Disk backup- this is the creation of an exact logical (sector-by-sector) copy of the hard drive in the form of a file. Programs for hard drive backup must be able to create copies of boot and virtual disks. Handy Backup allows you to automate all operations to save your hard drive as a file.
What is disk backup: key features of the HDD backup program
The program should be able to select any hard drive for backup, including drives connected via a network, via a USB interface, or local ones. The program must also be able to create backups of virtual disks.
Automation of the hard drive backup procedure
Hard drive backup should be automated whenever possible, including automatic start backup tasks once at a certain time or when connecting an external hard drive USB drive, as well as starting missed tasks.
Secure storage of disk backups
The hard drive backup may contain dangerous or important information, so the program must be able to protect it by encrypting HDD backups. In addition, the program must support various storage media, for example, Yandex.Disk clouds, Dropbox or FTP server.
Benefits of Handy Backup
Managing the launch of hard drive backup tasks according to schedule
Launch your tasks at a specified time with intervals from months to minutes, or when a system event occurs, for example, creating an automatic backup when connecting a USB HDD drive to PC.
Hard drive backup security tools
Built-in algorithms for encrypting data and transmitting information over encrypted channels (including support for the SFTP and FTPS protocols, as well as calling external encryption programs).
"Hot" and silent hard drive backup
The program uses the VSS service to receive data for disk backup without stopping its operation. In addition, the program can be run in "silent" background as a Windows service.
Network drive backup
Video tutorial on creating a hard drive backup and restoring it
This video describes how to create a backup and restore hard drive using the Disk Image plugin and the HBDR utility. The Handy Backup interface is shown in English language, but for Russian the steps are similar. The interface of the Handy Backup Disaster Recovery utility is available only in English!
Attention: This video instruction assumes that the Handy Backup software is already installed on the computer, and the Handy Backup Disaster Recovery utility is already installed on the USB drive. If this is not the case, please download and install Handy Backup and Disaster Recovery before starting, according to the video instructions.
Handy Backup provides convenient and secure automatic hard drive backup. Try it now by downloading a 30-day free version of the program with a full set of features!
Special project with Acronis
We all sooner or later face the need for backup. And believe me: better early than late. Once upon a time, in 2009, I lost all my data. Back then I made backups on DVD-R/RW, which was not very convenient, so they were rarely made. Some of the data was sent by colleagues (it’s good that they kept it), but a lot of it was lost. It was from that time that I regularly make backups, and today we will talk about finding the ideal product for the family budget.
Where will we store backups?
Before choosing software, we need to decide where we will store the backup. You understand that DVD-R is of little use for backup. Firstly, it is small, secondly, it is slow, and thirdly, it is noisy. And since I switched to laptops a long time ago and don’t recognize stationary devices at all (although I have them on the farm), I had to buy several external drives. First 250 GB, then larger.
I did not consider the cloud for one simple reason - there is not enough space:
You understand, even 15 GB is not enough, especially if minimum size external screw available on the farm - 250 GB. Extra space? You could, of course, pay $2 a month for 100 GB on Google Drive or $10 for an additional 1 TB, but 100 GB will not save me, and 1 TB is a little expensive. Ideally, 500 GB would be suitable for 2-3 dollars per month :)
Later, the family acquired two Android smartphones and one tablet, from which they also made backups to an external screw from time to time, the old fashioned way (after all, I was used to just such a process). Here one could safely use the cloud, but habit is a strong thing.
Search for backup software
Now we come to the most interesting part. How to make a backup?
In principle, you can use the free Clonezilla. The capabilities of this program, if not impressive, are at least quite good. Here are some of them that I consider the most important:
- support for Linux/macOS/Windows file systems: from ext2 to ext4, xfs, jfs, FAT16, FAT32, NTFS, HFS (macOS);
- MBR and GPT support;
- support for data encryption (AES 256);
- the ability to deploy one image to several local devices;
- support for SSH, Samba, WebDAV and NFS.
If you need to make a backup of a server in a corporate environment, and even on a shared server - best option can not found. For cloning systems in the case of deploying one operating system on many machines with the same configuration, that’s it: they brought in a fleet of computers, installed an axis on one of them, configured everything, made an image of it and deployed it to other computers. An admin's dream!
I have also been familiar with Acronis products for a long time, but mainly with server versions. I won’t compare them with Clonezilla now, since we are talking about home backup: after all, you have one or two computers and several Android devices at home, and you don’t need to constantly create images of all these devices. In general, CloneZilla is not suitable for home use. Once, I remember, I made a backup at home with it, when I changed the system disk to a larger disk and was too lazy to reinstall all the systems. Then this program, of course, saved me.
CloneZilla good program, but it’s 2016 and I want something more modern, but she’s stuck in the past. I want some kind of automation, management of backups from all devices, including mobile ones, I want to copy photos from my profile on social networks, I want to search inside the backup copy in order to find required file. I want a lot of things. Sometimes I even think about buying a NAS specifically for storing backups.
Actually, I started searching for the ideal software for myself. I came across the “File History” function in Windows 8/10. I somehow missed “Eight”, and “Ten” is installed on only one computer. Although “File History” was created in the image and likeness Apple Time Machine should be convenient, but in practice it turned out to be not very convenient to use, and besides, it is not compatible with computers running “Seven” and Android smartphones.
If anyone is interested, while I was looking for the necessary software, all this time I was making backups using Total Commander by simply copying files. But this is very inconvenient. Firstly, no automation: you need to go to each computer with an external screw and make a backup. Secondly, irrational use of space. I didn't use compression. Why? Yes, because I periodically need to search for information on a backup. Have you tried searching for something in an archive of several GB in size?
Quite by accident I remembered Acronis True Image and discovered that version 2017 had been released. Let's see what it can do now:
It looks like the perfect backup software exists! However, it’s not very ideal, but I’ll talk about the shortcomings later, but for now I’ll brag about the capabilities: Acronis True Image 2017 is a completely modern backup program, and unlike ancient software like CloneZilla, it has everything a modern person might need. This is what I personally really liked...
Firstly, saving space on the screws that are used for backup. The backup is made in compressed form, but Acronis allows you to search inside the backup.
Secondly, now I don’t have to worry about the data on mobile devices Oh. Over the past two years, two microSD cards have failed: one on my wife’s phone, the other on her tablet. One photograph was at least partially saved, but the second was not, it “died” completely. Acronis True Image 2017 allows you to backup an unlimited number of Android/iOS mobile devices to your local computer.
Thirdly, you can (as I already noted) remotely control the backup on all home devices. Using the web panel, you can check the status of backups and configure data protection in real time.
Fourthly, there is support for copying Facebook profile content. A lot of information is now published on social networks: photos, videos, comments. A backup of this data will protect against page hacking or accidental deletion.
Finally, cloud orientation. I couldn’t even imagine that Acronis had such a strong support clouds: by purchasing a subscription, you get 500 GB of cloud space! This volume is quite enough for me for home purposes (unless, of course, I upload images to the cloud hard drives entirely, although Acronis allows this too).
About the disadvantages
Everything has its drawbacks. I hope the Acronis developers will listen to the criticism. Personally, I didn’t like two things about the program.
The first is the lack of Linux support. Data stored in Linux will have to be done the old fashioned way: either by copying, or using Clonezilla by creating an image of the partition with the data (fortunately, I have /home on a separate partition, out of habit).
Second - lack of support from others social networks, except Facebook. I think, however, that over time it will appear. But whether Linux support will appear is a question. Of course, Acronis has a Linux Server product, but I don’t want to use it for several reasons: firstly, using the server version for home use is tantamount to shooting sparrows with a cannon, and secondly, I don’t want to pay for another product (and this is the minimum 792 rubles per month), and thirdly, I want everything to be managed from one product.
About the price
We all know that Acronis has never been free. However, the prices also pleasantly surprised me: on the official website there is a calculator that allows you to find out how much Acronis will cost you.
A one-time license for 1 computer (the number of mobile devices is unlimited) will cost 1,700 rubles (approximately $27 at the current exchange rate). But it’s more profitable to buy a subscription: in this case, you will get both the program itself and 500 GB cloud storage. The cost of a subscription for a year will cost 1400 rubles. (~22$), for two years - only 2000 rubles (~32$), which is approximately 1.83$ or 1.33$ per month. For that kind of money you can only buy 100 GB of Google Drive! And here I got an excellent backup tool + 500 GB in the cloud.
If we calculate a more realistic configuration: 3 computers and 1 TB in the cloud, then a subscription for a year will cost 2400 rubles, and for 2 years - 3600 rubles. Only 150 rubles per month compared to 600 rubles for 1 TB on Google Drive! To me, the conclusion was obvious. 150 rubles is an amount quite affordable for a home user and will not put a strain on the family budget.
Greetings to all blog readers! :) In one of the articles where I talked about ways to protect your computer from various threats, I also touched on simple security measures that are recommended for every PC user to follow in order to always have a stable working system and not lose important data. Data safety and the ability to quickly restore the functionality of Windows (or another system on which you are working) is very important for each of us.
For example, you make money on axle boxes, you already have necessary programs, everything is configured for your convenience and suddenly your system crashes and refuses to boot no matter how hard you try. Those. simple ways bringing the system back to life does not work. The system could “die” for a number of reasons: infection with viruses, installation of “crooked” drivers and programs, failure of some computer component, and much more.
In this case, the solution for most is to reinstall the operating system, then install all new programs, configure everything for the convenience of your work, and a number of other actions to do everything as it was convenient for you before. And all this can take up, if not the whole day, then definitely half a day :) And it’s good if you have some experience and can copy important data to return it later. But imagine if you can’t do this or they are damaged and part of them is deleted, for example, if the hard drive is damaged? This can become a very big problem.
Knowing all of the above and what I had to deal with many times, I decided to write a couple or more articles about how you can conveniently make a copy of all the files you need from your computer, as well as create an entire copy of your system with all of them already included. installed programs and the necessary settings.
For this purpose it is possible to use both built-in using Windows, and third-party. Data backup tools in Windows itself are extremely inconvenient, slow and lack large quantity comfortable, useful functions. Therefore, I recommend using third-party tools for this purpose, for example, the program Acronis True Image. The program is paid and the cost of a simple home version for one computer on this moment– 1700 rubles.
But, as is the case with antiviruses (for example, Kaspersky) and other paid programs, as a rule, it is always possible to download an already activated full copy from the Internet and use it for free :) The program is very, very useful and sometimes simply necessary.
Now I will tell you how to create a complete backup copy system, going through each step of the settings and explaining each function.
Let's start by installing the program.
Installing a data backup / recovery program - Acronis True Image
The installation process, as well as the interface of the program itself, of course, may differ with the release of new versions, but the essence of the program and its functions remain unchanged. Therefore, having learned to do backup and recovery with the help of this guide, you can do this at any new version Acronis.
You can purchase the program from the official website at the price indicated there, or download the activated full latest version here:
Acronis True Image Home 2014 PREMIUM.zip
ZIP archive
216 MB
Download
The downloaded archive “Acronis True Image Home 2014 PREMIUM.zip” must be unpacked before starting the installation from the file inside. To do this, click right click mouse over the archive and select “Extract all...”:
A window will open in which by clicking the “Browse” button you can select the path to unpack the archive. By default it will be unpacked into the same folder where it is currently located. I recommend checking the box “Show extracted files” and then after unpacking the folder with the unpacked contents will immediately open. To start unpacking, click the “Extract” button:
After unpacking we launch installation file. For this version it has the name: “ATIH.2014.PREMIUM.v17.0.0.5560.exe”:
The first installer window will appear, in which you just need to agree to continue the installation by clicking the “Yes” button:
After unpacking, the first window of the Acronis True Image installer will appear, in which we simply click the “Next” button, since there is nothing you need to do here:
We accept the license agreement in the next window by selecting “I agree to the terms of the agreement” and click the “Next” button:
In the next window we are asked to select the installation type. I recommend always choosing “Custom” when installing any programs in order to remove completely unnecessary components:
A new window will open where we see the components that will be installed. IN in this case nothing extra will be installed, so we leave everything as it is and click “Next”:
In the next window, select “Install for all users” and click “Next”. This parameter I also recommend choosing when installing any software, and in the event that only you or your loved ones work on this computer:
All that remains is to click the “Proceed” button and the process of installing the program on your computer will begin with the parameters we have chosen:
After the installation process is completed, which does not require your intervention (takes about 2-3 minutes), the last window will appear, in which we click the “Close” button:
This completes the Acronis True Image installation process. Now let’s look at how to make a complete backup copy of the system: the operating system and all the programs installed on it, so that if the system “crash”, you can very easily return it to the same state, with the same programs and settings.
Creating a complete copy of the system with all data for further rapid restoration to its original state
First of all, you need to take care of where your backups will be stored, which you will now, I think, regularly create for your own convenience and safety.
If you have 2 separate hard drives on your computer, you can store backups on one of these drives. The main thing is that there is enough space, because a backup copy of the entire system without compression will take up exactly the same volume as the system itself, along with the files, actually occupies in your space. For example, if the volume of everything stored on your computer takes up 200 GB, then a backup copy without compression will take up approximately the same volume. Acronis allows you to compress your backup, which I always use, and with maximum compression, the volume is often reduced by as much as 2 times. Therefore, based on the explanations above, you can already estimate how much space you need to store a full copy of your computer.
I create backups to an external HDD, which I connect to the laptop via USB. This is very convenient if the space on this hard drive allows. And after copies are created on my external HDD(hard drive), I sometimes transfer them to cloud services(online storage), for example, on Mail.ru, where 100 GB of free space is given for free.
I have written a number of separate articles about remote storages and I recommend, first of all, that you read the very first one:
It's up to you to decide :) The main thing is not to store backup copies of your data on the same hard drive from which you make these copies. This makes no sense, because if this HDD is damaged, you will lose all the data along with the copy, since they were stored on one disk. I hope everything is clear here :)
So, let's start creating a backup copy of your system, including everything that is in it:
And now let's move on to the last ones important settings, which will be located on several tabs. To do this, click on the “Disk backup options” link, which is located on the left:
A window will open where we go to the very first tab – “Scheme”. On this tab, you configure the backup scheme – i.e. the method in which the current and subsequent backups will be created.
I recommend choosing the "Custom Scheme" scheme and setting everything up manually. In the “Backup method” item, it is best to select “Incremental”. In this case, a full copy of your selected partitions or entire hard drives will be created first, and subsequent times small copies will be created, storing only changes since the last full copy.
For example, my backup plan is as follows: I make backups daily and once a month I create a full version, and for the next 30 days only changes are saved. Therefore, in my example, I set the value to “after every 30 incremental copies.”
And since with the appearance of a large number of copies (especially with regular creation of full copies), all this will take up more and more space on your media, I also include a function for automatically clearing chains of old versions. I also recommend that you use this to save space.
To do this, enable the item “Delete version chains, since the creation of which ... ... has passed” and indicate the number of days.
Since I make backups once a day and a full copy is created after every 30 incremental ones (that is, after every 30 days), I set automatic removal old versions that are older than 30 days. Thus, it turns out that I create another new full copy, and the old chain (from complete to the last incremental one for a given month) is deleted. Due to this, I don’t waste a lot of space on my drive and there are no 2 or more complete copies stored there, which will take up a lot of space :)
To avoid having to configure these settings again, I recommend checking the “Save as default settings” checkbox.
Go to the “Advanced” tab. On this tab, we’ll go through all the sections and set necessary settings. In the first section “Image creation mode” we check that the “Archive in sector-by-sector mode” option is disabled. This function will create a copy for us, taking into account all errors on the disk, i.e. will create a complete copy along with the disk structure in addition to the data itself.
In the “Backup protection” section we are asked to protect the created archive with a password and encrypt it. I recommend creating a password primarily to protect the archive from viruses. And secondly, in order to protect the copy from prying eyes, if you think that someone might spy on or destroy your data.
If you are setting a password only for the purpose of protecting against viruses, then I recommend setting a simple one, for example: “123”:
We will not choose an encryption method, since it is advisable to do this when working in an environment that is dangerous in every sense, and at the same time, the time to create a backup copy will increase due to encryption.
Nothing should be included in the Pre/Post Commands section, check:
In the “Backup splitting” section, check that the value is “Automatic”. In this case, Acronis will split the archive itself depending on the selected scheme or even create a copy from one file:
In the “Verification” section, you can enable checking the backup copy for its functionality. Since I constantly create new copies and every month a new full copy, I turn off the check so as not to take up resources again and not be distracted by it. You can enable verification after creation or on a schedule:
In the next section, “Duplicate backups,” you can specify an additional storage location for your backup, and it will be duplicated into this storage. This will give even greater security to your data, since a copy will be stored in as many as two places. But not everyone has the opportunity to allocate additional memory space on some storage medium for this. I don't enable this option and just periodically manually copy backups additionally to other locations:
In the “Setting up removable media” section, I recommend unchecking the only checkbox. This is necessary so that when planning an automatic backup, you do not need to manually confirm that the removable media (for example, a flash drive) is connected to the computer:
Let's move on to the "Comments on the backup copy" section, where you can optionally set any notes regarding the backup copy being created. You can leave the field empty:
The Screenshot Settings section allows the program to take a screenshot when starting a backup. The function is almost never used, so it's easier to leave it disabled:
Let's move on to the "Error Handling" section. Here I recommend unchecking the item: “If there is not enough space in the Security Zone, delete the oldest backup copy”:
I’ll tell you later what “Acronis Secure Zone” is and why it might be needed.
The penultimate section, “Turning off the computer,” sometimes turns out to be useful. Here we can activate the function to shut down the computer after the backup is created. It is good to use this function when the backup is, for example, planned for the night or at a time when no one will use the computer, so that the computer then turns off itself and does not remain idle.
The last section “Windows Account” is, in principle, never needed if you work under the user – Administrator. Therefore, we leave the function of starting a backup from another user disabled here:
That's it with the "Advanced" tab :) Let's move on...
Launch Acronis True Image from a shortcut on the desktop or from the Start menu.
After the program starts, go to the “Backup and Restore” tab. To create a backup copy of the entire system along with all programs and settings, click on open tab“Back up disks and partitions” button:
A new window will open for you to set backup options. Starting from this, all subsequent steps are very important. First of all, on the left, select the sections for hard drives, a copy of which will be created.
Let's move on to the "Performance" tab, which is also not unimportant. Here I recommend setting the compression level to the maximum. In my experience, the duration of creating a backup copy in this case does not increase significantly, but the created archive is sometimes reduced by almost 2 times.
The priority affects how much computer resources Acronis will consume when creating a backup. The higher the priority, the more of them will be consumed, but the faster the backup will be created. If the computer is very productive, then you can safely set the maximum priority, but I recommend “Normal”:
The last 2 tabs: “Notifications” and “Exceptions”, as a rule, are not needed and I recommend leaving everything there as it is configured by default:
The “Exceptions” tab can be useful if you want to indicate some files and folders that do not need to be backed up and Acronis will skip them.
To save the settings, click the “OK” button at the very bottom of this window:
To start a backup, in the main settings window, click the “Archive” button:
If you click not the “Backup” button itself, but the arrow on the side, a list of options will appear: delay the start of the backup for a period of 1 to 6 hours or until it is started manually at any time.
As a result, the backup process we configured will start. Its duration will depend on the volume that is being archived, on the performance of the computer, the selected priority, the degree of compression of the archive and other parameters:
We just have to wait for the backup to finish.
After the copying is completed, its verification may begin if you specified this during setup. And then go to your media or the place where the copy was made and check that the backup copy is in place :)
This is what the archive created by Acronis True Image looks like:
In my example, the archived space had a volume of about 12 GB, and the archive turned out to be 4.9 GB in size. Those. Maximum compression made it possible to reduce the archive by more than half, which is just great!
Now let's look at how to backup individual files and folders, and not the entire system, for restoration if necessary in case of their loss
Backing up individual files/folders
As I mentioned earlier, in Acronis you can create not only entire backup copies of partitions for further restoration of your computer if necessary, but also individual files/folders. This way, you can save space on the media where you will store backups and back up only those data that are really important and cannot be lost.
For example, those who work in boxes using multi-accounts probably have a large table with logins and passwords for the boxes themselves, wallets, and emails. I know from myself that losing this data is a very sad situation :)
So, let's look at the process of backing up files and folders step by step:
Now all that remains is to configure Extra options backups that you are already familiar with. Click on the link below “File backup options”:
A settings window with 5 tabs will open. All tabs and settings on them are completely identical to those that we have already made when creating a backup copy of the entire system:
We can only wait until the operation is completed and if the volume the copy being created big, then you can go about your business for now, for example, work :)
After completing the backup process, just in case, go to the media where it was performed and check the presence of your backup copy (file with the “.tib” extension):
Having launched Acronis True Image, go to the “Backup and Restore” tab as before and click the “File Backup” button there, and from the list that appears select “To local storage”:
The File Backup window will open.
This is how you can create complete copies of your system on a regular basis so that in case of a “crash” you can then quickly restore it entirely or some separate files/folders. Of course, the instructions turned out to be voluminous and at first glance it all seems complicated :) In fact, the steps are simple, I’m just used to describing each action. But you won’t get confused anywhere and, having done this once, everything will become clear and next time you won’t need any instructions at all.
I will tell you how to restore a system from a backup immediately to a ready working state, as well as restore individual files/folders in the following article:
I won't say goodbye for a long time :) Bye everyone!
Preventive computer maintenance takes a lot of time. Either you need to configure the operation of applications, or remove useless “garbage” in temporary folders, or restore the normal operation of lost drivers. And even the most careful user, who is used to constantly maintaining order in the system, periodically has to be distracted by such actions. There is no escape from this, so the only way to somehow deal with this problem is to approach it wisely. For example, take a “snapshot” of the most important files - save a backup copy of the data.
An interesting personal observation: many users are very conservative in their preferences. From year to year, they use approximately the same set of software, select the same system configuration parameters, and almost never change the color scheme of the interface of their work applications. For such people, there is a simple and effective solution to the problem of information loss and system failure - restoration using a backup copy system partition. This method is familiar to any more or less experienced user. In this case, reinstalling the system with all its settings is reduced to a single operation of copying the file with the partition image.
The tools with which you can perform the operation of data cloning and recovery are not very diverse. Almost the sole leader in this area is the package Acronis programs True Image. It is this tool that is most often mentioned when discussing the problem of taking an image of an entire disk. There is also a Symantec Ghost Solution Suite. Among Russian-speaking users, this program is not as popular as the Acronis product, but it can be used with the same success for system migration and deployment. Both of these products are certainly very convenient and have a lot of advantages, but they are not free. And the full range of capabilities of these applications will be unnecessary for many. Let's try to figure out which of them free programs These popular tools can replace images of disk partitions.
⇡ Testing boot images using a virtual machine
Bootable media images can be tested directly from Windows using a virtual machine such as VirtualBox. In this program, you just need to create a new virtual PC configuration and specify the disk image as the boot source.
It is very convenient to store such images on multiboot media. In addition to tools for removing and restoring images from disk partitions, such a boot disk may also contain a number of additional options — Windows installer, a couple of Linux distributions and so on. If you decide to burn such a bootable USB flash drive, you can also test it in VirtualBox. However, the Oracle Corporation product does not support booting from removable media, so you will have to perform a number of steps to force VirtualBox to boot from a flash drive.
To do this you need to open standard utility for disk management diskmgmt.msc. Based on the contents of the window of this utility, determine by what number the USB drive being written is identified in the system. Then run command line mode (cmd.exe) with administrator rights and go to the VirtualBox folder using the command cd %programfiles%\oracle\virtualbox. At the command line, type VBoxManage internalcommands createrawvmdk -filename "%USERPROFILE%"\.VirtualBox\usb.vmdk -rawdisk \\.\PhysicalDrive#, replacing the # symbol with the previously memorized disk number. Now you can create a new virtual machine. When setting up the disk you are using, select external drive(use existing hard disk) and specify the location of the usb.vmdk file. Go!
⇡ Redo Backup
The main advantage of Redo Backup is that the program is as simple as possible, lacks numerous options and works reliably. The shell launches almost instantly, after which the most simplified Linux environment (Ubuntu 12.04 LTS) and a utility window for creating a backup copy of partitions appear on the screen.
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In addition to the main tool for cloning disks, the distribution includes a small set of essential utilities. In the Redo Backup boot image shell you will find a quick file manager PCManFM, simple Leafpad text editor, viewer graphic images GPicView, Chromium browser and terminal launcher. Among the tools for working with disks, there is a small but useful program for resetting all media parameters to the initial state. True, you can use it only at your own peril and risk - the data is deleted, and no one gives a guarantee that the hard drive or any other storage device will function properly. Using the Gparted partition editor, you can partition your disks and configure them in the Disk Utilities media manager.
The application with the funny name baobab will show a diagram of disk fullness. The distribution also includes the PhotoRec utility, the main purpose of which is to recover deleted files.
The created images of the specified partitions can be saved to one of the available partitions of the local machine or written to a folder on a remote PC that can be accessed over the network. Data can also be uploaded to an FTP server.
The boot image of this utility is so small that it will fit even on a good old CD. Of course, today this medium is hopelessly outdated and is outlived last days. On the other hand, if you still have a laser drive and a stack of unused CD-R discs, then why not get rid of one of the extra “blanks” and make yourself a copy of the saving tool?
⇡ AOMEI Backupper
In addition to a bootable disk image (AOMEI Backupper Linux Bootable Disk Image) with a proprietary utility, the developers of AOMEI Tech offer users several products for running the application from Windows - two free editions of the program and one paid one.
It must be said that the developer caused some confusion by releasing two free versions, because the differences between them are not immediately clear. One is called AOMEI Backupper Standard, the other is AOMEI Backupper Standard Win7. The size of the first one is several times larger, but there are few real differences. Don't be fooled by the words For Win7 - both versions work great on Windows 7. The one that is For Win7 does not work on outdated versions of the operating system from Microsoft - Windows Vista and Windows XP, while AOMEI Backupper Standard officially supports them. In addition, AOMEI Backupper Standard For Win7 does not have the option to create bootable media.
In our opinion, the paid edition of the AOMEI Backupper Professional program has nothing special to attract the attention of the average user. Its main advantage is the ability to combine partition images with support for incremental data copying (that is, copying only changed files, which greatly speeds up the process). In addition, the advanced version supports starting the backup process using command line and allows full use of the PXE Boot Tool (network boot application) with an unlimited number of clients on the local network.
According to the developers, the free versions copy slower than the Pro version. This may be true, but if you compare the speed of creating a partition image using boot images Redo Backup and AOMEI Backupper, the difference is not noticeable: the process takes approximately the same time in both cases.
But compared to Redo Backup, the AOMEI Backupper utility offers many more options. Here you can copy in several ways: clone a partition, transfer content from disk to disk, make a backup copy of the system disk, individual directories or certain files. To save space in AOMEI Backupper, you can enable the maximum compression mode, but if you need to speed up the process of recording a backup copy, you can completely disable file compression in the settings. In addition to this, you can also set up a task scheduler that will record a backup copy of your data at a specified time.
There are many ways to burn a boot image to a USB flash drive. For example, you can use the Sardu utility, which will do this in automatic mode, and will also help you make multiboot media with a rich arsenal of Linux distributions. But it’s best to write everything to a flash drive directly in the AOMEI Backupper program itself, in this case you will receive a guaranteed working bootable media with current version AOMEI Backupper engine. The boot image can be compiled against Linux or Windows PE.
It is preferable to use the second option, since if you create bootable media on Linux, only the basic functions of the program will be active in the AOMEI Backupper shell. The desktop application AOMEI Backupper Standard has even more options - for example, it is possible to automatically split the image into files of a specified size, there is an option for intelligent data reading (in this case, the contents of only those sectors that are used by the file system are copied), you can control file compression, and so on .
⇡ Clonezilla
Clonezilla is completely free software with open source code, developed by Taiwanese programmer Stephen Shiau.
This program is aimed at experienced users rather than beginners. It is made according to the principle step-by-step wizard and works almost in text mode, without an interface as such.
The situation is saved a little by the fact that Clonezilla supports the Russian language and many operations, as well as comments to them, are correctly translated. The choice of language occurs at the very beginning of the data backup wizard launch.
The program is universal - it supports all popular file systems, including ext2, ext3, ext4, reiserfs, xfs, jfs (GNU/Linux), FAT, NTFS7, HFS+ (Mac OS).
To create a bootable USB drive, you will need to follow several steps. To get started, download the boot image in ZIP format from the official Clonezilla website. Note that the type of Live image loaded depends on the architecture used. It is also worth paying attention to whether the Secure Boot feature is enabled on your computer. It is one of the UEFI options and is designed to protect your computer from malicious code that modifies boot sector MBR. When you enable the secure boot option (uEFI secure boot enabled) you need to download a separate boot image built on Ubuntu - links to it are also available on the download page of the official Clonezilla website.
After downloading the required file, unpack the contents of the ZIP archive onto a USB drive. Run the makeboot.bat file directly from the flash drive, which is located in the utils\win32 directory (or makeboot64.bat at drive:\utils\win64).
A backup copy of data can be recorded “as is,” that is, in the form of files and folders, or it can be saved in a single image file. Of course, the image file can be used to restore information on the media. The backup copy can be saved to local disk, write to the server network environment SAMBA, SSH server or using the NFS protocol. Clonezilla supports AES-256 encryption. The program is completely undemanding system resources PC and can run on the oldest “toasters”.
The program does not support differential and incremental copying of files, and a prerequisite for the normal completion of the process of writing a backup copy of a disk is that the volume of the media on which the recording is being made must be no less than the volume of the disk (partition) from which the data is read.
Along with the regular version of the Clonezilla boot disk, users are offered the Clonezilla Server Edition. This application is a tool for running simultaneous cloning on an entire array of computers (more than forty PCs).
⇡ Paragon Backup & Recovery 14 Free Edition
Paragon's products are well known to many, but for some reason not everyone knows that among the programs of this developer there is also free software, for example, a version of the Paragon Backup & Recovery 14 Free Edition application for creating a backup copy of data.
The only condition that Paragon sets for users is that they use Backup & Recovery 14 Free Edition only for non-commercial purposes (for personal use). And although the company has been selling a newer edition of this program for a long time, the fourteenth version still remains relevant. It even officially supports Windows 8, which is reflected in the interface of Backup & Recovery 14. The tiled Express interface that appears when you first launch it can be disabled, then the application will take a more familiar look.
The set of free tools for working with disks that Paragon's program offers is small. Most options are unavailable, and the developer himself suggests upgrading to activate all the features of the utility.
However, the functions that exist are quite enough to solve the main problem - creating a backup copy. In addition, the user has tools for managing disk partitions. With their help, you can create, format, delete partitions, hide or open them, assign a letter and change the volume label, and perform an integrity check file system.
In the program menu you will find the Recovery Media Builder wizard. This wizard is designed to burn a boot disk image to ISO format or prepare bootable flash drive. In the process of creating bootable media for data recovery, you can choose settings that are convenient for you - specify BIOS or EFI, select an environment (Linux or Windows PE), use for recovery WIM images current operating system and so on. If you write down boot disk In expert mode, you can manually add drivers for storage devices and network devices to the media, as well as specify specific network parameters.
The engine for creating a backup copy of disk partitions provides the ability to carry out a copy operation in one of two ways: the standard method, creating images of cloned partitions, or placing all the backup data on virtual disk Paragon (for example, this way you can collect several images at once in one place). The backup copy can be written to a mounted partition or to an unmounted partition that has not been assigned a letter.
The program pays special attention to data security. One of the options of Paragon Backup & Recovery 14 Free Edition is that data can be backed up into a so-called capsule, that is, into a hidden partition that cannot be mounted and seen in the operating system.
We would like to draw your attention to one more very important point. While testing the bootable media recording option, we discovered an error in the program. Recording an image with the environment Microsoft Windows PE from the “classic” interface of Paragon Backup & Recovery 14 Free Edition may be accompanied by a crash and a message stating that there is no access to the partition.
The solution to the problem was found on the official Paragon support forum - recording media must be started from the Express interface, then the error will not appear.
Paragon Backup & Recovery 14 works well with everyone types of hard disks. Content image of a tough a disk with a cluster size of 512 bytes is restored on another medium with a cluster size of 4 kilobytes without additional actions on the part of the user.
⇡ DriveImage XML
If you've ever lost data as a result of erroneous formatting or some kind of file system glitch, Runtime Software should be a familiar name. The GetDataBack utility made by this developer has been helping to rescue data and recover information from problematic media for many years. In addition to GetDataBack and other great utilities, Runtime Software includes DriveImage XML, a free tool for creating disk backups.
The program can be installed as a standalone application, or can be launched using a boot image based on the Linux distribution Knoppix 7. Of all the boot images discussed in this review, the Runtime Software disk can be considered “the most life-saving”. In addition to DriveImage XML Private Edition ( free version only for home use), Knoppix contains the entire range of programs from Runtime Software for data recovery and working with disks: GetDataBack NTFS, GetDataBack FAT, GetDataBack Simle, RAID Reconstructor, RAID recovery for Windows, DiskExplorer for FAT, DiskExplorer for Linux, Captain Nemo Pro and so on. Please note that commercial utilities require registration.
Knoppix is a universal assembly, it has a browser, a video player, and a text editor. For completeness, the only thing missing is free office suite, which was apparently excluded from the build to save storage space.
Windows versions are launched on the system using Wine (software for an alternative implementation of WindowsAPI).
Using the Microsoft Volume Shadow Service (VSS), the program can take a disk image, including system and locked data that is currently being worked on. The procedure for creating a backup copy in DriveImage XML will result in the following output: two files. The first, written in *.XML format, will contain a description of the disk. The program will save the second file as *.DAT - it stores the binary data of the captured image. Program options that are tied to standard Windows services may not work, so developers recommend burning bootable discs yourself from Windows environment PE or alternative BartPE environment. For the second option, the official Runtime Software website contains plugins that simplify the connection of the main utilities of this developer.
⇡ Conclusion
Programs for creating copies of disks can be used not only for quickly reinstalling the system. They can also successfully serve as regular means for backing up important data. Take photographs, for example. Paper photo albums are practically a thing of the past, and with them the persistent tradition of taking family history out of the closet and showing guests family history in photographs has sunk into oblivion. It's scary to think how many children today will be deprived of pleasant memories when they grow up. The phrase “I don’t have children’s photos because my parents’ hard drive on their computer once crashed” has every chance of becoming very popular in the next few years. Don't want this to happen in your family? All you need to do is take care of a backup. It's very simple and, as you can see, free.
Everyone who is somehow connected with computers knows about the existence of archivers, and many use them. Archiving and placing files for storage in external memory has been used for a long time and widely.
If the amount of memory on the selected storage medium is not enough to transfer files, then compression archiving is used. In addition, data compression reduces the cost of storing and transmitting data over a network or the Internet. Data compression is performed using special archive programs such as Zip, Rar, Arj, etc. Depending on the choice of compression level, source files (especially text files) can be reduced in volume by approximately four to five times. It should be taken into account that packing data is much slower than restoring it, and that with modern computer performance, it is possible to compress not only rarely used data and programs, but also actively used ones.
However, archiving is usually used for long-term information storage, in contrast to the so-called backup, which can also be carried out with compression, but involves a more strict structuring of information, a high degree of automation of the process of archiving and restoring data, as well as working with large volumes of information. Of course, we all know that important files (and even the work environment) should be archived just in case, but few of us do this regularly. Meanwhile, using one or another backup means, you can organize the system in such a way that its backup will become a simple and almost completely automated process.
The need to backup information and restore it after failures, virus attacks and hardware breakdowns today is recognized not only by corporate but also by individual users, including those who do not use computer networks but work on one single computer. home computer. Ensuring the reliability of backup, storage and recovery of information after failures is one of the main conditions for successful work on a computer.
Basic operating system tools
The optimal organization of backup involves automatic copying: files are placed on the media intended for them in such a way that the user does not even notice it during operation. The explosive growth in the capacity of hard drives used has led to the fact that the organization of a software and hardware complex for storing such volumes of information has become significantly more complicated. Traditional magnetic tape drives, as well as Jaz and Zip drives, no longer compete with hard drives and are not suitable for backup. CD-R/RW discs and recordable DVD discs, which appeared relatively recently, have a slightly larger capacity, but also cannot cope with modern volumes of tens and hundreds of gigabytes. You can, of course, solve this problem by creating several separate backup systems, each of which will work on its own schedule and with its own media.
For example, using the Microsoft Backup utility you can make one backup file for copying Windows directory and root directories, another - the Program Files directory, a third - data files, etc., but in this case the user will have to perform many operations manually. Automated backup tools appeared in Windows 95, where the Microsoft Plus package was installed, and to launch Microsoft Backup, the System Agent utility was used, which could be reached from the Start menu, Programs / Accessories / Utilities. /“Data archiving”. To specify which files needed to be copied, it was enough to select the appropriate options in the right and left panels of the window that opened, then select the desired disk or tape drive, as well as the directory for storing backup copies, and indicate that the backup program should be closed after its completion. To automate the operation of this program, it was necessary to disable the display of the confirmation request before starting the operation. Thus, once you set all the necessary settings in the Backup tab of the “Options” menu and specified in the “File” / “Save As” item the name and location of the future backup copy (another disk or directory), you could organize an automatic backup process. Since SET files were associated with Microsoft Backup by default, simply adding a file to the list would launch Backup. The reservation schedule was also set there (When to Run - when to run the System Agent). If it was necessary to schedule several backup sessions for different sets of files and different drives, then this procedure had to be repeated, giving different names to the SET files and a different execution schedule.
The version of Microsoft Backup that came with the Windows 98 operating system no longer allowed automatic archiving. Of course, it was possible to run Microsoft Backup using the Task Scheduler, but in order for it to make a backup, it required some input.
The Windows NT family of operating systems came with a utility called NTBACKUP.EXE that could be used in most cases to back up data and supported the following five types of backups:
A normal backup that saved selected files and marked them as backup;
An incremental backup that saved only those files that had changed since the last backup was created, and after copying they were marked as backup;
A selective backup, which, like a step-by-step backup, saved only those files that had changed since the last backup was created;
Copying files to an archive, just like creating a backup (which is the same as a selective backup, only the files are not marked as backed up);
Daily backup, that is, saving files that changed during that day, but the files were not marked as backed up.
As you can see, this was already a completely professional approach, which was preserved in the Windows 2000/XP operating systems, but nevertheless, the capabilities of the standard Backup utility are very limited. For more flexible reservations, other programs are also used.
Disk backup utilities
Let's look at a seemingly simpler, but actually very important task - the so-called replication (cloning) of hard drives. As practice shows, this is the issue that worries both individual and corporate users, and programs for creating disk images are used more widely than Backup utilities.
The thing is that such programs provide the easiest and most reliable way to restore the system in the event of any software or hardware failures, and also provide best way copying the contents of the hard drive to another computer (for example, when updating the configuration).
Such utilities work on the following principle: they form a single and, if possible, compressed file, which contains a disk image containing all the available information. This file can then be written to removable media (for backup storage or transportation) or to a separate partition of the same hard drive designated as a different drive (for quick recovery from failures, virus attacks, or hardware problems). Subsequently, the program can restore the disk image on the same or another drive.
Windows users You've probably noticed that the more new programs they install (primarily this concerns computer games), the slower and more unstable the entire system works. Sometimes the installation of new devices or simply some unauthorized devices leads to the destruction of the system. by Microsoft experiments, and the work environment after a virus attack looks absolutely deplorable. Often even a backup copy does not help recovery (they didn’t have time to back up or even lost a working copy), and then you have to install operating system again. In this case, only full preservation a working copy of the system disk (for example, on a CD-R/RW) with the ability to restore it to its original form. Such a copy should be made after the first installation of the system, all necessary programs and drivers and checking its functionality.
Until recently, the most popular solutions for replicating the contents of hard drives were Norton Ghost and PowerQuest Drive Image utilities. However, recent domestic developments in the field of backup are not only not inferior, but in many ways superior to the above programs - we are talking primarily about Acronis products (http://www.acronis.com, http://www.acronis.ru ). In addition, the developers of most Acronis products are located in Moscow (unlike their competitors PowerQuest and Symantec), so all programs have a Russian-language interface. In addition, Acronis products in Russia are easier to buy than to steal: at a price of 50-70 dollars on the world market, all of them are sold here for 299-399 rubles. In my opinion, it’s quite inexpensive for a clear conscience and support of a domestic manufacturer, and in addition, for Russian-language support for the product itself from the manufacturer.
As a matter of fact, the main task of such utilities is to copy the contents of the hard drive, including system areas, to another drive or to a backup file. But today such programs have taken on the role of both archiving systems that work with files and Backup utilities. At the same time, they are sometimes more convenient to use, universal, and even have some advantages over traditional approaches. The programs described below are ideal for restoring the working environment in the event of a failure without the need to reinstall the operating system and application programs, and for saving important user data, and for copying the desired configuration to another computer. In addition, when copying, disks may have different capacities, and these utilities allow you to resize logical disks when preparing a new computer for use.
As a rule, such programs exist in several versions - corporate and personal. The latter are intended for use on home computers and do not have network support. However, unlike the first, versions for widespread use should have a simpler and more accessible interface and at the same time support all the necessary capabilities and means of recovery after a failure.
True Image
For Windows 95/98/Me/NT (including Server)/2000 (including Server)/XP
Acronis True Image 6.0 is today's best full backup product, allowing you to create accurate images of your hard drive and/or individual partitions directly in Windows without rebooting. A disk image, including absolutely all data, applications and operating systems, can be restored to the hard drive in cases of sudden “death” of the hard drive, virus attacks or any other fatal software or software errors. hardware, even in situations where conventional file backup tools no longer help.
Main features:
Quickly create an accurate disk image with a guarantee of complete data safety (hard drives of any size are supported);
Recovering both entire hard drives and individual partitions or files and folders on them (both regular data partitions and system ones are restored);
Conveniently copy an exact hard drive image to CD-R/RW, ZIP, JAZ or any other storage device with removable media in a user-friendly environment with step by step instructions and with an interface in the style of Windows XP;
Complete cloning of a hard drive to a new computer.
Exclusive features:
The ability to create and restore a full disk image directly in Windows without the need to reboot into DOS or another system;
The presence of a friendly user interface with step-by-step instructions in the style of Windows XP, making the work accessible to users of any skill level;
Ensuring continuous operation in Windows while creating an image or restoring a disk (you can mount partitions saved inside the image, like logical drives Windows, with the ability to view them and restore individual files).
Other features:
Saving only the necessary contents of disk sectors in the image, as a result of which a complete disk image is created in a matter of minutes;
Ability to create backups and restore hard drive images over a local network;
User-defined compression level; splitting the archive into several volumes; setting a password;
Specifying a comment for the created partition image;
Creating a boot floppy disk, CD-R/RW or DVD-R/RW, which can be used to restore the computer's functionality even if all operating systems on it are destroyed;
The ability to change partition types, file systems, disk sizes and locations during the recovery process (file files are supported Windows systems FAT16/32 and NTFS, as well as Linux Ext2, Ext3, ReiserFS and SWAP, and special sector-by-sector support is provided for other types of partitions);
Full support for hard drives and burners with IDE, SCSI, PCMCIA, USB 2.0 and FireWire interfaces.
After installation, Acronis True Image 6.0 will offer to create a boot floppy disk or CD for use on a computer with any other operating system.
It should be emphasized that when starting Acronis True Image, you do not need to restart your computer; moreover, you can continue working with applications as usual, but you should not run resource-intensive applications. Although Acronis claims that with its unique technologies When creating an image, the integrity of data, hard drive structures and file systems is ensured, but it is still better to use the computer minimally during this process. In addition, Acronis True Image does not guarantee data integrity at the level of complex applications such as Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle and Microsoft Exchange.
Drive Image
For Windows DOS/95/98/Me/NT/2000/XP
The Drive Image Pro utility is designed to backup information from a hard drive to a file or to other storage media (Jaz, Zip, CD-R/RW, etc.) and is quite rightly considered not only one of best solutions for cloning hard drives, but also a very convenient tool for backup.
Drive Image allows you to create a compressed image of your hard drive, protect the information with a password and encrypt it if necessary. When restoring, you can copy the entire disk or individual files, as well as split the disk into logical partitions (the PartitionMagic Pro utility does this). Drive Image supports all known file systems: FAT, FAT32, NTFS and HPFS.
Although Drive Image is installed in almost all Windows versions, in fact, this is a DOS application - the program runs from MS-DOS and is small in size (can be written to a floppy disk). It doesn't matter how you boot into DOS, since Drive Image can be launched from the installation directory or from a CD-ROM using the QuickImage utility, which creates a virtual floppy disk in your computer's memory. Drive Image boots from this virtual floppy disk and performs your chosen file backup and recovery tasks.
The most important advantage of this program is that it can independently burn a disk image to a CD-R/RW and make it bootable. Other removable drives are also supported, and Drive Image includes all the necessary drivers. A function has been implemented to create a set of two floppy bootable disks, which will allow the program to run if there is no CD-R or the memory does not allow creating a virtual floppy disk. The program interface is made in the form of a wizard, is intuitive and does not even require reference to the user manual.
When preparing a disk image, Drive Image estimates the size of the final file (depending on the selected compression mode) and then allows you to test its integrity. In addition to the main disk, you can also save images hidden sections, which helps protect them from accidental damage.
Note that completely restoring a disk using Drive Image takes significantly less time than installing a Windows system (not to mention the necessary drivers and applications and subsequent configuration). In addition, restoring a disk from an image thanks to SmartSector technology (the program works at the sector level, bypassing the file system) is even faster than necessary for regular copying of information, and the size of the image file is more than half the amount of data stored in it.
Restoring information does not pose any difficulties (especially if you have chosen the disk-to-disk copy option), but if you want to restore the working environment on a computer with a different hardware configuration, then you will need the professional version of Drive Image Pro, which includes such auxiliary utilities as PowerCast (a program for simultaneous replication of information to an arbitrary number of computers on a local network) and full version PartitionMagic Pro. And to work with image files, you need the Drive Image File Editor utility, with which you can copy partitions from one image to another, compress the disk image, delete information from it, split it into several files (which is necessary, for example, for copying a large disk to different removable drives) or, conversely, combine several files into one, as well as selectively restore partitions and read the necessary information from a disk image file. To extract individual files, use the Image Explorer utility supplied with Drive Image.
In addition, Drive Image includes a separate DataKeeper program, which can be used to organize automatic backup of changed information into an already created disk image, that is, every time the contents of files change (on the entire disk or in selected directories), they will be saved to the image file automatically. Wherein different versions files can be accumulated with virtually no restrictions. By default, all files except program modules are copied, but you can explicitly specify the required extensions or templates. You can also schedule backup and restore tasks to run automatically, such as bringing a shared machine back online every night, or copying a disk partition to a CD-R/RW (or other removable media) or compressed a file located on another partition of the same hard drive.
In addition, the program works very efficiently in the background and has virtually no impact on the performance of the computer.
Latest version PowerQuest Drive Image 7.0 differs from previous versions in a number of new features. In particular, it allows you to save images of entire disks or individual partitions onto DVD-R/RW and DVD+R/RW media, and also supports a variety of external drives With USB interfaces(including version 2.0) and FireWire. Some improvements have also been made in the area of network support, as a result of which users can save images and restore content from disks over the network. In addition, thanks to Virtual Volume Imaging (V2i) technology, it is possible to design backup images as virtual hard disks.
Norton Ghost
For Windows XP/2000/NT WS/Me/98
Symantec's Norton Ghost 2003 (originally developed by Binary Research) can protect information from a variety of computer crash problems. Norton Ghost, although not the most convenient program for creating a copy of a disk, is the most complete in its capabilities. It allows you to copy and restore both individual partitions and the entire disk, and the disk image can be read and written over the network, via a parallel or USB port, and also saved to CD-R/RW or other removable media.
This program implements all the basic functions that you can expect from this kind of solution: copying data from a hard drive to another hard drive or to a file (disk image), copying disk partitions to a hard drive, to removable media and to files protected with password and compressed. The package contains very good editor disk image Ghost Explorer, which allows you to view a disk image and restore individual files. The program also provides functions for checking the disk surface for errors and bad sectors and has the ability to copy "sector to sector" if the user wants to get an exact copy of the disk. A fairly simple and intuitive interface makes it easy to backup your hard drive and subsequently simplifies the procedure for restoring it. In the Ghost Explorer window, you can drag and drop files and folders into or out of the image file. The command-line disk formatting utility Gdisk contains a unique set of functions designed for experienced users who know how to use them.
The program can also create regular backups, restore files simply and reliably, and simplify any system upgrades. Ghost can write copies to hard or removable drives, including CD-R/RW and DVD+RW drives, as well as removable devices such as Iomega Zip and Jaz. Recording can also be done directly to supported USB devices or FireWire (IEEE-1394), and fast connections between multiple computers via LAN, USB or high-speed parallel ports provide the ability to create a variety of clones.
However, it should be noted that, unlike Drive Image, for example, before you can perform any disk imaging or recovery operations, Norton Ghost must be loaded from a floppy disk or bootable CD, and you must enter serial number programs before restoring the image. In this case, you must create one boot disk for writing copies of images to CD-RW, and another for reading them from CD-RW disc. You cannot use the same floppy disk for reading and writing, although you can copy its contents to a CD-RW disk while preparing a second disk.
If you need a disk management program, check out the enterprise version of this package. Norton Ghost's multicast capability for transmitting copies of an image to multiple computers simultaneously is best suited for the needs of corporate offices (for example, creating or restoring multiple desktops). But for backup at home, perhaps you should think about other programs - simpler and faster.
The program has a detailed tutorial and good support on the Symantec website.
Retail price of the program about $70.
Paragon Drive Backup
For Windows: 9x/Me/NT/2000/XP
Drive Backup utility for backing up data, including creating copies of partitions for the purpose of quickly restoring them in the event of an accident, virus attack, or if necessary, transfer all data, including the operating system and installed software, to a new hard drive. Reinstalling the operating system and applications after hardware failure or a virus attack will not take much time and effort. The best way to protect your system is to make a backup copy of the system partition with the operating system and all necessary applications installed on it. Copies can be created on a hard drive and removable media (ZIP, JAZ, Sequest, CD-R/RW), as well as on disks connected over a network.
In addition, when replacing the hard drive, this utility will transfer all your data (operating systems, applications, files) from old tough disk to a new one. Every file and directory will be carefully restored. New disc may have different sizes and organization, but the partition size will be set during copying exactly as needed for the new disk.
True, the Paragon Drive Backup utility was not able to achieve such serious commercial success as Acronis True Image did. And the reason here, apparently, is in the user interface and ease of working with the package: it is obvious that Acronis has created a more user-friendly program.
Universal Backup
For Windows 95/98/Me/NT/2000/XP
If you don't have 300 rubles. to purchase Acronis True Image, then for backup you can use a freely distributed program with a Russian-language interface, which is called Universal Backup (universal “reserver”). This multifunctional program is intended primarily for creating archives containing any files and directories, with the possibility of their subsequent recovery both from “dead” DOS and directly from Windows. The utility allows you to scan any files, directories, registry keys and variables, as well as DOS files and files Windows settings. Scanning information is saved in report files, which can later be compared and archives created based on the differences. Although the program is very small (189 KB) and does not require installation, it is quite suitable for backing up both an individual program and the operating system as a whole.
Main features:
Creating archives containing any files, directories, keys and system registry variables;
Restoring files, directories, registry keys and variables to their original locations (both from DOS and directly from Windows);
Scanning any directories, registry keys, Windows configuration files (control.ini, system.ini, win.ini) and system files MS-DOS (boot.ini, winstart.bat, dosstart.bat, autoexec.bat, config.sys, msdos.sys);
Comparing reports of previous scans to identify differences between them (creation, deletion and modification of files, directories, keys and registry variables);
Creating archives based on identified changes (the archive includes created and changed files, directories, keys and registry variables);
Reinstallation (restoration) of the operating system;
Additional installation of the necessary system components.
This program will make life easier for a huge number of users, and it fits on just one floppy disk. Just imagine: complete reinstalling Windows from under DOS it will take you just a few minutes! Usually, most of the time is spent not so much on the installation of the operating system itself, but on its further configuration and optimization, but with using Universal Backup will solve this problem. All you need is to install the operating system, configure it as you wish, install the necessary programs, and then create it using Universal Backup backup archive file.