Need imaging software

Vincenzo

New Member
Power User
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299
I've been a long time Norton Ghost user, but they still don't have a Win 8 compatible version. So I am looking into other brands. I've read some older threads here on the topic, I see Macrium comes up a lot, and I have used it a few times in the past, never on Win 8. I've used Acronis, but it has a bad record for reliability from the reading I've done on the Acronis forum and other places.

I've used the Win 7 imaging app. I don't really like the lack of flexibility and features. Especially when it comes to incremental backup.

What I need is an app that will do incremental images, that will backup and restore the MBR, and that is reliable.

Any thoughts are appreciated.

Thanks
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro
For Windows 8, I purchased Paragon Backup and Restore 12 home. It has backed up and restored MBR as well as GPT with UEFI/SecureBoot enabled. I've created backups on 3 different machine types and have been able to restore on all 4.

It's $39 and you can build a Windows PE disc with the Windows 8 Assessment and Deployment Kit (free download), and easily pack in any drivers you need. Unlike Acronis which requires the Plus Pack to build custom Windows PE, you can do it with just the $39 Paragon software.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Self-Built in July 2009
    CPU
    Intel Q9550 2.83Ghz OC'd to 3.40Ghz
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3R rev. 1.1, F12 BIOS
    Memory
    8GB G.Skill PI DDR2-800, 4-4-4-12 timings
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA 1280MB Nvidia GeForce GTX570
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC899A 8 channel onboard audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    23" Acer x233H
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Intel X25-M 80GB Gen 2 SSD
    Western Digital 1TB Caviar Black, 32MB cache. WD1001FALS
    PSU
    Corsair 620HX modular
    Case
    Antec P182
    Cooling
    stock
    Keyboard
    ABS M1 Mechanical
    Mouse
    Logitech G9 Laser Mouse
    Internet Speed
    15/2 cable modem
    Other Info
    Windows and Linux enthusiast. Logitech G35 Headset.
I've used Acronis, but it has a bad record for reliability from the reading I've done on the Acronis forum and other places..... What I need is an app that will do incremental images, that will backup and restore the MBR, and that is reliable. ....... Any thoughts are appreciated. Thanks

Acronis True Image 2013, the new version for Windows 8, is reliable. I have used it at least 100 times (on different machines) and have had no issues. Incremental, Differential, Full and MBR in disk mode.

True Image has features and tools that other programs do not have. A full rescue media suite is available as well. One feature, kind of nice to have, is that you can transfer the license to another computer.
...depends on what you need.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Server 2012 / 8.0
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home Built
    CPU
    Intel i7 QuadCore 3770k
    Motherboard
    Asrock Extreme 4
    Memory
    16GB Crucial Ballistix
    Graphics Card(s)
    intel embedded gpu
    Sound Card
    Sound Blaster Z
    Monitor(s) Displays
    AOC / Westinghouse
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Plextor pcie msata
    PSU
    Rosewill Silent Night 500W Fanless / PicoPSU
    Case
    open bench - no case enclosure
    Cooling
    Silverstone HEO2 Passive Silent
    Keyboard
    logitech washable K310
    Mouse
    logitech wired
    Browser
    ie / maxthon
    Other Info
    Totally silent. No fans at all.
OK thanks, I'll look at those for use on my personal machines.

But now that you've got me thinking about licenses, I realize there is another issue. I used to install the Ghost trial version on computers I was setting up for other people, no charge unless the user decided to keep using it after 30 days. So maybe I need to be looking at Macrium free for computers I work on for others. What are people's thoughts on Macrium?

Thanks
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro
For me personally, I use the Media Creator feature of Paragon to make a bootable USB key. I can run the software completely from this key and boot from it.

So, if I am working on somebodies computer, I will boot from this key, make an image and know that I have a backout plan.

I think Paragon would technically want me to purchase a 2nd license for this kinda thing, but I'm not going to pay individually for every machine I have to make an image of. I only run the software installed on one machine (as I am supposed to do), and then I just run from the bootable key on the one off machines.

I did the same with Acronis True Image Home 2010 in the past. It always worked flawlessly for me. The only reason I switched from Acronis True Image to Paragon was the fact that Acronis was going to be like $30 for the upgrade, and another $30 for the Pro Pack...and I got Paragon for $39 total.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Self-Built in July 2009
    CPU
    Intel Q9550 2.83Ghz OC'd to 3.40Ghz
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3R rev. 1.1, F12 BIOS
    Memory
    8GB G.Skill PI DDR2-800, 4-4-4-12 timings
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA 1280MB Nvidia GeForce GTX570
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC899A 8 channel onboard audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    23" Acer x233H
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Intel X25-M 80GB Gen 2 SSD
    Western Digital 1TB Caviar Black, 32MB cache. WD1001FALS
    PSU
    Corsair 620HX modular
    Case
    Antec P182
    Cooling
    stock
    Keyboard
    ABS M1 Mechanical
    Mouse
    Logitech G9 Laser Mouse
    Internet Speed
    15/2 cable modem
    Other Info
    Windows and Linux enthusiast. Logitech G35 Headset.
(Paragon) works just fine…
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 7 & Win 8
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd.
    CPU
    AMD Athlon II X2 245
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte GA-MA785GM-US2H
    Memory
    4096 MB DDR2-SDRAM
    Graphics Card(s)
    On bord
Paragon has been my number one for quite a while.

I try others too - just out of interest.

There are a lot of free versions about - but if you need something to rely on with efi - paragon is the best value.

It backs up and restores my Linux partitions too.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    7/8/ubuntu/Linux Deepin
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
OK thanks, I'll look at those for use on my personal machines.

But now that you've got me thinking about licenses, I realize there is another issue. I used to install the Ghost trial version on computers I was setting up for other people, no charge unless the user decided to keep using it after 30 days. So maybe I need to be looking at Macrium free for computers I work on for others. What are people's thoughts on Macrium?

Thanks

I was a long time user of Acronis but it's bloatware now days. It also leaves drivers you have to manually eradicate along with reg files. Macrium is the best solution imo lite GUI works on the desktop and can recover from 7 to 8 on another drive I'm using the free version and it's actually better than the paid version of Acronis...
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    W8 Inspiron 17R W8P+MCE HTPC
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Hard Drives
    Custom HTPC systems builder, trouble shooter for Apple and PC products.
    My HTPC specs:
    Core i5 W7 Pro/W8 Pro+MCE
    Lian Li blk mid tower 10 gigs + 2 OS HDD's W7/8.
    Other Info
    Gigabyte UD3 mobo P55 chipset.
    Workstation:
    Same as above but using the "M" series mobo with ATi 5670
    Dell Inspiron 17R i3 3rd gen W8.
    Nokia Lumia 810 W Phone8.
I've been a long time Norton Ghost user, but they still don't have a Win 8 compatible version. So I am looking into other brands. I've read some older threads here on the topic, I see Macrium comes up a lot, and I have used it a few times in the past, never on Win 8. I've used Acronis, but it has a bad record for reliability from the reading I've done on the Acronis forum and other places.

I've used the Win 7 imaging app. I don't really like the lack of flexibility and features. Especially when it comes to incremental backup.

What I need is an app that will do incremental images, that will backup and restore the MBR, and that is reliable.

Any thoughts are appreciated.

Thanks
Don't care for Acronis any more. Not using such software now. But, would use Paragon Hard Disk Manager 12.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win7 Ult on DIY; Win8 Pro on MBP/Parallels; Win7 Ult on MBP/Boot Camp; Win7 Ult/Win8 Pro on HP
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    DIY Rig; MacBook Pro (MBP)/Parallels/Boot Camp; HP Pavilion dv6500t Laptop
    CPU
    Intel i7-2600K (sometimes OC'd to 4.8 GHz)
    Motherboard
    ASUS P8P67 Deluxe Rev B3
    Memory
    16 GB Corsair Vengeance
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA 570 SC
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Gateway
    Hard Drives
    Dual Boot:
    Win7 Ult RAID 0 on OCZ Revo x2 and
    Win7 Ult RAID 0 on Caviar Black SATA 3's
    PSU
    Cooler Master Silent Pro 1000W
    Case
    Cooler Master 932 HAF
    Cooling
    Zalman CNPS9900MAX-B CPU Fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Cordless Desktop MX 5500
    Mouse
    Logitech Cordless Desktop MX 5500
    Internet Speed
    20 Mbps Download/2+ Mbps Upload
    Other Info
    Pioneer Blu-ray Burner/DVD Burner
I always liked acronis. If paragon weren't a fair bit cheaper, I would have bought acronis.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Self-Built in July 2009
    CPU
    Intel Q9550 2.83Ghz OC'd to 3.40Ghz
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3R rev. 1.1, F12 BIOS
    Memory
    8GB G.Skill PI DDR2-800, 4-4-4-12 timings
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA 1280MB Nvidia GeForce GTX570
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC899A 8 channel onboard audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    23" Acer x233H
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Intel X25-M 80GB Gen 2 SSD
    Western Digital 1TB Caviar Black, 32MB cache. WD1001FALS
    PSU
    Corsair 620HX modular
    Case
    Antec P182
    Cooling
    stock
    Keyboard
    ABS M1 Mechanical
    Mouse
    Logitech G9 Laser Mouse
    Internet Speed
    15/2 cable modem
    Other Info
    Windows and Linux enthusiast. Logitech G35 Headset.
[FONT=&quot]I got (Paragon) free from a posting on the 8 forum…[/FONT]
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 7 & Win 8
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd.
    CPU
    AMD Athlon II X2 245
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte GA-MA785GM-US2H
    Memory
    4096 MB DDR2-SDRAM
    Graphics Card(s)
    On bord
I've used Acronis, but it has a bad record for reliability from the reading I've done on the Acronis forum and other places..... What I need is an app that will do incremental images, that will backup and restore the MBR, and that is reliable. ....... Any thoughts are appreciated. Thanks

Acronis True Image 2013, the new version for Windows 8, is reliable. I have used it at least 100 times (on different machines) and have had no issues. Incremental, Differential, Full and MBR in disk mode.

True Image has features and tools that other programs do not have. A full rescue media suite is available as well. One feature, kind of nice to have, is that you can transfer the license to another computer.
...depends on what you need.

Do you still have to be a disc-jockey when restoring the image, if it got burned onto DVD's ?

It's (maybe was ?) pretty annoying to change every few seconds the disc's of the burned image, when restoring it.

It was and maybe still is quite ok, when using a folder on a HDD to store your image.

:)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows-10-Pro-Build-11099.rs1-x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom-Build
    CPU
    Intel Core i7 3770k @4800MHz
    Motherboard
    Asus P8Z77-V
    Memory
    G.Skill 16G(4*4G) DDR3-2400 Quad Channel [TDX] F3-2400C10Q-16GTX
    Graphics Card(s)
    2x Gigabyte GTX980-Ti-OC-STRIX-6GB in 2-Way-SLI (1408MHz | Boost: 1544MHz | Memory-Clock: 8000MHz)
    Sound Card
    OnBoard Realtek® ALC892 8-Channel High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Asus VE278Q 27" Wide Led Black Full HD 2ms | Dell S2409W 24" 5ms
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    - Intel 520S 240GB/SATA3/R 550MBs,W 520MBs/25nm/3.5"Kit/5yr
    - Samsung 840 EVO SATA3 500GB
    - Seagate Barracuda SATA3 1TB 7200RPM 64mb Cache
    - Seagate Barracuda SATA3 1TB 7200RPM 64mb Cache
    - Seagate Constellation SATA3 3TB 7200RPM 64mb Cache
    -
    PSU
    Corsair AX1200i
    Case
    Thermaltake Level-10 GT LCS
    Cooling
    EK H3O HFX 240mm Liquid Cooling Kit + 2x EK-480-Rads + GPU-Blocks + Gelid Extreme
    Keyboard
    Roccat Isku | Logitech G13 | XBox 360 Controller wired | Logitech Dual Action GamePad
    Mouse
    Roccat Pure Military Dessert Strike | Shogun Bros. Ballista MK-1 | Cyborg R.A.T. 7 Infection
    Internet Speed
    ADSL2+ ~15MBit/s DL | ~1MBit/s UL
    Browser
    Google Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    - Logitech Extreme 3D Pro Joystick
    - Plantronics GameCom Commander Headset
    - Logitech X-210 Speakers
    - Roccat Taito Mid-Size 5mm
    - PC-Master-Race MousePad (yellow)
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