How to do a proper (full) backup???

[orangeman]

I just lost my primary system's hdd again so now I have to reload it? I created 2 backups (a windows backup using win xp and a second backup using pc clone-ex lite). They restore my files fine however, I find that I have to reload all of my programs again from scratch. What good is that?? I need a backup that will create an exact duplicate of my hdd so that my programs, settings, everything is preserved intact. Now I have to go and setup the internet, install programs to get my sound back, my video settings back etc etc etc.

Please help this very frustrated computer user.

Thanks

 

[KSoD]

Acreonis True Image
Norton Ghost
CloneZilla

That is the software that you are looking for.

 

[SparkMonkeyHellion]

I personally have experience with Norton Ghost - we use it in conjunction with BartPE.

Basically here's how it breaks down - you make the BartPE disc (which you can download the image for free) and you make sure that it has Ghost on it. You boot the disc and create a Ghost image of your computer - this takes a pic of EVERYTHING from the boot sector up.

I think though you can probably find a type of Ghost which you can boot from a flash drive, I haven't tried it though.

 

[Jayce]

Try CloneZilla LiveCD. It's great for backing up single computers to an external drive, flash drive, etc.

It's also free and open source.

You download the ISO, burn it to the CD as an image, boot to it, and it'll ask you a few questions in the setup process. Where do you want to store the image and where are you pulling the image from. So if you have an external hard drive or flash drive of ample size plugged in, select that as destination, and source would be your internal hard drive.

To deploy the image after a crash it's the same setup, except in reverse. I've used it several times and for single-system backups, it's great.