The CF-19 MK5 "Acronis hates me" triple(?) build and rebuild thread...

So last June I built two "Air Combat Command Edition" (GENUINE!) MK5's. (that build thread is here Both have been well used and well loved! I kept one, and basically gave the other to a coworker at cost. Now I have two more wanting machines. The first one is in my hands tonight. And I killed the platter drive I put into mine. I have another machine on its way, and SSD drives arriving for mine.

And of course Acronis is killing me... I don't use this software very often. And last time I had the VERY same issue.

What is the problem? I have a nice backup image made, but Acronis won't load the backup, or let me browse to the drive containing it. I dug through all 5 pages of my last thread, and I think I found the solution finally. I am going to dig it out and try it in this thread.

This time the computer I am building is operational at least. But the eBay seller claimed that it was loaded with W7 64bit Pro. And shipped it with 32bit. And while at first glance there are no driver yellow ?, none of the Panny Drivers are loaded. He found the Panasonic Driver Download manager though, werrrrggggg duh lol.

The next post will be the working process!

 

THE PROCESS!!!

1) Setup Acronis USB Tool (ideally this should be done in NTFS format, but I never found this option)
2) Get backup onto an NTFS formatted drive. Seems nothing else will work. At least it wouldn't with the file size of the backup I am using.
3) "Mark" the drive with the backup. Enough drives show up when you load Acronis, it can be hard to tell if the right one is there. I dropped a text file onto the drive named simply "This Drive."

(still not completed, will edit further)

 

So it seems the main problem is I have to drop the files for backup onto an NTFS formatted drive. Acronis makes the backup media in Fat32... I don't remember seeing a way to do it otherwise. Backup file is stored on my MacBook. And it won't let me write to NTFS drives. So I dropped it onto an external USB drive. Then wasted time trying to read that drive... It was formatted for Mac...

Problem 1) Getting the file OFF the MacBook. Using OSX's Disk Utility, erase the (usb external) drive, set if for ExFAT, and for Scheme select GUID Partition Map. Then the file can be dropped onto the drive.

Problem 2) Of course the ExFAT drive also isn't read by Acronis... So now it has to be transferred using a PC. Copy to desktop (or wherever you prefer), them copy that onto a NTFS formatted thumb drive.

Right now I am stuck at the waiting point. Waiting for stuff to copy from point A to Point B, And I still need to move from B to C....

There HAS to be a better damn way.... If only I could write the backup to a couple DVDs or something.

 

Live boot Linux and format the USB in NTFS or Fat32, drop Tib file onto USB and you're done,recover. The USB doesn't need to be bootable so simple.

 

Are you using Acronis to take an image off of a regular hard disk and transfer it to your new SSDs? I could swear I have ready that can be fraught with issues down the road. Just sayin'...

 

It's always best to do a full install when installing a SSD. I used my Arcronis backup but was getting errors/crashes. If you check out the OS forum they will tell you the same. Do a full install

 

Fat32 won’t accept the image file “this file is too large for the format of the drive”. The issue is the backup is sitting on my MacBook.... So I can’t write it to an NTFS drive. How the hell I got it onto the Mac is a mystery... Hence the funny business.

Good to know but currently no. Still trying to setup a platter drive on this first one. I did need to transfer everything off my MK1 onto SSD this way though. The MK5 aren’t too bad to setup the long way. Is there a work around?

 

Damn... Then the MK1 may not be doable.

 

Or you can do what I did.
Partition a 32gb usb stick with the Acronis boot partition being fat32 and the tib storage partition being ntfs or exFat.


Good info here

 

I wondered about doing that. Even still it doesn’t solve the issue of getting the backup file off the Mac. Or the fact that the attempt that almost worked, left me with a corrupt image.

Image... maybe I burned that to dvd last time?

 

Format the usb as exFat--Macs will write exFat.. Windows and Linux reads exFat

 

Yep, but Acronis doesn't read ExFAT....

Last night I was using an external USB platter drive. I am clearing off a flash drive right now to go ahead and try this. Still have to then put the image file on it, then likely transfer that off onto a PC. I will see if Acronis reads the ExFAT flash drive, but not much hope since it didn't read the ExFAT usb platter.

 

You can build the Acronis Windows PE Rescue Media which does support exFAT.

 

Well I am giving up on Acronis for now. I have spent more time messing with it than just starting over from scratch. I finally got the recovery image visible to the Acronis loader. And I still can't get it to go through the process!!!

It took maybe ten minutes to load Windows. I have the driver one click bundle and the other items I need transferring over to a USB drive now.

 

If you are building 1 or 2 laptops you're crazy not to load everything from scratch in my opinion. I just like knowing all drivers and programs have been installed and that I can watch each one install and know it works 100%. I have had certain MK models where something works on one but not another the same way... And I tire of chasing the rabbit.

I can't tell you how many times I have spent 4 hours trying to find a simpler way to do a 1 hour job... Just because I wanted to know if I could.

I used Acronis a few times to clone disks when I was selling a large order of CF-29s to one person or business. (Back when I did that full-time.) Since it is now a hobby... I like taking my time.

 

Loading Windows and the driver one click bundle on these is pretty easy and fast. Looking the updates for windows and then tweaking every little detail, takes easily 2 days...

The first MK5 is done and gone! Not too far away, I saw it sitting on the back of a Ford today crunching away on logging into the security module! It is so nice to build these things because they get USED and ABUSED like they should!

My Combat Air Command MK5 now has its SSD installed and W7 up and running. I need to do the driver bundle and updates. I didn't have anything critical on it that wasn't backed up, or too difficult to get back. The MK1 on the other hand...

Okay full install, check. But how about using the Acronis backup to then sort out the drivers, windows configuration, programs and files?

MY MK1 will be a NIGHTMARE to reload the drivers on.... And it has a couple bits of specialized software that was not too easy to configure.

 

Yes... I love seeing them abused. I had one business where I built them 8 CF-29s. A few years later the guy calls me and tells me that his CF-29 has been working correctly for years in the port replicator but he needs to take it out in the field again. I asked him why he couldn't just disconnect and go. He said it had been run over and crushed by a bulldozer years ago... The screen and top were shattered as was the keypad... But it worked great for years in the port replicator with an external screen and keyboard! I laughed... There is no other laptop in the world that could have survived that and continue working as his did!

If you are doing full install... Do the full install! You want all the little registry entries and such to go where they should on your new rig!

Is it possible to do as you mention? Yes. Is it preferable? Not in my opinion.

 

Toughbooks are the ONLY laptops I have used where the main reason for removal from the field is usually software outgrowing the machine. My orange CF-19 id an antique in computer terms, and it is still going STRONG! When I got it 5yrs ago, the lid had been damaged by what I was told was a bullet ricochet. How many computers can get "shot" snd still keep going?!

I have only managed to destroy one Toughbook in an incident I probably shouldn't talk about.... The "P.C." story version is the laptop got "tossed" 30', missed its target -=cough=- and hit a concrete floor. It was a CF-72 and shattered the screen and snapped it off. I think the DVD drive popped out and got broken too. I am sure it could have been fixed, but it was already showing its "software age."

My first CF-71 was given to a friend. It had been running Windows ME and somehow it was STILL up and running 3yrs ago! He couldn't still use it on the internet and he had just swapped it to linux so he could keep using it.

Lol anyways... These machines just stay with you.

Well, I guess for the MK1 I will need to grab another HDD caddy. I simply can't afford having it down for the time it will take to get it running W7. Due to lack of drivers bundles, or even correct W7 drivers...

 

I have a similar story but mine stayed together. I brought my CF-30 into a customers place and he joked that it must be military and have the nuclear missile codes. (I get that a lot.) I told him that I like them because they are tough. He asked how tough. Well... He had a huge showroom with a polished concrete floor. I threw the Toughbook about 15 feet or so. It landed on its corner edge and dented the corner a little but put a big scratch in his floor. He laughed because he thought I broke my laptop. I opened it up and continued with the meeting. Needless to say, he was shocked.

These have a great end of life use too if you like... The only laptop you can use while the processor is able to handle software of the day... AND after.

Thermite!

'Nuff said!

 

Lol hey pm me the mixture your using! My mix has been off.... LOL!!!

Well the new drive is in the MK5 and it is fully operational now. Holy CRAP does it make a huge difference!!! I have under 20 second boot times from cold, usually just 15! Pretty sure I could speed it up more with a setting change or two in bios. Most of the time is spent on the first Panasonic boot screen. Shut down times are 2-3 seconds tops. Pretty awesome!

(re-edit for threadjacking my own thread, should put that in the other one...)

The speed here is exactly what I need to accomplish with my MK1 rebuild! I need the almost instant times on that one due to how I use it. The MK5, its just a luxury really. But it is sure a nice one to have! Well for now, I will go ahead and load all my automotive tuning software into the MK5. While I would prefer not to clutter it up, it is a good idea to have it ready to go as a backup anyways.