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Other => General Topics => Topic started by: Dch48 on December 27, 2013, 09:54:07 PM
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I respect the opinions of the people here even though I don't always follow them so I have a question. I have never done system images before because I never had a HDD big enough to hold them. I recently bought a 500gb Toshiba USB 3.0 drive and it works great. I have done a few images with the free version of EaseUS Todo backup and it seems to work fine. I had narrowed down my choices to that one or the free Macrium Reflect. I do not want to use the built in Windows utility because I have read that the restoration from it's backups don't always work well.
Which one do you feel is the better option, EaseUS or Macrium? They both get good reviews.
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You don't need a hd to create a image of the system (main drive).
You can also use cd(rw)'s/dvd(rw)'s and (although you need a lot of them) even floppies and such.
With image software it depends on the compression you choose.
But you will need about 20% (or less) of the amount of data on the media that you choose to put the image on.
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You don't need a hd to create a image of the system (main drive).
You can also use cd(rw)'s/dvd(rw)'s and (although you need a lot of them) even floppies and such.
With image software it depends on the compression you choose.
But you will need about 20% (or less) of the amount of data on the media that you choose to put the image on.
I know that but that would go too slow. EaseUS does a full backup of 170GB in 32 minutes. That's pretty fast. That's using a 3.0 port. Using 2.0, my other computer takes the same amount of time to back up 21GB.
I've read a lot of reviews and they all said EaseUS and Macrium were good. Hopefully I will never have to use an image but you never know. I also don't care about automatic backups. I just want to do them manually whenever I feel like it.
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Hi, here is my opinion. :)
I would choose Macrium simply because you can build a WinPE 3 or a WinPE4 restore disk. WinPE4 has usb 3.0 support by default.
According to this: http://www.todo-backup.com/products/home/free-backup-software-features.htm (http://www.todo-backup.com/products/home/free-backup-software-features.htm) the Easeus restore disk is Linux based.I don't know
if it supports usb 3.0 or not.
As with any imaging software you should test the restore disk to make sure it "sees" your hard disks before the need for it arises.
Hope this helps.
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You don't need a hd to create a image of the system (main drive).
You can also use cd(rw)'s/dvd(rw)'s and (although you need a lot of them) even floppies and such.
With image software it depends on the compression you choose.
But you will need about 20% (or less) of the amount of data on the media that you choose to put the image on.
I know that but that would go too slow. EaseUS does a full backup of 170GB in 32 minutes. That's pretty fast. That's using a 3.0 port. Using 2.0, my other computer takes the same amount of time to back up 21GB.
I've read a lot of reviews and they all said EaseUS and Macrium were good. Hopefully I will never have to use an image but you never know. I also don't care about automatic backups. I just want to do them manually whenever I feel like it.
That is basically how I approach my Backup needs. I can't speak for your first choice but I do use Macrium (Standard) along with a 500GB Ext HD such as your approach.
I also run real time back with the WD software along with Situational Disk Images using Macrium.
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I think one of the biggest things about this type of software is how it goes about restoring an image.
Invariably they will probably need a boot device (CD/DVD/USB) which runs the restore side of the backup software on boot. Once run essentially you point it at where the backup images are located and which you want to restore.
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+1 David
And you have been condoning a Back up Strategy since forever.
I'm a newby to it... ;D ;)
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@Dch48 I've used Macrium Reflect Free and in come with Windows PE v3.0 for W7 & PE v4.0 is for W8 & 8.1, and you can backup straight to your second HD or SSD or even straight to your USB backup drive using Windows PE. You can restore your image using Windows PE straight from your second HD or SSD or even straight to your USB backup drive without any issue or problems, however you must keep your drivers update before you create a Windows PE rescued disk otherwise it will not pickup or recognised your hardware and your USB device.
I've been using Macrium Reflect Free for nearly 2 years and I will never change or to look back to another image software, another great image software called Image for Windows from TeraByte which is not free and I've read great review and feedback that Image for Windows is very very good.
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The emergency disk for EaseUS indeed is Linux based but I tested it and it does indeed recognize the external HDD and show the backups for all 3 computers I have backed up. One uses USB 3 and the other 2 only have 2.0 ports. I think I will stick with it since most reviewers rate it as faster and better than Macrium.
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The emergency disk for EaseUS indeed is Linux based but I tested it and it does indeed recognize the external HDD and show the backups for all 3 computers I have backed up. One uses USB 3 and the other 2 only have 2.0 ports. I think I will stick with it since most reviewers rate it as faster and better than Macrium.
The nice thing about the free version of EaseUS is that it supports incremental images, the lack of this feature on Macrium free was always a put off for me. If the linux recovery disk works fine for you(works over here) then EaseUS is the better choice. I recommend you try a restore from the recovery enviroment first before fully deciding though.
That being said though, there is another free solution out there that is rapidly gaining in popularity. This one supports incremental/differential backups, scheduling and has an option to create WinPE recovery media. I haven't used it personally but i guess it's worth to check out, it's called AOMEI Backupper: http://www.backup-utility.com/free-backup-software.html
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I've never had an issue using Windows image, it's always worked great for me on all the win7/8 systems I look after but Tech did post a link to a nice one for Win8 if I did happen to want one https://www.slimwareutilities.com/recimg_manager.php
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............. That being said though, there is another free solution out there that is rapidly gaining in popularity. This one supports incremental/differential backups, scheduling and has an option to create WinPE recovery media. I haven't used it personally but i guess it's worth to check out, it's called AOMEI Backupper: http://www.backup-utility.com/free-backup-software.html
That is one that I use, although never had to call on it to do a restore. Nice clean, easy to follow interface, reasonably fast and (so far) "Does what it says on the box". :)
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I tried AOMEI and it is fast and has a lot of options. Most of which however, I would never use. I'm not interested in incremental or scheduled backups. I'm also having a problem with it. I tried to create a WinPE boot disk. It says that my system does support this function and it should work. The first time, I created the ISO file and then burned it to a CD with ImgBurn. ImgBurn said the process had completed successfully so I tried booting from the disc. During bootup, my computer hesitated a few seconds and then booted straight into Win7 from the hard drive. Trying to explore the CD, it shows as being empty. I tried again but this time burning the disc directly with AOMEI. It also said it had completed successfully but the same thing happens. The disk does not boot and shows as empty. If I have to add drivers, I have no idea which ones to even look for. If I have to install any toolkits or such, that's a no-go for me. I'll stick with EaseUS and it's Linux based disk.
I also tried the Linux Disc from AOMEI. I tried creating a Linux disc. It burned and does boot. However, it does not find the external HDD that the backup was created on so that is useless to me as well.
UPDATE: The Linux disc does find the HDD and the backup file but only if the HDD is connected to a USB 2.0 port. It will not find it when connected via USB 3.0. The EaseUS Linux disc does find it when connected either way.
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I tried Easeus briefly, it's restore disk can not recognize my verbatim 500 GB usb hard drive. I'm glad it works for most people.
The Macrium WinPE works on any pc I've tried it on.(All different hardware)
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Sorry to be slightly off topic here but....ive used AOMEI backupper and created the bootable cd and imaged my windows 7 computer a dozen times.
Lets say i ditched windows 7 altogether from the hard drive and installed a linux distro.If at some time i wanted to use windows 7 again would AOMEI restore one of my images back on to my HDD again.?
Thanks.
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Sorry to be slightly off topic here but....ive used AOMEI backupper and created the bootable cd and imaged my windows 7 computer a dozen times.
Lets say i ditched windows 7 altogether from the hard drive and installed a linux distro.If at some time i wanted to use windows 7 again would AOMEI restore one of my images back on to my HDD again.?
Thanks.
I would think any one of the programs given here would do that.
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I've never had an issue using Windows image, it's always worked great for me on all the win7/8 systems I look after but Tech did post a link to a nice one for Win8 if I did happen to want one https://www.slimwareutilities.com/recimg_manager.php
Always worked well for me as well. When i was trying out imaging apps, i would always create a system image with the built-in Windows tool before i went about messing with other imaging apps, just in case. Saved my butt a few times. ;D
I tried AOMEI and it is fast and has a lot of options. Most of which however, I would never use. I'm not interested in incremental or scheduled backups. I'm also having a problem with it. I tried to create a WinPE boot disk. It says that my system does support this function and it should work. The first time, I created the ISO file and then burned it to a CD with ImgBurn. ImgBurn said the process had completed successfully so I tried booting from the disc. During bootup, my computer hesitated a few seconds and then booted straight into Win7 from the hard drive. Trying to explore the CD, it shows as being empty. I tried again but this time burning the disc directly with AOMEI. It also said it had completed successfully but the same thing happens. The disk does not boot and shows as empty. If I have to add drivers, I have no idea which ones to even look for. If I have to install any toolkits or such, that's a no-go for me. I'll stick with EaseUS and it's Linux based disk.
I also tried the Linux Disc from AOMEI. I tried creating a Linux disc. It burned and does boot. However, it does not find the external HDD that the backup was created on so that is useless to me as well.
UPDATE: The Linux disc does find the HDD and the backup file but only if the HDD is connected to a USB 2.0 port. It will not find it when connected via USB 3.0. The EaseUS Linux disc does find it when connected either way.
Sorry to hear that about AOMEI, i see you already posted about this problem on their website. Hopefully their support will be able to help you sort out the issue.
I tried Easeus briefly, it's restore disk can not recognize my verbatim 500 GB usb hard drive. I'm glad it works for most people.
The Macrium WinPE works on any pc I've tried it on.(All different hardware)
Are you using Macrium or IFW ? I am a huge fan of IFW myself, quite possibly the best imaging app i've ever used. ;D
Sorry to be slightly off topic here but....ive used AOMEI backupper and created the bootable cd and imaged my windows 7 computer a dozen times.
Lets say i ditched windows 7 altogether from the hard drive and installed a linux distro.If at some time i wanted to use windows 7 again would AOMEI restore one of my images back on to my HDD again.?
Thanks.
I would think any one of the programs given here would do that.
Correct, only thing you would probably need to do is re-arrange/convert your partitions back into NTFS since Linux uses a different filesystem.
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Are you using Macrium or IFW ? I am a huge fan of IFW myself, quite possibly the best imaging app i've ever used. ;D
Hi, I was referring to Macrium (trying to stay on topic of free backup) :). I do actually have a paid license for it.
I do use Terabytes IFW as my main imaging program.It has never failed me in any way. I also use Ghost,another reliable imager.
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Are you using Macrium or IFW ? I am a huge fan of IFW myself, quite possibly the best imaging app i've ever used. ;D
Hi, I was referring to Macrium (trying to stay on topic of free backup) :). I do actually have a paid license for it.
I do use Terabytes IFW as my main imaging program.It has never failed me in any way. I also use Ghost,another reliable imager.
Interesting I'm still using the Father-in-law of Ghost, Drive Image (on my XP Pro system) by PowerQuest (bought out by Norton) and that is still doing excellent service. Whilst this was a paid version I have more than got my monies worth out of it.
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The Windows backup available since Windows Vista and still available in Windows 8.1
has always been a reliable program for me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llb2gKKoFiI&feature=share&list=PL76sUFOv9TgIbNr47LAgTHaWlywLbG6wc&index=68 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llb2gKKoFiI&feature=share&list=PL76sUFOv9TgIbNr47LAgTHaWlywLbG6wc&index=68)
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Yes , Bob, the one in Windows 7 and 8 does work but is very slow at creating and restoring images and there are reports all over the web of images not being able to restore at all. The one in Vista is not nearly as good.
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Okay, I have found that the WinPE disk created with AOMEI does boot and work in my older Win 8.1 machine. I don't even have AOMEI installed on that one and was able to do a system backup just from the boot disk. It actually boots into a slimmed down version of Windows 7. I also found that my Ultimate Boot CD will not boot or even be recognized in this machine but works fine in the other one. Every other bootable disc I own works in this one. I suspect it may be the brand of CD, Memorex, that is causing the problem. Maybe my drive doesn't like them (even though the Linux based boot disc and my Win7 repair disc are on Memorex CD's and work fine) . I ordered some Verbatim ones and will try them.
HP laptops have a history of problems with Memorex discs but previously, I only had issues with their DVD+RW ones. The CD's have never given problems before.
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Yes , Bob, the one in Windows 7 and 8 does work but is very slow at creating and restoring images and there are reports all over the web of images not being able to restore at all. The one in Vista is not nearly as good.
My advice is from personal experience. Not from what I've read on the net.... :)
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Okay, I remade the WinPE disk on a Verbatim disk instead of Memorex and it works perfectly. I also added in my USB 3.0 drivers and my external HDD is now recognized by the boot disk. I have consequently switched all 3 Windows computers over to AOMEI from EaseUS and I like it better. I would say however, that if AOMEI provides a WinPE boot disk, it should include USB 3.0 drivers since the technology isn't exactly new. Finding the .inf files for the 2 drivers needed was not that easy. Luckily my machine is an HP which saves all default drivers in a folder called SWSETUP. You just need to find the right package (and the names can be misleading) after determining what the name of the actual driver file is.
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Okay, I remade the WinPE disk on a Verbatim disk instead of Memorex and it works perfectly. I also added in my USB 3.0 drivers and my external HDD is now recognized by the boot disk. I have consequently switched all 3 Windows computers over to AOMEI from EaseUS and I like it better. I would say however, that if AOMEI provides a WinPE boot disk, it should include USB 3.0 drivers since the technology isn't exactly new. Finding the .inf files for the 2 drivers needed was not that easy. Luckily my machine is an HP which saves all default drivers in a folder called SWSETUP. You just need to find the right package (and the names can be misleading) after determining what the name of the actual driver file is.
Well that is certainly encouraging news. Have you tried to do a restore yet ?
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Okay, I remade the WinPE disk on a Verbatim disk instead of Memorex and it works perfectly. I also added in my USB 3.0 drivers and my external HDD is now recognized by the boot disk. I have consequently switched all 3 Windows computers over to AOMEI from EaseUS and I like it better. I would say however, that if AOMEI provides a WinPE boot disk, it should include USB 3.0 drivers since the technology isn't exactly new. Finding the .inf files for the 2 drivers needed was not that easy. Luckily my machine is an HP which saves all default drivers in a folder called SWSETUP. You just need to find the right package (and the names can be misleading) after determining what the name of the actual driver file is.
Well that is certainly encouraging news. Have you tried to do a restore yet ?
Here's what I did today. I booted this Win 7 machine with the PE disk and did a restore of my 8.1 backup from the external HDD it was made on to another one. I then attempted to boot the machine from the HDD with the restored image and---it worked. Windows 8.1 booted and after a short period of initializing the hardware on this machine which is different from the machine the backup was done from, Windows 8.1 worked perfectly with all the programs and files from the 8.1 system present and working. I think that proves that AOMEI does a very good job.
The only thing was that 8.1 was not showing as activated. I'm sure that was because it was running on a different machine than the one it was licensed to and would be fine on that machine. I'm confident now that if I ever have to restore an image on any one of the 3 machines here, one with Win7 Home Premium 64 bit, one with Vista Home Basic 32 bit, and the other with 8.1 Pro 32 bit, that it will work as it's supposed to. It's a good program in my opinion.
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That is good to hear, glad i mentioned the program. :)
A bit off- topic but wanted to share this with you guys:
Softpedia Giveaway – Unlimited Licenses for AOMEI Partition Assistant Pro
http://news.softpedia.com/news/Softpedia-Giveaway-Unlimited-Licenses-for-AOMEI-Partition-Assistant-Pro-413433.shtml
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That is good to hear, glad i mentioned the program. :)
A bit off- topic but wanted to share this with you guys:
Softpedia Giveaway – Unlimited Licenses for AOMEI Partition Assistant Pro
http://news.softpedia.com/news/Softpedia-Giveaway-Unlimited-Licenses-for-AOMEI-Partition-Assistant-Pro-413433.shtml
Hi, thanks for sharing. :)
I've always used gparted for my partitioning needs. Aomei may be a keeper.Doesn't appear to be any background processes running or start up entries in msconfig. The PE disk created and boots just fine. Thanks
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You're welcome. :)
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I know this thread is a bit old but I wanted to thank everyone here for their comments as I too found this thread useful.
I have been doing backups but with the default windows one and I have been wondering about other alternatives out there.