Best to go through MoneyAM to get your Java.

Go to it via, eg, Stockwatch, for your download.

Funny, thats what I thought I'd done before. However it seems to have vanished from my stockwatch screen?

http://java.sun.com/webapps/getjava/BrowserRedirect?locale=en&host=www.java.com:80

I had to get rid of a small number of bad sectors a few days ago.

I am, touch wood, experiencing no current problems but my IT chappie feels it would be wise to swop my hard disk soonish.

A short while ago we discussed the various software alternatives that one could use to minimise the number of programs that would need re-installing from scratch. On a photographic forum that I follow someone has suggested:-

http://www.acronis.com/homecomputing/products/trueimage/

Has anyone around here used it?

EDIT. I now see that they do something more specific:-
http://www.acronis.com/homecomputing/products/migrateeasy/

And the alternatives? Ghost is often mentioned. One that someone around here mentioned was PC Relocator.

All suggestions welcome.

Rgds

TP

TP - I use Acronis True Image for regular backups to an external USB hard drive and it's excellent.

I looked at a lot of backup products in April after moving away from more manually-oriented DVD-RAM backups and although Acronis isn't the market leader (I'm sure Norton Ghost still will be) I was convinced it was the better product.

One small word of caution - I tried buying online from their website but it didn't go smoothly - although customer service was excellent and the screw-up was soon sorted. UK-sourced boxed version 9s used to be cheaper than downloading direct from Acronis US but now the dollar has gone down so much maybe it isn't any more.

edit: I'm not quite sure about what the Migrate Easy product does that True Image doesn't - since I can use True Image to copy the complete contents of one hard drive to another. Maybe it makes things a bit easier but I wonder if it is as useful as True Image in the long run?

And one word of warning about 'ghosting' one machine's hard drive to another machine with XP - most likely it will regard the new location as evidence of piracy and you'll have to phone Microsoft to convince them to give you an unlock code.

TP

If you want to copy your existing settup to the new disc, then most partition managers should do the job. I have used and can recomend Partition Magic, which is often availible free.

The other route that you could take is to do a fresh install and reinstall or import your existing applications. The problem with doing this, is that some programs will not transfer properly, and it will also transfer a load of unwanted settings and programs which tend to slow your machine down over time and you will therefore lose much of the advantage of a fresh install.

If you have a pre SP2 XP installation disc, you can't install it to a partion larger than 125GB although there is a workaround for this. Under no circumstances connect a pre SP2 system directly to the internet even to install security updates.

Actually Optimist, you've reminded me of something there. Although there is a patch for pre-SP2 XP installation discs (the so-called streaming patch IIRC), it doesn't work for Dell OEM XP discs because they aren't the same as standard MS XP ones. I think I read that the patch doesn't work for some other OEM XP discs as well.

There may be something to be said for partitioning large hard drives though. A failure I had earlier this year was caused by a corrupted partition record which, because it was a progressive failure rather than a sudden one, rendered it unrecoverable. Had I partitioned the hard drive, I wouldn't have lost the whole thing.

Optimist,

I thought the problem with copying to a new disk is that things like registry entries got muddled and the non-Microsoft progs usually did not run properly.

Kyoto,

Am I not right in thinking that your 'regular backups' are never used as a disk that boots and runs all the installed software.

I'm guessing that Migrate Easy might simply be a component of True Image.

However, you've both reminded me that I am still on Win 2000 with this office machine and now might be the time to move to XP - and take the hit of re-installing all the bits of third party software.

TP

TP - when I tested True Image, I copied my desktop hard disk to an external USB hard drive and then, using the floppy/CD boot-disk that the software can create, copied it back to an empty hard drive. It worked.

I needed a solution that would do this because although I'd been smugly backing up my data for years, when I lost my hard drive it took me about 12 solid hours to re-install and configure all my applications. It's the first time I'd lost a drive since using the dubious Doublespace application on Windows 3.1 (or 95), and I hadn't appreciated just how much work and frustration would be involved. I was determined not to go through all that again, which is why I made sure with True Image.

It's true that over time the hard disk and Windows Registry become full of crap and there's much to be said for a fresh install every time a new computer is bought, but I've used True Image to create a 'fresh-build' backup (in addition to weekly system backups) which I can go back to if I want to - although lots of subsequent patches would have to be installed of course.

On the subject of upgrading to XP - Windows Vista will probably be out in about six months although if your machine is old you'll almost certainly require a new one for that.

The workaround for installing pre SP2 to a large partition is to install it on a small one, install SP2 and then use a partition manager to enlarge it to the full disk size.

You can make installation easier by copying all of your installation CDs to a setup directory on your hard disk and installing the apps from there. This tends to be faster than a CD install and you don't have to remember what applications you had installed and where the disks are. It's still a pain though.

Vista will be a must have system, but its full functionality will not be availible for at least a year after the first release and there will be compatibility problems with older programs.

Speaking of Vista: I am thinking that when it is offered I might upgrade to Vista (I'm having problems with my XP Home Restore feature that I can't fathom out even with MS article 302796). It's got me a bit nervous and wonder if I'd ever manage a re-install with my pre-sp2 disk. However back to Vista.
I have downloaded Microsoft's Vista Upgrade Adviser and it's telling me that various drivers need updating which is simple to fix, BUT, it's also giving me a message that my USB Controllers need replacing."VIA Rev 5 or later Universal Host Controller" and "VIA USB Enhanced Host Controller".
This is somewhat worrying is it not? My machine is only 2 years old.

K,

So True Image is probably what I should use.

As I am not planning to upgrade the PC I might just as well stay with Win 2000 and then wait to get a new one with Vista and that would be the time to take the hit and re-install all my progs.

TP

TP - probably - I actually ran a brief search on the differences between True Image and Migrate Easy and found this from Acronis Support:

Since you have already installed Acronis True Image on your computer you don't need Acronis Migrate Easy because the functionality of the former includes all the functions of the latter. However Acronis Power Utilities does inlude several programs that are very useful for those who deal with partition managing and system back up.

http://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=65224

You will need to ensure that whatever backup device you're using (such as a USB hard disk if any) can be read by your system when you do a restore.

Thanks K,

I have a second hard disk in the PC anyway.

I use Retrospect to copy to it every night using their system that keeps the files that have been changed. It does clog up fairly quickly but it's a comfort to know that something you deleted, or overwrote in error, is recoverable.

In the case of a disk crash on my C: it would have everything from yesterday, but be no good for restoring software.

When the drive D: gets too full I copy everything from C: to an external firewire drive using the other Retrospect prog that copies everything that has change. I then purge my D: and start again.

And finally, each night I use something called Karen's Replicator to copy my data files to an office server, which is taped. The previous night's tapes are taken off the premises each night in case the building gets straffed over night.

All of which still does not do what Acronis looks to be capable of doing, namely re-loading all my progs.

TP

TP

If you are simply installing a new disk all you have to do is install the new hard disk as a secondary, run your partition management program which should have an option to copy your entire disk to the new device and enlarge the partition to the size of the new disk. When it's done, you simply swap the cables around, and remove the old disk if you want to.

The True Image program that Bolshi referes to has an option to backup the entire disk image as a file on another disk which can then be imported onto the existing or a new disk. Although you need a lot of backup disk space, it is an excellent way to backup your system but you do not require that just to transfer to a new HDD.

TP - agreed, if you're partition software can copy/ghost from one hard drive to another you don't necessarily need something like True Image. It sounds like you have a fairly good backup strategy in any case :-)

I suppose this second hard disk strategy could be a good safety net for my 'Restore' issues. Probably cheaper than other options and as long as it's bootable I suppose.

Op,

Well that's easy then. Install the new hard disk as the secondary and follow your work flow.

And Partition management is within Win 2000 - or I need to download it?

K,

"It sounds like you have a fairly good backup strategy in any case :-)"

Yes, once, or actually several times, bitten once shy. I also have a folder called Sources into which I put the downloaded installation software for the myriad of progs I use. Saves a heck of a time if one is doing a clean installation, as long as they are copied to somewhere I can access.

TP



TP

TP

No! partition management is not part of Win2K or XP. I used it as a generic term for the software which you will have to install.

If you Google "partition managers" you will find plenty of options. It appears that the one I was refering to is now called Paragon Partition Manager but there are loads of others.

Op,

I thought that was what you meant.

As ever I'd opt for the one that someone around here has used and found OK.

Taking a long weekend so off in a mo'.

Thanks for all the advice, friends.


TP