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Disk Image

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by kiufiu

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Is it possible to make a disk image from the network? I ma administaring a server with Windows 2003 Server on it. I'd like to make an image of it before any crash happens, but I don't want to install any image software on it, so was wondering if I can make an image from the network.

Thank you, Toni

9 replies

by charliespencer

I think VMware has a new product that will allow you to make an image of a running server. I don't know the details or requirements, just that it replaces their old P2V (Physical to Virtual) product.

by info

Hi,

try vmware. It's amazing!!!

by Former member

There are 3 or 4 Imaging applicaitons (Ghost, DriveimageXML, AcronisTrueImage), which can run from BartPE.
For info on BartPE, see
http://www.nu2.nu/pebuilder/

DriveImageXML (currently freeware), is very lightweight, and I have copied it's program directory to a machine and ran it successfully (without performing an actuall install). http://www.runtime.org/dixml.htm

And of course the P2V option works very well also. YOu can set up a VMWare server, and then convert our physical server into a Virtual server. At which point your server is (relatively) hardware agnostic (which is nice for future migrations).

by charliespencer

I think it's an excellent tool, but isn't it kind of overkill just to get a bootable disk with an imaging utility? It would be easier to install Ghost on another machine to make boot disk.

tonitershe, why don't you want to install the imaging tool on the server?

by kiufiu

I don't like that much installing a ghost on the server because of it needs a restart, my server is almost 150 days running. I'm ... hmm somehow afraid of restarting it. I konw there are a lot of updates downloaded and installed, first I need to restart the server for getting those updates up and running. You know, I had a lot of trouble once, after I restarted my server.
So I was thinking making an image of it would offer me a great advantage in case the server crashes, along side with other backup utilities about the data.

Second, I would like to have an imaging tool which runs from the network, so in case I would like to ghost other PC-s on the LAN I wouldn't need to install the imaging software on every machine.

Thanks for your advices

by kiufiu

I am kind of Novice in using BartPE or VMWare, I've used only VMWare for virtual machine.

Would greatly appriciate any short guidline about these products that you recomend.

Toni

by Former member

All of the solutions I offered, save perhaps DriveImageXML are going to require a reboot, which you say you don't want to do, so that may limit your choices some.

VMware P2V allows you to migrate a physical machine to a virtual machine. YOu set up a VMWARE server with adequate resources, set up a P2V help VM, reboot your Physical server with the P2V cd, and then use the P2V wizard to clone your physical machine as a VM on your VMWare server.

BartPE is functional Windows XP or 2003 on a CD (thus allowing you to run apps, such as Ghost without instlaling them on the server,but that doen'st meet your no reboot requirement, sorry).

by charliespencer

You've got bigger problems than how to make an image of it.

You may have to resign yourself to reality: Windows servers require reboots. (No comments from the Linux flock, please.) You should always make an image or otherwise back up the server BEFORE you install the patches.

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