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    Best way to do a complete backup?

    Discussion in 'Windows OS and Software' started by Dan333SP, Jun 22, 2008.

  1. Dan333SP

    Dan333SP Notebook Consultant

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    I've never really done a complete drive backup, I've always just burned DVDs with bits of information that I wanted to be sure to have a copy of, but now I'm thinking that I want to do a complete backup of every bit of data on my hard drive. I've got a 200 gig drive on my M1530 (with Vista home premium), and I have a 320 gig external USB drive that I'd like to create a complete image of my disk on, is there a recommended program to download to do this or should I be looking for some utility in windows to back the data up with?
     
    Dan333SP, Jun 22, 2008
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  2. predatorramboxxx

    predatorramboxxx Notebook Deity

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    symantic ghost is by far the best
    vista ultimate/business built in is very good as well
    might cost you or just look for an older version on ebay or you could find the IT guy at work and he could do it for you lol
    i would advise you stay away from the freeware programs because they are often unreliable
     
    predatorramboxxx, Jun 22, 2008
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  3. Andy

    Andy Notebook Prophet

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    I have tried Ghost, Acronis and Casper....but Acronis worked well for me....
    it is just a matter of personal opinion or depends upon which software *clicks* with your needs....!!
    Try out a trial version of each if possible and go through their user guides....might help you to get an idea about how each software works.... :)
     
    Andy, Jun 22, 2008
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  4. sharp65

    sharp65 Notebook Consultant

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    I used norton ghost and like it alot, being able to convert a restore point into a virtual machine disk is pretty cool too.
     
    sharp65, Jun 22, 2008
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  5. Shel

    Shel Notebook Evangelist

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    Acronis has saved me on more then one occasion.

    After restoring, using Acronis, my HP (laptop at the time) was EXACTLY as it was when I backed up. All bookmarks, registrations, preferences... everything was as it was at the time of backing up.

    Easy to use, as well.
     
    Shel, Jun 22, 2008
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  6. zmdmw52

    zmdmw52 Notebook Geek

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    In addition to disc imaging programs (such as Norton Ghost, Acronis TrueImage, etc), you may also want to look at Norton GoBack & RestoreIt (do a Google search for latter). These are similar to Window's System Restore feature, though more effective than System Restore, which has failed me more than once:( .

    Another excellent (though not a 'complete' backup' program, it can help in getting you out of BSOD's & such) freeware program is ERunt, which backs up your registry every time Windows boots.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: May 8, 2015
    zmdmw52, Jun 22, 2008
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  7. McGrady

    McGrady Notebook Virtuoso

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    I use Macrium Reflect
     
    McGrady, Jun 22, 2008
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  8. swarmer

    swarmer beep beep

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    DriveImageXML is a free option... I haven't tried it though.
     
    swarmer, Jun 22, 2008
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