Ready to purchase bigger internal HD and Acronis TrueImage: I am terrified.

Succinct explanation:
My internal notebook HD has run out of space and I want to get a bigger one. This is my understanding of the procedure I should take:

1. Get Acronis True Image
2. Use it to create a disk image and store it temporarily on my external drive
3. Physically replace old internal drive with new, bigger internal drive
4. Restore image from external onto new internal

Okay. This seems like a straightforward process, but the logistics confuse me. My biggest question is after putting in the new internal, how would I access the image on the external since my computer wouldn't have an operating system? Or does Acronis burn a CD from which I would insert and from there I can access my external and subsequently restore the image?
I'm totally new at this as you can see, and if I'm going to invest a couple hundred bucks in this process I'd like to make sure it goes right the first time.

Does anyone have any tips or suggestions or anything? I'd appreciate it!

Edit:
Also, I have not bought a new internal HD yet... is there anything I should be aware of so I don't get a drive incompatible with my computer, if such a thing is possible? What specs should I pay attention to?

And am I in for a hell of a time opening up my notebook on my own and replacing the drive?

 

If You have not yet purchased TI then download the trial and after installing it you should create a rescue CD. You boot the laptop from the CD with your external hard disk already attached to the laptop and powered up. If TI CD can see your external drive then you know buying the full product is good.

Basically you boot from the CD and backup the laptop to the external disk, after swapping over the hard disks inside the laptop you restore from the backup to new disk.

 

Cellius,

I now prefer a "reverse clone". For laptops with non 255 head CHS geometry (IBM, Compaq, HP) the technique is necessary. But I'd use it for all laptops. This applies if your USB external HD takes laptop HDs.

Remove your laptop HD and place it in the USB external enclosure. Install your new HD in the laptop. Boot to the Acronis TI CD and perform the clone. When it has finished, unplug the USB cable and remove the TI CD. Shutdown your laptop. Start your laptop and it should boot to Windows.

What is your laptop brand? Special procedures are needed for some Dell laptops.

 

So basically my external would show up on the screen that I would enter after booting from this CD, and then I browse the external and locate the image file? And then from there everything is pretty straightforward, I imagine.

I own a Gateway laptop. The HD is remarkably easy to access; it's held underneath a section behind a single screw. I don't have a HD enclosure though, so once I take out the old internal, I would have no way of accessing the data on it (although I'll probably get an enclosure at some point afterwards, so I can use this old HD as another external).

 

So you have an ordinary USB external HD. Then the method suggested by Aussie42 is exactly what I'd do.

 

Cellius,
Note the differences. Brian K is referring to the cloning procedures; whereas, Aussie42 is talking about restoring an Image or Backup Archive.

If you have the time, it might help if you were to review my guides (links in signature below); plus the discussion and pdf listed in this post #32.
https://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=196961&page=2#32

Also, have you read the discussion about cloning in the TI user manual?

What version of True Image is being considered and what is your operating system?




Cloning / Imaging Terminology: (extracts from Acronis Support postings)

Clone Disk - When you use the "Disk Clone" tool, you effectively copy/move all of the contents of one
hard disk drive onto another hard disk drive. This function allows you to transfer all the information
(including the operating system and installed programs) from a small hard disk drive to a large one
without having to reinstall and reconfigure all of your software. The migration takes minutes, not hours,
but it is not generally used as a backup strategy.


Backup - (Imaging) creates a special archive file for backup and disaster recovery purposes--which
also includes new drive replacement. Single partitions or entire drives can be imaged for use as
partition or drive replacement. Archive file can be created within Windows mode or from Acronis
bootable Rescue CD. Archive files can be stored in folders and/or alternate drives or media.
If interested in backing up your hard drive for the disaster recovery purposes, the Backup approach is
recommended. Moreover, there are several advantages of creating an image over the disk cloning
procedure such as: you can create an image without rebooting your PC, image creation can be
scheduled for the particular point in time, Acronis True Image allows you to create incremental and
differential images, image archive contains only the actual data and so it has a smaller size, images
are ordinary files and so they can be stored on any type of the supported media, etc.

 

I was originally planning on restoring the drive image, since that was the only method of which I was aware... plus all I have is a USB external which would house the image nicely. My biggest concern was accessing/restoring this image once I installed the new internal disk.

Thank you, I will definitely check this out.

I have not read the discussion. I am considering the latest version of True Image... 11, I think it is? I have WinXP

 

Yes, having an external drive holding the backup archive would enable you to restore to a new drive very nicely.

 

Assuming I can access the archive image easily from the bootable CD, and physically exchanging the internal drives is not difficult, it seems this whole procedure isn't that bad.

I am downloading the TI v.11 trial right now to see if it recognizes my external.

 

Be sure to validate that ATI recognizes both your internal and external drives on both a backup and a restore. I was never able to restore from an external drive.

 

Here's what both the Backup and Restore screen look like when opening the program from within Windows. Both recognize my external (drive G).... I assume then that it'll also recognize the drive when I boot from CD outside Windows.

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y229/eea76/acronis.jpg

Edit:
When booting from CD it recognized my internal, although Next was grayed out in both cases no matter what I selected. Is that what you mean by you never being able to restore from an external drive?

 

No. ATI would start restoration, but would never complete.

 

What I usually do is make a new folder on my external harddrive giving it a date and name, then boot up with the "rescue CD" and see if I can browse to that folder, once you find the folder and click on it you have to add a name for the .tib file ( i just add the date here too). Once you do that the "greyed out next" should be gone. Now try to go all the way to "proceed". ( Further if you want to try an image)

 

The best test, especially with ATI11, is to use the BootCD and go through allthe steps for a restore except for the final proceed. This will confirm that the BootCD can see your drives both when you select the source for the restore file and the target drive to which you wish to restore the image.