File & Setting Transfer Wizard confusion

[Ray Pixley]

I'm having problems understanding how the wizard decides which file to
transfer. I'm using Home XP with several users. I'm using a external hard
drive,normally use for backing up particular documents, that has sufficient
free space to copy the entire C: drive uncompressed if necessary (viruses and
all), which XP calls drive F:, and eventually want to restore the C: drive to
factory condition to fix some bad performance problems that just won't get
fixed, so I don't want to transfer the settings.

First, while monitoring the names of the files being transferred, it does
not appear to be transferring documents from all users, it seems by default
to be transferring only files belonging to the logged in user. That's a
surefire way to have me end up in the family doghouse. Is that true?

Also, after noting the transfer was taking excessively long, I noticed it
was also transferring the backup files from the external hard disk, the clue
being the file names being transferred started with "F:\" instead of "C:\"
,and that the names of those files had been deleted off the C: drive long
ago, to free up space on that drive, so it couldn't have gotton those files
from the C: drive. What made it do that? How do I use this wizard without
worrying about my other family member's files gettting wiped out in the
process and limit it to transferring only those files on the c: drive?

 

[sgopus]

Don't use it, get a better backup software, like Acronis True Image.

 

[Ray Pixley]

Your recommending a $1,197.60 software program for a home user (I googled
their web site and asked for a quote)? I was hoping for more economical
advise than throwing that amount of money at the problem.

 

[PA Bear [MS MVP]]

Using WinXP's FAST Wizard, by MVP Gary Woodruff
(Please read the caveats about Outlook Express)
http://aumha.org/win5/a/fast.htm

 

[Ray Pixley]

That's what I am using, and the update said I had the latest version. That
doesn't tell me how to have it avoid archiving the external removeable drive.

 

[PA Bear [MS MVP]]

Disconnect it before running FAST.

That's what I am using, and the update said I had the latest version.
That
doesn't tell me how to have it avoid archiving the external removeable
drive.