Restorable copy of my hard drive?

[+Bob+]

After I get my system all set up I'd like to make a "one time" image
of the hard drive (programs / configuration) for a future restore. The
system manufacturer (Toshiba) doesn't provide any utility for this.
I'm not worried about periodic data backups, I handle that
differently. I need something that will boot and restore.

What are my choices these days for creating this backup? Is ther
anything inherent in Vista? Something in the shareware arena maybe? I
hate to give money to Norton for Ghost (we've had our personal
differences

Thanks,

 

[Roberto le Corneille]

After I get my system all set up I'd like to make a "one time" image
of the hard drive (programs / configuration) for a future restore. The
system manufacturer (Toshiba) doesn't provide any utility for this.
I'm not worried about periodic data backups, I handle that
differently. I need something that will boot and restore.

What are my choices these days for creating this backup? Is ther
anything inherent in Vista? Something in the shareware arena maybe? I
hate to give money to Norton for Ghost (we've had our personal
differences

Thanks,

Copy wipe from Terabyte is free and first class
http://www.terabyteunlimited.com/copywipe.php

rgds
Roberto

 

[Steve Thackery]

I use Acronis for this very job, and can recommend it.

SteveT

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

After I get my system all set up I'd like to make a "one time" image
of the hard drive (programs / configuration) for a future restore. The
system manufacturer (Toshiba) doesn't provide any utility for this.
I'm not worried about periodic data backups, I handle that
differently. I need something that will boot and restore.

What are my choices these days for creating this backup? Is ther
anything inherent in Vista? Something in the shareware arena maybe? I
hate to give money to Norton for Ghost (we've had our personal
differences

No, there's nothing in Vista. You need a third-party solution. Acronis
True Image is a very good choice, and what I recommend.

By the way, unless you are a very unusual person, it's highly unlikely
that a " 'one time' image" will suffice. Most of us install new
programs from time to time, change configurations to meet our changing
needs, etc. If I were you, I would think, not of a one-time image, but
in terms of a hardware/software configuration that permitted me to do
this periodically.

And a question for you: where are you planning on putting this image?