True Image, Ghost, Drive Image?

[Nomen Nescio]

I need to be able to backup XP machines and need some help in picking the
software to be used.

I cannot load the backup software on to each machine. I have to work from
floppies or bootable CD for both the backup and restore.

I have to be able to write the image to external USB drives in volumes of a
size that can later be burned into CD-R's.

I cannot install SCSI host adapter cards into the machines that do not already
have them.

I need to be able to verify the backup image on the USB drive as it is being
written or immediately after it is written.

I need to be able to backup both fat32 and ntfs partitions.

I think that Drive Image 7 cannot be run from floppies or bootable CD for
backup, only bootable CD for restore. Am I mistaken?

I've read a lot of negative comments about Ghost 2003. Has Symantec fixed
these problems yet?

Can True Image fulfill all of my above needs? Is it a reliable product?

If I need to restore from an archived set on CD-R's do I first need to put them
back onto a USB drive.

Any info deeply appreciated.

TIA

 

[Gavin]

You might find some help from powerquest
http://www.powerquest.com
Cheers
Gavin

 

[Bill Moyer]

I need to be able to backup XP machines and need some help in picking
the software to be used.

I cannot load the backup software on to each machine. I have to work
from floppies or bootable CD for both the backup and restore.

I have to be able to write the image to external USB drives in
volumes of a size that can later be burned into CD-R's.

I cannot install SCSI host adapter cards into the machines that do
not already have them.

I need to be able to verify the backup image on the USB drive as it
is being written or immediately after it is written.

I need to be able to backup both fat32 and ntfs partitions.

I think that Drive Image 7 cannot be run from floppies or bootable CD
for backup, only bootable CD for restore. Am I mistaken?

I've read a lot of negative comments about Ghost 2003. Has Symantec
fixed these problems yet?

Can True Image fulfill all of my above needs? Is it a reliable
product?

If I need to restore from an archived set on CD-R's do I first need
to put them back onto a USB drive.

Any info deeply appreciated.

TIA

I would say "none of the above". My recommendation would be BootIt NG,
which can run from floppy or bootable CD-R/RW discs. You could use
BootIt NG (also referred to as "BING") to restore directly from CD-R/RW
discs, without putting the image files back onto the USB drive first.

BING is also the only--yes, ONLY--imaging utility that can do full,
byte-for-byte verifications (the Drive Image users hate it when I point
that out). And BING is also the most actively-developed,
best-supported, and reasonably-priced imaging and partitioning utility
available. The BING author is not out to nickle-and-dime you to death,
like the rest.

http://www.terabyteunlimited.com/

 

[Bill Moyer]

x-no-archive: yes

Bill,

You didn't answer the question of being able to image to am external
USB HDD.

Does Bing do that or not?

The phrase "without putting the image files back onto the USB drive
first" implied a "yes" to that question. BING can image to USB devices,
and is also compatible with USB 2.0 devices running at high speed.

http://www.terabyteunlimited.com/faq.html

For more specific questions, post to the BING newsgroup, where the
author himself will respond within hours:

http://www.terabyteunlimited.com/support.html

 

[Alex Nichol]

BING is also the only--yes, ONLY--imaging utility that can do full,
byte-for-byte verifications (the Drive Image users hate it when I point
that out). And BING is also the most actively-developed,
best-supported, and reasonably-priced imaging and partitioning utility
available. The BING author is not out to nickle-and-dime you to death,
like the rest.

Also, just to confirm, it has recently been upgraded in its version 1.51
to operate with USB 2.0 drives. $35 shareware - 30 day full functional
trial, at www.bootitng.com

It will also handle all your general partitioning needs

 

[Bill Moyer]

do all of you guys work for BING

Do we work for a piece of software? No. Do we work for the company
that makes that software? No again. Do we use it and like it enough to
want to spread the word? Yes.

Have you used BING? Obviously not, or you would understand our
enthusiasm.

The author of BING has *bent* *over* *backwards* to help me, and many,
many other customers, and I want other people to benefit from that kind
of service. There is nothing wrong with giving credit where it's due.
Or is it only appropriate to give half-assed, half-hearted
recommendations, or ultra-negative comments?

 

[Fred S]

x-no-archive: yes



The phrase "without putting the image files back onto the USB drive
first" implied a "yes" to that question. BING can image to USB devices,
and is also compatible with USB 2.0 devices running at high speed.

http://www.terabyteunlimited.com/faq.html

For more specific questions, post to the BING newsgroup, where the
author himself will respond within hours:

http://www.terabyteunlimited.com/support.html

Bill,

Thanks for the information, that's great news as I have been a long time
user of Drive Image. I've been disappointed with their latest release which
requires a lot of overhead and I don't like the way it works.

Bing seems to be the way to go - thanks again, I'll be sure to check it out.

Fred

 

[Bill Moyer]

x-no-archive: yes

I have a couple of Q's about BING that I can't answer on their web
site;

1. Can BING backup my C partion while I am running XP ?
No.

2. Does it talk to my USB CD Burner ? I can't find a compatibility
list on the web site.

Only if it is a USB 2.0 device.

3. Can I restore my C drive from a NING software running from a
bootable CD ?

Yes, if you first save the images to a device other than your burner,
and then burn the images to CD from within Windows, using the freeware
BINGBURN utility, which gives the option of making the CD bootable.

 

[Bill Moyer]

DI7

DI7 does a very loose verification, not a thorough, literal-copy
verification.

 

[Guest]

Hi,
I gave Bing a try, and that is where it ended.
It looks very complicated to me. The user has to take a lot of decisions
during the installation (decisions that he might not know at all).
It is a very old fashion DOS-oriented application, that must have been a
very good choice 10 years ago.

 

[Bill Moyer]

x-no-archive: yes

I gave Bing a try, and that is where it ended.
It looks very complicated to me. The user has to take a lot of
decisions during the installation (decisions that he might not know
at all).
It is a very old fashion DOS-oriented application, that must have
been a very good choice 10 years ago.

It does take getting used to, no argument there (it actually isn't a DOS
application; it runs in its own environment). It is also more suited to
knowledgable and capable users.