back up

[scott pilon]

My parents bought a used p.c that came with xp. the
problem is they didn't get the windows installation disk
to go with the system. Can they back up xp in case there
is a need for a reinstall. They are very new to the
computing world and I think it would be a good idea for
them to have a back up..

 

[Guest]

You have to install it:

If you have a rescue disk the valueadded folder may be on
it or your XP Disk, Mine was on disk #2

Insert the XP or Rescue CD, and run NTBACKUP.MSI program
from the folder D:\valueadd\msft\ntbackup

You can get a copy here;
http://www.onecomputerguy.com/software/ntbackup.msi

In XP Home the ASR Floppy Disk does not work . It will NOT
backup to a CD. You can back up to
a folder on your hard drive then burn it to a CD

here is how to use it;
http://windows.about.com/library/weekly/aa020120a.htm

 

[Sparkie]

Hey

In this case the best thing to do is to use a third party
program (like Powerquests 'Drive Image' or
Nortons 'Ghost') to make an exact image of the harddisk,
(if the system is running smoothly), so if trouble is
rising its head, copy the image back to the harddisk, and
the computer will be back to the state when the (last)
image was created, ( any updates, installed programs, and
changes since the the image was created has to bo redone)