Backing up windows

[ifander]

I've decided I want to install Windows XP, all patches, and programs, tweak the system to my liking and back the whole partition up, so I don't have to do it all over again when the time comes to reformat, or incase omething goes wrong. I've run the ASR wizard in the Backup Utility built into Windows XP, but for some reason it hangs when it's almost done. I get an error report, saying it's encountered an error and needs to close. It's not a space issue, I've got plenty to spare. I've also tried it manually, ticking the C: partition and the System State information, but that didn't help either.
I don't want to use Norton Ghost, I don't like symantecs software, resourcehogs, all of them, and I just want to make a simple backup, not continuous backups. Is there some other software I can use instead? It has to be possible to restore the backup without installing an os first, obviously.

[Darthtanion]

Re: Backing up windows

While I would agree that Symantec generally comes in at least close to first place when it comes to being a resource hog, the Norton Ghost utility does not require a large overhead. You simply make an image of the entire C:\ drive, then you restore that image when you hose the system beyond all repair or just want to get it back to its original working condition.

I do not use any of the Symantec products on a regular basis except for Ghost. It also has a court-tested duplication that is 100% exact. This comes in handy for my images when I need an exact copy of a hard drive that I am getting ready to examine.

[Yawgm0th]

Re: Backing up windows

Agreed. Ghost will be perfect for just a single backup. No overhead since it's not really a piece of software you install.

[ifander]

Re: Backing up windows

Thanks for the quick reply,

I thought you had to install Norton Ghost? Or is there a bootable version bundled? If, so, that would be the way to go, I guess... as long as I don't have to install it..

[ifander]

Re: Backing up windows

OK, I got a Norton Ghost 10.0 cd from a friend, which won't boot because I get a bluescreen, "Machine Check Exception". No point in installing it if I can't make the Recovery CD to work. As for the Microsoft Backup Utility, it crashes when it reaches the file "rootmdm.sys", no idea why. I'd prefer that method, since I don't have to install any third party software, I can just create an automatic system recovery backup and use that.. so, any suggestions? Any other apps I could use instead? Any way to fix the backup utility?