Backing up Computer

fredyt3

Member
The computer in question is a Toshiba Satellite Laptop - model A205-S4629. I think I've narrowed my issues down to problems with Vista.

I was attemptingto make a mirror backup of my computer before I just do a complete Wipe and reinstall. I will be creating backup via CD, and it states I will need 13-19 disk, which I have. During startup the computer freezes, however on rare occasions it boots up. My concern is having it freeze during the backup process. Does anyone know how much time is required for a complete back-up??

Some background. The computer started freezing or hanging several weeks ago. I have attempted:

** The only way the computer will start up in normal mode is if I use the battery.
** To use the power plug, the computer will only boot via Safe Mode.

1. Startup Repair
2. Checkdisk
3. Inserting original disk which came with computer.
4. Bootrec
5. BIOS/Setup - error came "back system.mgr is unavailable"

I think I went through the above diagnosing correctly, but if you feel I may have missed something let me know.

Based on the time I have spent, I have faced the reality my best option is the complete reinstall.

I would appreciate any feedback or suggestions you may have.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Hard Drives
    200 GB
Welcome
I have noticed that with many of the back up software, they do not work very well with CDs. I could not back up my Windows Seven on CDs. I finally bought an external hard drive and using Macrium Reflect (which has already saved me from a major problem) I can back up with no problem. May I suggest the use of an external hard drive and Macrium Reflect.
As added information, the use of Karens Replicator will be an excellent method to back up your personal stuff, either manually or on schedule.
To get to your original question. I would give it about an hour to back up. Of course there is not way of really knowing, since it depends on how much stuff you have.

Here are my solutions to freezing, and an excellent article, which I hope is of some help
Go to search type device manager and look for any yellow warning markers
Download and run malwarebytes, a full scan after you update
Run antivirus scan
Check memory with memtest86
Make sure that you are not over heating.
Try in safe mode; report back if it works properly.
Try a clean boot
Make sure PSU is working properly
If overclocking, restore to original
Test hard drive at company website.
Test in safe mode, does it still happen?
Try with clean boot..
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929135
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929135
http://malwarebytes.org/
http://www.almico.com/speedfan.php
http://www.geekstogo.com/forum/topic...ing-memtest86/
http://ezinearticles.com/?Troublesho...blems&id=39981

and for both Seven and Vista
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/220165-troubleshooting-steps-windows-7-a.html
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS420
    Memory
    6 gig
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD3650 256 MB
    Sound Card
    Intergrated 7.1 Channel Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell SP2009W 20 inch Flat Panel w Webcam
    Hard Drives
    640 gb
    Cooling
    Fan
    Keyboard
    Dell USB
    Mouse
    Dell USB 4 button optical
    Other Info
    DSL provided by ATT
Rich is right. CDs and DVDs are no good medium for images. Use an external disk or a large USB stick that can hold the image. I also recommend free Macrium that works very well in Vista. Here is a tutorial I made - it works the same in Vista. Maybe it helps to get you started. Imaging with free Macrium - Windows 7 Forums
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Dell
    CPU
    Q6600
    Memory
    4GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP w2207h
    Hard Drives
    2x250GB HDDs
    1x60GB OCZ SSD
    6 external disks 60 to 640GBs
    Other Info
    Also 1xHP desktop, 1xHP laptop, 1xGateway laptop
Super thanks Rich and WHS. I plan on downloading the Macrium, but I am assuming it will prompt me where I want to place (i.e., "C" drive, "E", "G", etc.?????
The reason I ask is have currently use a Maxtor external drive and wanted to designate to place my files but in doing the startup to copy, a message came back .......something like "your drive is not NPTS" or something, so I guess how can I dump the files in question to my external drive???????.

Also, what do you think is causing the issue for the computer to freeze, especially when I use the power cord??? btw, I just got an OEM and it works just fine but this was part of ruling out what was creating my issues.

TIA
 

My Computer

System One

  • Hard Drives
    200 GB
I dont recall if I was allowed to choose the drive to download Macrium when I installed, but most software does offer that choice. Start with a system restore point before downloading anything so that you can go back, in case you are not happy with the results. I have my Macrium in my C drive and it allows me to select G (my external to make my backups) I think that you mean NTFS. You have a choice NTFS or FAT32 (outdated now). Just format with NTFS and you will not have a problem.
I suggest that you read my post and follow the instructions to try and help solve the freeze problem.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS420
    Memory
    6 gig
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD3650 256 MB
    Sound Card
    Intergrated 7.1 Channel Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell SP2009W 20 inch Flat Panel w Webcam
    Hard Drives
    640 gb
    Cooling
    Fan
    Keyboard
    Dell USB
    Mouse
    Dell USB 4 button optical
    Other Info
    DSL provided by ATT
Hope that it all works out for you.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS420
    Memory
    6 gig
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD3650 256 MB
    Sound Card
    Intergrated 7.1 Channel Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell SP2009W 20 inch Flat Panel w Webcam
    Hard Drives
    640 gb
    Cooling
    Fan
    Keyboard
    Dell USB
    Mouse
    Dell USB 4 button optical
    Other Info
    DSL provided by ATT
Macrium can image to a Fat32 drive, but NTFS is better. Then the image does not get chopped up into many files. So if you can reformat the drive to NTFS, I would do that.

I find it most practical to define a folder on the backup drive to where I place my images. That is better than imaging to the root of the disk and allows to mix images of different sources (partitions or systems) by defining different folders.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Dell
    CPU
    Q6600
    Memory
    4GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP w2207h
    Hard Drives
    2x250GB HDDs
    1x60GB OCZ SSD
    6 external disks 60 to 640GBs
    Other Info
    Also 1xHP desktop, 1xHP laptop, 1xGateway laptop
OK - downloaded Macrim - everything seems OK - easy to start program. Have attempted to download on disk because the current external drive is currently used for other items and even though it was picked up as the default "destination" source, it indicated it will remove all files currently. I do have another external drive (empty) but it is in garage. In the meantime, I changed destination to "D" drive - everything look OK, but I have some concerns:

1. It is backing up my entire computer. I'm using about 105 GB
2. Time remaining is 19 hours????

What your thought on the time remaining???? How many disk do you think it will need????
 

My Computer

System One

  • Hard Drives
    200 GB
1. If it is backing up your entire disk that means that you did not deselect the partitions that you did not want to back up. You have to carefully follow my tutorial to get it right.

2. 19 hours sounds like a lot. My backups (of the C partition) run between 5 and 15 minutes. What is your "D" drive. It sounds like the optical drive. If you use CDs or DVDs, all bets are off.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Dell
    CPU
    Q6600
    Memory
    4GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP w2207h
    Hard Drives
    2x250GB HDDs
    1x60GB OCZ SSD
    6 external disks 60 to 640GBs
    Other Info
    Also 1xHP desktop, 1xHP laptop, 1xGateway laptop
OK - today's assignment almost complete :( I did go back and view tutorial - Very good work. Now, a new issue which led me down the road to getting the computer 100% operable.

The system kept freezing during startup....or when it would eventually load everything, it would freeze or hang. Even in Safe Mode it would hang. btw, this was with the power plug as well as the battery. In other words......sometimes it works fine but lately I have had to manuever and keep rebooting.

I was able to make the Rescue Media disk.

I'm going to give it another shot later, as I'm almost ready to throw in the towel and just do a clean re-install and reload everything.

Thanks for all of your help and for reading the post.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Hard Drives
    200 GB
OK - reporting back with homework from previous assignment :)

1. I was able to download Macrium and after some operator errors, I was finally able to save files on external hard drive. It was completed in less than 1 hour, and hopefully includes everything needed to restore computer.
2. I did several scans Malwarebytes. It picked up 2 defects which were apparently worms, but doing the quarantine appeared to removed them.
3. I did memory checks and everything appears OK.

So, here is where I am at.....
1. I can work in Safe Mode.
2. I can load up full system (sometimes) using battery.
3. Once I plug in the power, even after doing a BIOS check, the system freezes. Based on that my assumption my problem is Vista related.

My next option is to simply attempt a complete reinstall - wiping everything off the hard drive and starting fresh. My hesitation is all the work necessary to get the system back up and running, but of course that's not that big of a deal since the computer is not totally working 100%.

Any last minute tips, options, etc. before I pull the plug???????:cry:
 

My Computer

System One

  • Hard Drives
    200 GB
Sometimes its best to cut your losses. We have tried many options and none have worked. If you are willing to reinstall, I'd go for it.
A few hints. Make a clean install with formatting.
After you load your software and have your setting and have all the updates and are validated, make a Macrium Copy and call it original and keep it.
Then once a month make a new image, do the same for future months and you can destroy the prior image.
If you have a problem, you can restore to the prior image. But wait, the problem is a bad rootkit or trojan and you are afraid it might be on the last copy you made, too. Well, now you can use the origianal and your computer is like new again.
Good luck, buddy.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS420
    Memory
    6 gig
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD3650 256 MB
    Sound Card
    Intergrated 7.1 Channel Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell SP2009W 20 inch Flat Panel w Webcam
    Hard Drives
    640 gb
    Cooling
    Fan
    Keyboard
    Dell USB
    Mouse
    Dell USB 4 button optical
    Other Info
    DSL provided by ATT
Now I really feel snakebitten :mad:
I was doing the complete reinstall this am. About 15 minutes into the process a got an error msg. "cannot read from the source file or disk"
PREINST2.SWM
Type: SWM file
Size: 644 MB
Date Modified: 3/2/2007 8:07 PM

Anyway, I did a couple of "try again" and got the same message. I did a little research on the forum for possible solutions.

My Recovery Disk which came with my computer CONSIST OF 2 DISK.

I attempted to repair, etc. from Disk #1 and could not see Miscrosoft Vista from the dialog box. As a matter of fact the box was empty. Also, when I tried to reboot, an error msg said "BootMgr is missing.

What are solutions to get the system back to where it was - at this time, I'll even take "Safe Mode"

Based on what I have communicated, do you think my problem is a VISTA issue and perhaps the program is simply bad??? If so, can I try loading via XP?????

Thanks in advance for suggestions / solutions.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Hard Drives
    200 GB
Based just on this last post sounds like a hard drive problem. Test the drive.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS420
    Memory
    6 gig
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD3650 256 MB
    Sound Card
    Intergrated 7.1 Channel Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell SP2009W 20 inch Flat Panel w Webcam
    Hard Drives
    640 gb
    Cooling
    Fan
    Keyboard
    Dell USB
    Mouse
    Dell USB 4 button optical
    Other Info
    DSL provided by ATT
thanks for prompt response. Here's the results from chkdsk

193823743 KB total disk space
1332972 KB in 11 files
12 KB in 13 indexes
0 KB in bad sectors
71935 KB in use by the system
65536 KB occupied by the log file
192418824 KB available on disk

4096 bytes in each allocation unit
48455935 total allocation units on disk
48104706 allocation units available on disk
Failed to transfer logged messages to the event log with status 50.

????????
 

My Computer

System One

  • Hard Drives
    200 GB
That is not the most accurate test. Go to the website of the manufacturer and use their test.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS420
    Memory
    6 gig
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD3650 256 MB
    Sound Card
    Intergrated 7.1 Channel Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell SP2009W 20 inch Flat Panel w Webcam
    Hard Drives
    640 gb
    Cooling
    Fan
    Keyboard
    Dell USB
    Mouse
    Dell USB 4 button optical
    Other Info
    DSL provided by ATT
OK - here is the latest.

I did a check using the comman chkdsk c: /r and received the following bottom line results..........."Windows has checked the file system and found no problems"
 

My Computer

System One

  • Hard Drives
    200 GB
This is the test that you should take. The Windows test is not as accurate. This is important because if your hard drive fails, you may lose your stuff

Hard drive scan usings SeaTools - SeaToolsfor Windows | Seagate - Both long and shorttests


 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS420
    Memory
    6 gig
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD3650 256 MB
    Sound Card
    Intergrated 7.1 Channel Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell SP2009W 20 inch Flat Panel w Webcam
    Hard Drives
    640 gb
    Cooling
    Fan
    Keyboard
    Dell USB
    Mouse
    Dell USB 4 button optical
    Other Info
    DSL provided by ATT
I did save everything via Macrium and part of this process was thinking of upgrading the hard drive, as that was next on the list as possible solution. I will run test based on link you provided. Thanks.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Hard Drives
    200 GB
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