I'm just been playing with free backup tools; Macrium Reflect and Aomei Backupper, and working out which works best for me for those times when you need to boot from a Recovery CD.
I'm posting in case it helps someone else.
I've been using a Toshiba PC which has 64-bit Windows 8 preinstalled, and is using a GPT file system. I changed the boot order so that the CD/DVD drive comes before the main HDD, if it finds a valid bootable source.
The BIOS options on the PC also include:
* Secure Boot: enabled or disabled
* Boot mode: UEFI or Legacy (CSM)
I tried both Secure Boot enabled and disabled; this didn't seem to affect the findings below.
However the differences some on switching between UEFI mode and Legacy mode in the BIOS settings.
My question was whether I can boot from a Recovery CD in UEFI Mode; although the PC can access bootable CDs in Legacy Mode, it won't boot itself.
So on this basis, I prefer Macrium Reflect Free, because it creates a CD which I can boot in UEFI mode without needing to get into the BIOS settings. It also works in Secure Boot mode.
Although this particular Toshiba seems to allow me to get into the BIOS without too much trouble by repeatedly hitting the F2 key on startup, I know not all PCs are so easy and some times when you need a recovery CD, the PC may not be functioning well enough to let you get into the BIOS easily.
I'm posting in case it helps someone else.
I've been using a Toshiba PC which has 64-bit Windows 8 preinstalled, and is using a GPT file system. I changed the boot order so that the CD/DVD drive comes before the main HDD, if it finds a valid bootable source.
The BIOS options on the PC also include:
* Secure Boot: enabled or disabled
* Boot mode: UEFI or Legacy (CSM)
I tried both Secure Boot enabled and disabled; this didn't seem to affect the findings below.
However the differences some on switching between UEFI mode and Legacy mode in the BIOS settings.
My question was whether I can boot from a Recovery CD in UEFI Mode; although the PC can access bootable CDs in Legacy Mode, it won't boot itself.
- Aomei Backupper 1.6
CD was created using the Windows PE option rather than Linux. By changing to Legacy boot mode, I can boot from the Aomei CD, and it then could backup my HDD to an external USB drive. But I had to change back to UEFI boot to make the computer boot again.
- Macrium Reflect Free v5.2.6444 - 32-bit.
This is similar to Aomei. I selected the option to create a CD using Windows PE (version 4). By changing to Legacy boot mode, I can boot from the Macrium CD, and it then could backup to an external USB drive. But I had to change back to UEFI boot to make the computer boot again.
- Macrium Reflect Free v5.2.6444 - 64-bit.
This works! I selected the option to create a CD using Windows PE (version 4), 64-bit this time. This creates a CD which will boot in UEFI mode. I think this is because it uses the 64-bit version of Windows PE 4 rather than 32-bit.
So on this basis, I prefer Macrium Reflect Free, because it creates a CD which I can boot in UEFI mode without needing to get into the BIOS settings. It also works in Secure Boot mode.
Although this particular Toshiba seems to allow me to get into the BIOS without too much trouble by repeatedly hitting the F2 key on startup, I know not all PCs are so easy and some times when you need a recovery CD, the PC may not be functioning well enough to let you get into the BIOS easily.