Hard Drive Back Up

Discussion in 'Software' started by Jud149, Jun 21, 2007.

  1. Jud149

    Jud149 First Sergeant

    I just received as a gift Lexar 1GB flash drive. Can this be used to back up my entire system including all programs. My OS is XP Pro sp2.
     
  2. Mada_Milty

    Mada_Milty MajorGeek

    Likely not... depends on what you mean by "entire system"... if you are going to image your system partition, it is usually around 4GB before you do anything other than install windows.

    If you mean just copy your data files, installation programs, then you MAY be able to do it, if they all fit, but chances are you have over a gig worth of that, too.

    At a glance, I would say no, you can't do this.
     
  3. Jud149

    Jud149 First Sergeant

    Thanks for the reply. What I really want to do is back up my system to the point where if I loose my hard drive, I can install something to get me back to where I was immediately after installing the new drive. Perhaps this is wishful thinking? Also, if I can't do this with this flash drive, do I need it since I have all my important files on CD's?
     
  4. Mada_Milty

    Mada_Milty MajorGeek

    Not wishful thinking! There are utilities to image a hard drive (that is take a bit-by-bit copy) that would do exactly what you want. Take a look at DriveImage XML, which is a freeware utility to image drives/partitions. Do keep in mind that an exact copy of your hard drive is going to consume quite a bit of disc space. I might recommend getting an external hard drive to put them on.

    Regarding your flash drive, I wouldn't say you need it, but it is a little faster and a little more flexible than CD. It may prove its worth in time.
     
  5. Jud149

    Jud149 First Sergeant

    Thanks again for the help!
     

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