionID=299

Acadia

 

It does not surprise me that Horizon would do this. FDISR competes directly with rollback. It also compliments it in the sense that by making FDISR strictly a rescue utility they will be able to try it out in new markets. Having recently discovered the wonderful ability of FDISR to both recover from software disasters & also the ability to start over with archives I will miss the old FDISR. I don't think I will ever upgrade. I could use Acronis or Paragon for System Rescue just as easily as a new FDISR Rescue & why woulden't I . It was probably a huge mistake to appoint Horizon as a distributor of FDISR as it will now become something else entirely than it was under RAXCO. I agree guard the old RAXCO setup files religously if you want to continue to use it for what you guys do with it. I somehow don't think that Horizon shares you enthusiasm for trying out software etc.

 

Well, I don't have to worry. I can use my FDISR as long I have this computer and maybe longer.
Alot can happen during the next years and ISR-softwares are becoming more and more popular and that means new ISR-softwares or similar softwares.

It can also be that Leapfrog sold FDISR and even agreed with the removal of archives and even with FDISR Rescue, because they have other plans for a better software than FDISR in mind. After all FDISR wasn't strong enough to survive the killdisk virus or the destructive DEL-command, a few other functions could be improved or added.
Leapfrog can continue and losing time to improve FDISR or can create something entirely new and that is the best choice.
Leapfrog already told us that he doesn't post that much at Wilders, but he does read this forum and that might have given him new ideas + his ideas to build something better.

I won't use any software of HDS, because I never trusted HDS and their softwares aren't good enough and they never seem to get out of trouble, even their flag ship, Rollback Rx v8.1, is still not good and they killed FDISR, something I won't forget.

I will keep a good eye on Leapfrog, while I keep on using the old FDISR. After all Leapfrog IS the brain behind FDISR, not HDS.

 

Absolutely, this is why I am not too worried despite a little rant here and there to let the developers know my preferences. Thanx to yourself and Peter talking up fd-isr I was able to get my copies before the demise and now I have time on my side to find a suitable replacement.

 

Face it, we the paying public are at the complete mercy of the worse possible thing to ever ground down what is been the World's most prolific and useful recovery program short of an imaging program itself, and now it's being pushed into a corner as it's former customers.

Thanks a lot HDS for making life even more miserable with those type efforts.

One gets the feeling sometimes that these distributors/vendors for a season fashion a superb work of art only to throw it to the wolves.

For that i say Bahhh! and HDS has earned their plave now as completely irresponsible stewart of what was a World-Class product of Legendary proportions.

Obviously they are a very jealous group, like a kid who gets their hands on anothers toy only to tear it up. How childish and especially out in the open for all the world to see.

I say good riddence to HDS when they finish their mockery of the product FD-ISR as a slap in the face to it's longtime trusted supporters.

This absolutely stinks and wreaks of total disregard & disrespect for anothers efforts.

Leapfrog must have had to been compensated handsomely for HDS to practice free reigh in dismantling FD-ISR in this manner. Who will ever trust them for anything useful in the future.

 

I will never use any of the HDS softwares or recommend them.

Each time I would use FDISR Rescue, it would remind me of the old FDISR and how good it was.
DriveVaccine is just another ISR-software, I hardly hear anything from it.
RollbackRx has never been reliable and still isn't.

I always will remember HDS as the FDISR-killer. HDS made a big mistake and probably alot of enemies as well.

 

At this point in time and especially after their deliberately malicious ripping away of the most critical useful features for reliable recovery and those same very features that have served very well to protect the end user against disaster while preserving the data system/settings/files as was intended in the first place, i hold HDS wholely responsible and theres no excuse nor explaination left now thats going to make up for this debacle.

No matter what rolls out from that camp from here on out, this action is marked them for what they truly and arrogantly have proven themselves to be all along.

Third rate and to be avoided at all costs.

Theres just no more excuse which could even remotely justify their decision to ruin what is been a very highly effective top level recovery system. Rx/HDS certainly won't be perceived in any other light after such a mockery at this level of marketing.

 

U seem to be dreaming.

The point is that why LeapFrog, in first hand, allowed HDS to cut this vital function of archiving?

 

I guess I'm something of an anomaly, but my own analysis would tend to agree with HDS's. There is pent up demand for a more straightforward product along the lines described for FD-ISR Rescue. This product clearly won't satisfy a number of the needs articulated above, but it will have a lot more commercial potential - if the needed simplicity is achieved, stability is maintained, and it is sold at a lower price point.

The retirement of FD-ISR Workstation is a much harder call. Obviously, the specification of Workstation implies that the Server product will continue on as is, and sales for that platform might exceed Workstation for all we know.

I realize that the FD-ISR Workstation users here are a passionate group, but, objectively speaking, your numbers are small. Based on the learning curve that each of you goes through to effectively use the product, you're possibly an expensive group to support as well. I realize that much of that support is developed and provided within the user base, but that simply underscores a market need that does exist out there for a product with simplicity as a base trait - and that generally means a restricted key feature set as well.

Blue

 

I won't speak for Erik or would even try, his answers are more pointed and go right to the heart of the culprits and their motives, and theres no reason not to support that perception because the facts are right here in front of us in black & white.

The first answer that arises first in my mind is that they paid Leapfrog handsomely to cripple it in order to raise more attention to their own program, which is nothing short of a complete flop anyway when you look at the track record of it.

 

They could have done it very easily, launch ISR-Rescue or whatever they want with dummy proof default settings and keep the complex functions hidden in an advanced mode for advanced uers.

Without archiving support, i will put FDISR equal to or even less than Eaz-Fix regarding stability, protection etc!

 

and this is precisely how I would have done it.

I never used archiving, it wasn't part of my needed feature set. I'm more along the lines of a Rescue type user from the start.

As with any change, part of the issue is the change itself, but a larger part is how it is communicated and managed. Perhaps it is the technical origins of many software companies, but they generally handle the communication and management part rather badly....

Blue

 

Life goes on, the tool is broken, find another tool. All suggestions greatly received.