RE: [PCTECH] Windows XP Backup on a CD

["Dan Bale" <dbale@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: pctech-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx / Peter Vidal
> Sent: Friday, July 16, 2004 1:19 PM
>
> Hi list!
>
> Question: I am using the native backup program in XP.  I have a
> regular CD Burner and I would like to be able to pass my backup
> to CDs.  I am planing to have a DVD burner but in my laptop.
>
> I have done backups in diskettes but that was in the old past.
> CDs came and there was no problem... there was enough space.
> Now, we have the DVDs; however, I still have to deal with CDs,
> at least for a while.
>
> Is there something in the XP Backup Application that I can do
> in order to pass this backup from disk to CD with no problems?
>
> Advices are greatly appreciated.
>
> Best regards and more awesome weekend!
>
> Peter Vidal

This veers a bit away from your question, but I think it's important to
consider.  According to the "PC-techie" newsletters I subscribe to, and I'm
paraphrasing, any backup done inside Windows is an incomplete backup
(because certain objects needed by Windows to run are locked and cannot be
backed up).  Apparently, if you expect to be able to restore your backup
onto a blank drive and be ready to run from the point that the backup was
made, a backup process called "imaging" will be your best option.  Image
backups run from a boot diskette, or booting to a command line.  I am
currently looking at a shareware program called IMAGE that can be found at
www.BootItNG.com, it can write a compressed image of your hard drive to
CD-ROM and, I believe, DVD.  Fred Langa, of the very popular LangaList
newsletter, has discussed imaging vs. normal Windows backup extensively, and
you can find the archives at Langa.com.  Search on IMAGE and/or BACKUP.  The
nice thing about the BootItNG IMAGE app is that there is a freeware Windows
app that lets you restore files you select.  Hope to have some time to test
it this weekend.

hth,
db