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Thread ID: 31197	2003-03-14 22:14:00	Drive Image or Norton Ghost?	John H (8)	Press F1

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
128216	2003-03-14 22:14:00	Hi folks Has anyone out there used both of these products so that you can provide a comparison? If so, could you please provide an opinion on their relative merits? I know there is a considerable price advantage in purchasing Drive Image... However, price isn't everything, and I would prefer the product that is reliable, and does not need an apprenticeship to learn how to run. Thanks for any opinions. John	John H (8)
128217	2003-03-14 22:20:00	Yes buying Ghost seperatly is costly but if you buy it as part of a systemworks package then you get anti-virus and numerous other tools for your PC, so it ends up been a good buy. I know Ghost is a good prog and a lot of people use it, so much that Symmantec has increased its employees in NZ because of the Ghost prog	roofus (483)
128218	2003-03-14 22:27:00	i USE DRIVE IMAGE 2002 AND FIND IT VERY EASY TO UNDERSTAND AND USE VERY RELIABLE AS WELL WITH PARTITION MAGIC 7 FROM THE SAME Co	kiwibeat (304)
128219	2003-03-14 22:51:00	Thanks roofus and kiwibeat roofus - I didn't check that out in terms of pricing. Unfortunately I already own SystemWorks 2003 without Ghost :-( kiwibeat - thanks for your comments about ease of use. Does your reply mean that I also need to purchase and use Partition Magic as well? My intention is to save an image to a network drive on another computer, and that would not need any partitioning. Am I wrong on this? Maybe you were just saying that another product from the same company was very reliable as well? Thanks again John	John H (8)
128220	2003-03-14 23:04:00	Ghost was the first drive imaging program on the scene, and was a bit of a handful to learn and use if you didn't have DOS experience. Drive Image came later and was easier to use initially because it operated from within Windows. However, the latest version of Ghost (2003) offers Windows operation and I think it is the better of the two programs. Ghost Explorer is a great utility that lets you use or restore files from your image just about as easily as if they were in Windows Explorer. I recently bought the Norton SystemWorks package because it gave me the Ghost 2003 update, a new copy of NAV2003 (with another 12 months subscription) plus all the other Norton Utilities. Overall it was the most cost effective choice, so Drive Image didn't really get a look in. This Thread (pressf1.pcworld.co.nz) details the trials and tribulations of another new Ghost user and is probably worth reading. There are lessons to be learned there, but it has a happy ending and you can see the levels of support available to you on F1. Whichever you choose, drive imaging programs are important and invaluable programs so take the time to learn how to use them properly. Cheers Billy 8-{)	Billy T (70)
128221	2003-03-14 23:23:00	Mein lieber Gott!!! I was absolutely exhausted after reading the Ghost saga Billy. Well done, Jen C. Super clear instructions. Isn't PressF1 wonderful? Thanks Billy. After recently having an Ooops with my main drive, I am quite taken with the idea of imaging a healthy set up, and I guess it may be cost effective to bite the bullet and get the software. Do you have any idea about the compression ratio? My current hard drive contents are approx 7Gb. There is plenty of room on the other network drive to copy that without compression, but I would be interested in some idea of how big the image of 7Gb would be. Thanks for your thoughts. John	John H (8)
128222	2003-03-15 00:45:00	Other option which most people allready have - Nero - File - HD Backup. This does not compress files, and backs up the whole drive, regardless of space used. I have my C drive partitioned, so in my case it only uses 4 cd's and is very easy to use. Not too sure why more people don't use it. Bye	Peter H (220)
128223	2003-03-15 01:22:00	In those time-honoured words John, it depends . If you have 7GB of programs, you would want to enable maximum compression, but it would still take up a heap of room and you would really need to be imaging to a second hard drive for speed . Writing the images to multiple CDs might take some time! If the 7GB is a mix of programs and data, you should separate the two out onto different drives/partitions before you start . You can also configure Ghost to ignore certain file types such as . tmp, . gho (so that you don't try to image your Ghost images), . swp (swap file) or any other file type for which you don't need backups . You may even be able to exclude certain directories as well, but I have only just thought of that and haven't looked to see if Ghost 2003 supports directory exclusions . Jen C may know, as she has been working with Ghost 2003 longer than I have . If you are serious about getting into drive imaging, the following advice may be of assistance . It is a re-edited extract from a previous post I made some weeks ago: <Here is the best way to set up this system: 1) Have your existing hard drive partitioned as C: and E: 2) Have a second hard drive installed and partitioned as D: and F: 3) Transfer all your data to D:, including the files for your email (outlook . pst for Outlook 2000) . Don't forget to reset the target drive for your email progam data files so that it knows where to store the data . 4) Once your computer is set up as you want it and working well, create an image of your OS and programs on C: using Norton Ghost or Drive Image and store it on the second hard drive in the F: partition . Name this file as the "original" and keep it unchanged . This is then your ultimate "return to go" option . You can keep an even earlier image of your OS only if you like and that will save future reinstallations 5) Make regular images (back ups) of your data on D: and store these on the E: partion of your original drive . 6) If you want a belt n' braces backup system, keep a copy of your current C: image on the main drive in the E: partition, and a copy of your current D: data on F: on your data drive . That way you have multiple redundancy options . I actually store spare backups on another computer on the network as well, that way if I suffer fire, theft or other (unspecified) disaster in my office, I can commandeer another computer and image it as per my defunct box inside of an hour and be back at work . Note that this will only work if the second computer has the identical hardware profile to the first . The C: drive image is otherwise only usable to restore on the original drive, or a new drive in the same system . 7) Every time you make a significant change to your OS or programs, such as installing a service pack or update, create an new image and store this in F: along with the most recent backup . Once you have verified that the update is OK you can delete the previous image (but not the original "return to go" image) . Using this system, if your OS or program files get corrupted or one or the other drives fails completely, you can be back to normal in no time at all . For example, if your C: & E: drive dies, you can have a new drive installed and partitioned, then dump across your C: image from the still working F: partition and away you go . Similarly, if your D: & F: drive fails, you can install and partition a replacement, then dump your data back from the image on E:, and transfer your current C: image I have been using this system for some years now on all my computers and I have never had to reinstall an OS or programs . However, I have had to use images several times, mostly on my children's computers . I actually got into this after my original computer needed reformatting and reinstallation of programs about once every six weeks for about a year . The cause was finally diagnosed, but I bought the original Ghost Personal Edition the minute that it was first released and I have never looked back since . It offers great peace of mind! Cheers Billy 8-{)	Billy T (70)
128224	2003-03-15 01:23:00	www.epinions.com must say I havent used norton ghost read its more powerful but i like thing simple and easy to use less chance of making a error that you regret .Drive image you can use from windows and without reading a massive manual it hasnt failed me yet in over 15 backups use before partition magic !! if you need to alter size of C: drive etc	kiwibeat (304)
128225	2003-03-15 02:57:00	For imaging I remove most of my data onto another drive keeping the O/S and all esential programs only that keeps it down to a manageble size takes me about 10mins to do a image backup and same for restore of 98 SE data = about 2 gigs compression means a file of about 560 megs small enough to burn on to a cdr for safety which i must do soon lol	kiwibeat (304)
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