Help to clone a partition..Newbee!

[martian1]

After many problems with a hard drive and loads of re-installs i have decided to back up my operating system. I want a very simple tool to clone a 10 gig partition to a spare 20gig hard drive i have. This will be stored away later.
I have used Acronis from the Hirens boot disc before but have hit a snag as my new drive is 250gig and Acronis wants to clone the whole drive i think 250 into 20 won't go i cannot find an option to just clone a partition the version is Acronis True image 8.0.
I have to add norton ghost etc is confusing as hell to me i am afraid of wiping my good partition using it. I could try and create an image but don't think this is as good as cloning. Any help guys much appreciated

 

[Mr.D]

Don't understand why you should have a problem . The 10Gb partition is actually a partition?

Even if its not in Trueimage you can limit the size of the backup ( ie say you had a 100Gb disc or partition with only 10Gb of data on it . Trueimage gives you the option of changing the partition/disc image size to reflect this so you essentially only back up the 10Gb of data as a n image. ( not used this myself though) .

You can also add compression to the image file which works well ( never had a problem with restoring compressed image files).

Also delete any video files you don't need . Trueimage can't compress these as well for some reason.

What's the Hirens boot disc by the way?

Have you formatted and partitioned the 250Gb drive?

 

[Embarker]

Now here's a thread i've always wanted to start - one thing i've never mastered is cloning drives.

I'd "like" to back up the drive to a d/l dvd that could be used as a boot disk, assume that a h/d will be alot quicker though.

I've "tried" Norton Ghost and Acronis but never got my head around it.

Anyone out there that has a solution

 

[clockworks]

I use both Ghost and TrueImage. The latter is really easy from within Windows. I use Ghost from a PCDOS boot disk, and that is dead simple, too, as long as you know what partition you want to backup.
I don't really like Ghost from within Windows. Since it reboots to PCDOS anyway, I've never seen the point.

 

[Chris Muriel]

The hard disk manufacturers' own utilities (which are free downloads from their websites) have always worked for me
(Maxblast for Maxtor, Seatools for Seagate etc.).
You can burn the tools onto a bootable CD.

Chris Muriel, Manchester

 

[bibamus]

Have you thought of HyperOs? You can ( depending on the amount of space on your disc and your liking of windows) install many operating systems, or copies of one operating system on the same PC and boot to any one of them. You can also create a virgin Windows system and leave it intact, or a full Windows system, again leaving it intact on a different partition. When you get a problem with your system, you just drag the perfect copy onto your messed up copy, and bobs your uncle!!!
HyperOs own website gives you a proper description of what it can do. I am sure someone very close to me will be selling something like that soon on the For Sale section!
Allan

 

[unique]

use ghost 2003, its dead simple, you can take a smaller partition/drive, such as a 10gig drive and clone it to a 300gig drive, and it will give you a copy of your drive that will work, apart from it's on a single 300gig partition - or whatever you want

there are plenty of guides you can google up for it. norton2003 comes with norton 9 or 10, and runs from dos or windows. the windows method is easy for setting up, then it boots to dos and does its thing

 

[martian1]

Thanks all i will look further into this,i struggle with dos ghost etc might be simple but it doesn't look it to me i struggle fathoming out which drive is which with all the huge numbers..as i said i could blunder and clone wrong partition true image seems nice and easy but i cannot find option to clone 10gig to 20gig you cannot go wrong finding the right partition it just refuses to seperate it for a clone. Trouble wth me is once i am shown i get it straight off otherwise it's bob's your Aunty i'm afraid...
All these programs are booted from hirens disc not installed in windows.

 

[Uridium]

I use ghost v9, runs from within Windows or DOS. Just point it to the drive/partition you want to back up then tell it where you want the image to be saved to.

I just backup my first HDU with my C:\ on it to a second hard disk in my PC. The built in scheduler allows you to run an automated job that copies the image across every day/week/month etc...

Had a HDU failure a couple of months back, just chucked a new HDU in, booted from the Ghost CD, pointed it at the backup image on my second HDU and restored the whole drive in about 40 mins with all Apps etc.. pre installed.

Also have a USB external HDU backing up the second internal HDU

Nice simple easy to use backup solution.

 

[clockworks]

Thanks all i will look further into this,i struggle with dos ghost etc might be simple but it doesn't look it to me i struggle fathoming out which drive is which with all the huge numbers..as i said i could blunder and clone wrong partition true image seems nice and easy but i cannot find option to clone 10gig to 20gig you cannot go wrong finding the right partition it just refuses to seperate it for a clone. Trouble wth me is once i am shown i get it straight off otherwise it's bob's your Aunty i'm afraid...
All these programs are booted from hirens disc not installed in windows.

TrueImage won't allow you to clone a partition (only a complete HDD, as you have found), you have to create an image.
An image works perfectly well as a backup, but a spare HDD with an image of your system partition is obviously not bootable.
This is the reason I still use Ghost as well.

 

[unique]

Thanks all i will look further into this,i struggle with dos ghost etc might be simple but it doesn't look it to me i struggle fathoming out which drive is which with all the huge numbers..as i said i could blunder and clone wrong partition true image seems nice and easy but i cannot find option to clone 10gig to 20gig you cannot go wrong finding the right partition it just refuses to seperate it for a clone. Trouble wth me is once i am shown i get it straight off otherwise it's bob's your Aunty i'm afraid...
All these programs are booted from hirens disc not installed in windows.

theres plenty of guides to using ghost that you can google up and make it easy. i prefer to use the windows version and set the settings in that, then it boots to DOS and does it's thing

if you have a 10gig and a 300gig drive, you wont be able to put the 300gig onto the 10gig, so you shouldnt go to far wrong. i would imagine ghost would also have warnings built in so you dont wipe over the active boot partition (the bit thats running windows)

just type "guide to ghost" or something in google

 

[willsy2]

i'm sure i've cloned a partition with Trueimage. I've got my HTPC drive in two partitions, one for apps and one for recordings, and i've made an image of the apps partition saved on the recordings one.

 

[martian1]

Could i make an image using True image then if needed re-format knackered partition boot up with true image and copy it back to knackered re- formatted partition [this would be windows].
Would it then just boot windows as before ? restoring it...
I think norton ghost on the hirens disc is a little old most likely newer versions easier to fathom out..i really want a few clicks simple solution. At the moment just re-installing from scratch seems easier
Whatever i use must be a free apps

 

[Mr.D]

Well trueimage isn't free for a start . What is the hiren's disc ? Is it warez?

 

[Uridium]

Don't think you'll find what you want FOC.

Heren's boot CD is Warez.

Ghost V9 will do exactly what you need and is mad simple to use (no DOS knowledge needed at all) it doesn't even boot into DOS to copy the partition, all copying is done on the fly with Windows running.

Going to cost you about £35 though. depends how badly you want an easy to use reliable partition/disk backup utility.

£35 is a small price to pay for good software in my view

 

[Mr.D]

Don't think you'll find what you want FOC.

Heren's boot CD is Warez.

£35 is a small price to pay for good software in my view

Agree and I won't be offering any more advice on how to use it.

 

[martian1]

Ok thanks for not giving anymore advice hope its worth it

 

[Mr.D]

talk is cheap.

 

[martian1]

sorry if i have offended.. let me try and explain. I am not a free loader i have hundreds of legal dvd's cd's games etc turned my nose up at many so called good copies of new movies and games etc . I don't agree with this practice.
This hirens disc i have if illigal will be dumped,but it was suggested as a cure on these forums. My pc died and i was stuck, a guy told me to try this disc to find problem..It worked my hard disc was dying, got a new disc and all is well.
After the new disc i am a bit skint so any good free software a blessing. I have downloaded lavasoft ad-ware etc free and thought this the same if its not sorry guys . Close thread and thanks all for trying to help
Keith your right m8t

 

[Mr.D]

That's fine. Go and buy one of the mentioned apps when you can afford it and we'll be happy to help you with it.

 

[martian1]

Thanks i'll do that..