Windows XP backup woes

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Kyohe

Weaksauce
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Aug 28, 2004
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Ok, so I've been trying to make a functioning duplicate of my OS installation and all related programs. I use acronis True Image to make up back up of all the files on the drive except for a mass amount of general data (movies / music) that aren't needed for windows. It made a backup archive to the alternate drive I want to use. I then unplugged my orginal drive and expanded the archive onto the second drive. So, file wise it should now be a duplicate of the original OS drive.

However, when I try to boot I get a "Hal.dll is missing or corrupt" error. I tried looking at my boot.ini to see if it was messed up, it's just as it used to be. I copied hal.dll from the XP CD and it changed nothing. Then I tried running chkdsk through the windows repair function on the CD and it told me "the drive cannot be repaired" in so many words.

I then tried simply copying all the files directly from one drive to another using a Ubuntu live CD. Again, duplicate files, but same error. I booted the original drive by itself and it still boots perfectly. How can a blank drive, with an identical copy of the files from a functioning OS install then NOT function?

Driving me nuts, does anyone have any ideas? Thanks.
 
did you use a bootable trueimage disc to make the backup? I've seen this happen when using software that tries to make a full system backup from within windows (no idea if that is even an option for true image).
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Yes, I used a bootable disc for Trueimage. I didn't do anything from within Windows.

I made a specific point not to let windows get confused about which disc was "C:\". I didn't boot with both drives installed and only had them both plugged in when running bootable CDs. (Acronis or Ubuntu)
 
You need to make an image instead of a backup (or just copying files).
Which version of TI are you using?
 
Acronis True Image 2009. I didn't see any other options aside from "Clone disk", but my destination disk is too small to clone the entire OS drive's contents...
 
I just booted to True Image Home 2009 to check this out. These are the steps:

- Click on Backup.
- Click on My Computer
- Select your XP partition only. It must show Pri,Act in the "Flags" column. If it does not, it means your system partition is somewhere else, and there will be additional steps.
- Click on Create new backup archive.
- Browse and select a location and name for the image file.
- Select Full for backup method.
- Don't exclude any files.
- Keep clicking on next until you get to "Proceed". Click OK.

The image size will be about half the size of your XP partition.

If you have other data on other partitions, you need to back them up separately.

Now, if you restore this partition on your other drive and make partition that you restore active, you can boot to it.

Correction:
The image size will be about half the size of the used space on your XP partition.
 
Ive never had much luck making a backup of files/folders and then restoring that, Ive had almost perfect luck making an image of one HDD and pulling that image onto another HDD.
Sounds like your boot record (MBR) isnt correct on the 'new' HDD maybe?
 
Well, I just ran "Fixmbr" and it changed absolutely nothing.

MrF: I'm almost certain that those are the same steps that I went through. My drive only has one partition, however, so "windows" and "data" are all on the same partition. The only step I'm not sure of is your third one. "Pri, act in the flags column" I'm not sure if that was there or not.

What do you mean by "make this partition active" during the restoration process?
 
Kyohe said:
The only step I'm not sure of is your third one. "Pri, act in the flags column" I'm not sure if that was there or not.
Click to expand...
If your drive only has one partition on it and you can boot to it with no other hard drive attached, it is primary and it is active. So, nothing to worry about.


What do you mean by "make this partition active" during the restoration process?
Click to expand...
If there is another active partition on the destination drive you are restoring to, True Image asks you if you want to make the restored partition active or not. You have to choose to make it active.
 
Ok, before I did "My Data" instead of "My Computer" because the entire partition is 400 gigs and I only have a 150gig source destination. Is there no way to fully back up only the windows related files? There's only about 30gigs of programs / Windows. I'm trying to get my windows installation onto a dedicated drive separate of all my general data.

Both drives are only one partition.
 
Id say the easiest thing in your case is somehow cut/paste all your files off the OS drive you want to ackup, so then you wouldnt have to try and not backup them up in the backup program
 
Kyohe said:
because the entire partition is 400 gigs
Click to expand...
That is irrelevant!
How much used space do you have on it?

I'm trying to get my windows installation onto a dedicated drive separate of all my general data.
Click to expand...
You cannot do that if everything is on a single partition. At least, not that easily.


Create a smaller first partition on the second drive. Make a fresh install of XP on it. Attach the old drive as a storage drive. Create a second partition on the new drive. Copy all the data that you need to the second partition on the new drive.

The next time you are in the same boat, restore the image of the first small partition and you will not have to make a fresh install.
 
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