packard bell dot s netbook- how do I make a full imageof the drive/ windows?

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rednichol

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Nov 10, 2015
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Hi,

I have a netbook from packard bell which came preinstalled with windows (basic).

I understand that there is also some cache on the notebook where I can restore my windows from the start if I ever wanted to...


My problem is this- I want to experiment with installing linux on the device and it requires some partition allocations. I fear that my screwing around might ruin my perfectly working windows setup which I have for the moment (maybe I'll delete some vital partitions) so I would like some way in which if I could back what I have and restore if needed.

I tried windows "backup system image" but it required "create system restore disc" which need a CD drive...

What options do I have?




Thank you very much!
 
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Nerumph

Nerumph

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Apr 15, 2014
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Hello rednichol,

I would like to ask which version of Windows you are currently using. Windows "Basic" is still a fairly general description of the OS and there are alot of windows out there, ranging from W95 to W10 now.

Another question I would like to as is: do you have an external drive that you can use to create the backup? One that can hold all of the contents of the internal drive?
 
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rednichol

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Thank you for the response,

Well, this is windows 7 (lol, thats why I wrote in a windows 7 forum :) ) and it's "windows 7 starter" (I got confused between 'basic' and 'starter').
Yes, I do have an external drive, I bought a high capcity DOK and my old external HDD is also on hand.


Thank you.
 
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Nerumph

Nerumph

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My apologies for the confusion; I have been gone from these parts for a bit too long it seems! :p

I would personally utilize a software called FreeFileSync to do your backup processes. It is much faster than normal backups, simpler and, best of all for your needs, available for even Windows Starter users! :)

http://www.freefilesync.org/

You could backup in one of two ways, the first being a complete drive mirror, or the second being specific file transfers. The first would be easier, but the second would be quicker.

Basically, in the interface, you would select the filepaths you wanted to backup, then copy those paths over to the secondary drive; preferably in the same hierarchy so as to be easier when you want to re-import.

And you should be good after that. You will probably want to do a file check on the secondary HDD one last time before messing with the partitions, but your backup should be good afterwords! Happy dual-booting to you! :D
 
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rednichol

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Nov 10, 2015
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Thank you very much!

I will try this program, on first glance it seems exactly what is need!

Quick question though, my cursory search in the FAQ, Manual and various Youtube pages didn't tell me if I can restore that drive image through DOS/BIOS...
I suppose I need to delve deeper into experimentations with the program but maybe you know already...

Thx.




EDIT: actually,I've been playing around with it for like an hour, also searching in google to see what have I missed, and I'm not sure I found the feature you are reffering to.
I did find a "mirror" button but it only saves folders within Windows. It doesn't saves partitions outside of it (like the hidden partition on the HDD Packard Bell uses in order to store Windows starter initial copy so that if my copy of Windows go awry I could just restore it), nor did I notice how you can even back up the entire Windows image...
 
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Nerumph

Nerumph

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So I did a little more research into your issue here and believe I may have come across some info that should help you with getting your system image up and running.

First thing to do will be to have both your HDD as well as a thumbdrive (with no important data on it) handy.

Next, you should be able to create a system image by following this link:

http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/4241/how-to-create-a-system-image-in-windows-7/

And once you get your recovery compression onto your drive, you should use this next tutorial to create a recovery USB which you can use to re-image your OS back in the event of... well... things... life... :D

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/create-usb-recovery-drive

Now in terms of your "hidden partition" you were discussing earlier, you will first need to be able to see the drive to back up anything on it. You can do the following:

Open the Windows search box and type Folder.

Select Folder Options and go to the View tab.

Find the Hidden Files and Folders section and then click on Show Hidden Files, Folders and Drives.

Click the OK button.

And then you should see a partition as another drive in your My Computer screen and, in your backup window as well. Then you just need to select that drive and include it into the backup along with your main partition.
 
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