Windows Forum
Hello All,
is there any freeware software that one can use to make a complete backup of programs currently running on a Windows XP and be able to restore them after formatting the whole Hard Drive.I'd greatly appreciate all your help.
thanx a lot.
Ntutuko Ntini
by statykserver
Here is one that I like
It sounds as if you want to create a full image of your system and restore it to the same hard drive, if you do not want to re-install Windows XP and all the programs.
Norton Ghost and a number of other utilities can create a disc image on a DVD burner or alternatively duplicate the hard drive to a second hard drive. These tools are not free, though.
Linux Live CD distributions from sites like http://www.gnoppix.org and http://knoppix.com can give you the tools you need to copy the hard drive to backup media and then copy it back. Most likely you need to use the command prompt and the dd command to do a physical copy to a similar or large hard drive.
If you are not a Linux expert, test the procedure first on a non-critical PC, not on a live system.
by lstone
You won't find a better inexpensive solution than NTBackup. It's based on the same basic engine as the expensive Backup Exec and it installs with XP Pro. If you have XP Home just copy NTBackup.exe from a Pro machine to the \System32 folder. Do "file based backup" to an external drive. For a full system backup, select C: and System State. Easy as pie. Real easy if you use a VB script to launch it, or create a scheduled task. To restore after formatting, install Windows from your original CD then restore the latest backup file created with NTBackup.
I currently backup 2 domain controllers, an Exchange server, a Terminal Server, and 25 workstations with a VBScript that launches NTBackup. I have had to restore several workstations, a domain controller, and the entire Exchange server with no problems. Believe me, NTBackup is the way to go.
This discussion is closed to new replies.
Sort by Trending