ghost 2003 automatic restore image

[Robert]

Problem : my father is learning to work with a computer, wonderful,
but often he is doing ... stupid things.

My idea was to make an image file of the hard disk on a DVD so that,
when he had done something wrong, he could use the bootable DVD to
boot the computer and restore the notebook.

Making the image was no problem, but automating the restore A BIG
PROBLEM.

I know that Ghost 2003 is making a Virtual Partition. So it is no
problem to boot from the DVD. But then Ghost is started and I have to
choose what I want to do with it ...

I tried the advanced settings when making an image and included the
instruction to 'add to autoexec.bat' :
ghost.exe -clone,mode=restore,dst=1,src=@CD-R1 -sure -fx
but that doesn't make any difference.

It is not possible to use a bootable disk because the notebook doesn't
have a floppy.

 

[Neil Maxwell]

Making the image was no problem, but automating the restore A BIG
PROBLEM.

You might want to try the demo of True Image 8 -
http://www.acronis.com. I find it much easier to use than Ghost, if
somewhat less flexible. As long as it supports your hardware, it's
very user-friendly for both backup and restore.

 

[Peter]

Robert,

You have said that booting from DVD is no problem. Automating execution of a
ghost.exe command line does not seem to be difficult either. So what is the
issue?
What kind of error, wrong behavior, do you get when
"ghost.exe -clone,mode=restore,dst=1,src=@CD-R1 -sure -fx" is executed?
Did you try to run it without -sure -fx switches first?
Did you warn your dad that all existing files will get overwritten as a
result of this procedure?

 

[Robert]

Hi Peter,

The problem is that when you boot the instruction
"ghost.exe -clone,mode=restore,dst=1,src=@CD-R1 -sure -fx" is NOT executed.
The computer boots from the DVD and it starts up the ghost program. You then
have to select the instructions manually. You have to select manually the
image fill that he need to use.

It is no problem that all existing files are overwritten, there is no
important information on the hard disk.

Thanks for the info.

 

[Peter]

Sorry, I have failed to check one thing.
-SURE switch is not valid for Ghost 2003.
You need to use Ghost 8.0 or 7.5 (from the recent ones).
http://service1.symantec.com/SUPPORT/ghost.nsf/pfdocs/1998082612540625?Open
Also, MODE=RESTORE should be substituted with MODE=LOAD as RESTORE does not
seem to be supported either. But I blame this on messy Symantec support
pages an the lack of consistency.
I have learned to double check everything, as they were wrong many times.