>> Bill, you mean you have run a repair install using an generic OEM or
>> retail XP installation CD on an installation of a branded OEM XP? What
>> about the product key that you have to enter to do the repair
>> install?
Bill wrote
> Yes and that is the other reason for buying the retail Windows XP version.
> As you also get a key with the purchase.
Ok so what you are actually doing is replacing one OS with another.
Otherwise it can't be done by the user who just wants to fix their OEM
installed copy of XP. Unless one wants to spring for a second copy of XP,
it's not useable.
<snip>
Rock wrote
>>>> I recommend you use a drive imaging program such as Acronis True
>>>> Image Home version 10. This can create a compressed image of the
>>>> drive. Images can be full, incremental or differential so
>>>> subsequent images take much less time and space. Imaging can be on
>>>> a drive or partition basis. Restores can be done on a file,
>>>> partition or drive basis. It also does file backup and drive
>>>> cloning.
Bill wrote
>>> Why don't you recommend Windows Backup? And what is wrong with just
>>> copying the OS files the old way? See:
<snip>
>> At one time I used ntbackup but gave up on it long ago. I tested the
>> ASR recovery and found it to be, lengthy and cumbersome, and beyond
>> that it did not restore the system to it's working state. Some apps
>> in my test environment did not work properly on restore and had to be
>> uninstalled/reinstalled. Of course one doesn't have to use ASR,
>>
>> Based on all this I moved to a drive imaging solution. Originally I
>> used Drive Image from Powerquest, and still have it installed on one
>> XP installation. Unfortunately they were bought out by Symantec, the
>> technology from it going into the Ghost platform starting with Ghost
>> 9. DI is not compatible with Vista, so when I started running that,
>> I moved to Acronis True Image Home, version 10. It runs in both
>> Vista and XP. It can be setup to run as a scheduled task, so user
>> interaction is minimal. I just have to remember to have the right
>> external drive connected and powered up.
<snip>
>> I tested it, including restores under normal operating conditions and
>> found it is an excellent choice, fast, flexible, and reliable. That's why
>> I recommend it as a backup/recovery solution.
>
> Okay, you convinced me. But 50 bucks for a backup program?
I never buy from the author's web site if it's available through the
discount retailers. I got mine at Newegg.com at $29.99, boxed copy.
Newegg.com also sometimes offers a special $10.00 off their stated price for
a day. I caught Acronis Disk Director that way. They had it listed at
31.99, I got it for 21.99.
How much is your time, effort and security of data worth? For me $30 is a
small price to pay for that.
"...winston" <merlin@druid9#.com>
> Rock...just supplemental note and hope it doesn't interfere with the
> thread, but it
> does add some variation to the OEM repair yes/no option.
> Micron's XP Home and Pro OEM sp2 cd's(sp1 and gold post updating to sp2
> via slipstream-I never did obtain a common reason why on the latter) are
> capable of running an XP repair without destroying the contents of the
> drive.
> The product key on the machine is functional for repair or clean install.
> The Cd provided is not an image restoration or tool to access a hidden
> partition.
Ok, that's an option as long as the product key on the sticker attached to
the computer case works on that CD. Usually it will work with a generic OEM
CD. I haven't tried any of the branded ones, but then if it's is an
installation CD, I can see that it might work. Take it back a few years
some OEMs included an installation CD, with their logo on it, that was BIOS
locked to the system so no product key was needed for an install on that
system, but it was a regular installation CD. I know Gateway did that with
their higher end systems about 5 years ago. I never tried that CD on
another system either as a clean install using a generic OEM product key, or
a repair install.
Micron is still in business in a very big way, Rock. One of their
divisions -- www.crucial.com -- is one of the biggest vendors of Ram memory
on the Web.
Alan
"Rock" <Rock@nospam.net> wrote in message
news:umpJabDmHHA.208@TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
>
> Ok, that's an option as long as the product key on the sticker attached to
> the computer case works on that CD. Usually it will work with a generic
> OEM CD. I haven't tried any of the branded ones, but then if it's is an
> installation CD, I can see that it might work. Take it back a few years
> some OEMs included an installation CD, with their logo on it, that was
> BIOS locked to the system so no product key was needed for an install on
> that system, but it was a regular installation CD. I know Gateway did
> that with their higher end systems about 5 years ago. I never tried that
> CD on another system either as a clean install using a generic OEM product
> key, or a repair install.
>
> I didn't realize Micron was still in business.
>
> --
> Rock [MS-MVP User/Shell]
"Alan" wrote
> Micron is still in business in a very big way, Rock. One of their
> divisions -- www.crucial.com -- is one of the biggest vendors of Ram
> memory on the Web.
> "Rock" <Rock@nospam.net> wrote
>>
>> Ok, that's an option as long as the product key on the sticker attached
>> to the computer case works on that CD. Usually it will work with a
>> generic OEM CD. I haven't tried any of the branded ones, but then if
>> it's is an installation CD, I can see that it might work. Take it back a
>> few years some OEMs included an installation CD, with their logo on it,
>> that was BIOS locked to the system so no product key was needed for an
>> install on that system, but it was a regular installation CD. I know
>> Gateway did that with their higher end systems about 5 years ago. I
>> never tried that CD on another system either as a clean install using a
>> generic OEM product key, or a repair install.
>>
>> I didn't realize Micron was still in business.
Well so much for what I know. I didn't realize Crucial was part of Micron.
Re: back all files to an external drive 
Linear Mode
