I could have done this through PMs but I think that some other forum members could profit more from information you can provide here in public forum. If not, I am really sorry I picked this way… :-\
I can’t completely recall, but I remember you mentioned once that you use Acronis TrueImage (7 I believe), and I just saw that thread started by Cloussau where they offer Acronis TrueImage 7 for free.
I would greatly appreciate (I am sure others too) if you can post some experiences of yours with this babe… I hope it will not take too much of your precious time. Some kind of brief review if possible would be so much appreciated. I am still on Ghost 2003 (never had any troubles with it whatsoever) but I am willing to try TI if it’s good.
I use PowerQuest Drive Image 7 the last version prior to the buy out with Symantec.
A friend had bought Acronis True Image (version 7 I believe) and was experiencing problems with it. He sent me a copy so I could install and test to see if I could get it to work correctly and so when He mentioned the problem I would at least know what he was talking about.
Unfortunately I also experienced the same problems with file verification and not being able to do a test restore. There followed a long and fruitless excursion into the acronis forums where we noticed we weren’t alone in this problem. To cut a long story short my friend abandoned Acronis and purchased Drive Image 7, I don’t know if he got his money back.
So for me the experience wasn’t good and has dented my confidence in Acronis and the True Image product. Yes Acronis may have improved True Image in the latest versions, but like you I’m happy with my existing solution so I don’t need to go looking for alternates.
And I also just noticed once you register with them (free registration required in order to get this version 7 for free), first thing they hit you with is offer to buy latest version 9 for just $29… hmmm… could it be some kind of pre-calculated “freeware” offer just to get attention to the version 9 and try to sell it faster ?
I think he uses Driveimage(Powerquest)? Completely different software company than True Image(Acronis) i believe … And i think Ghost 2003 is very similar to the last Driveimage products(Symantec bought Driveimage some time ago) .
Anyway i have Acronis True Image Home version 9 and it works great! I have to go make a pizza now(just got back from work and i am starving) but i can post some screenshots later on and do a little review of the features if you are interested?
It’s a very stable program. It uses to generate better and more trustable backup files than Norton Ghost in my experience.
I mean, Ghost generated a backup file but it is, for any reason, from time to time, not in a deterministic way, corrupted.
What can I do with a corrupted backup file? Nothing. I know I can ‘test’ the file but, believe, for me, I have set to check the file, Ghosts said the file is ok but when I try to recover the backup it failed… It made me lost a lot of time…
Acronis True Image allows you to create a CD to boot from it (backup and recover).
Acronis is more reliable in my tests and daily experiences.
Thanks guys for the input. Most likely I will give it a try and see how it behaves. I really never experienced any problems with Ghost 2003, and that’s why I never migrated to newer versions. It does its job, so I didn’t want to experiment with other backup programs… it’s just I thought maybe I could use some change and see how it works. Just out of curiosity.
Sasha
I also use TrueImage 9 and since I was off line for most of the past 2 days,
I had a chance to put it through it’s paces and am happy to report that my system
is still up and running after creating an Image and then doing a complete re-construction.
I litterally wiped out my C drive and then restored it from the image I had created using their Rescue Media.
Comcast is still working on my line to totally fix the problem.
Glad to hear your connection problem is gone… or at least almost gone. Hope for the best.
Yes, I’m doing these Clone/Restore kind of things for the last 5 years with Ghost. Really never had any troubles. But as always people easily get bored using same software for so long… so I am really looking to see some other programs. If TrueImage 9 is not that expensive I may consider buying it…
My Only issue with Drive Image 7 is that when I want to use the Boot disk Recovery console I have to remember to plug in a PS2 mouse as my wireless one doesn’t work, which is a bit of a pain as it did with Drive Image 2002 the previous version.
Most likely I will give it a try and see how it behaves. I really never experienced any problems with Ghost 2003, and that’s why I never migrated to newer versions. It does its job, so I didn’t want to experiment with other backup programs… it’s just I thought maybe I could use some change and see how it works. Just out of curiosity.