back up - a new strange novel experimentation

[sunandoghosh]

back up - a new strange novel experimentation

Respected techs, geeks, nerds, and dear fellow friends,

In the past i have always taken a backup of my valuable data and content on my pc by invariably writing on to a cd be it R or RE.

However, the problem that always arose subsequently was that I always find it very time consuming when ever i have to format my hard disk or reload the operating system (i use windows xp) for various reasons (say too much spyware or virus intrusion, deletion by mistake say of system files etc etc).

But I was in the past never able to take say back up of windows xp or for that matter any other program which was installed on my computer.

Now before i proceed further to come to my problem / question on which ur valuable advice / suggestion is sought...i want to confirm that I understand the installation concept of programs properly...

First of all I am basically from field of finance and therefore have very very limited technical knowledge about internet computers and how it functions. I love internet and computers but as a total end user who is oblivious of what happens internally.

Now to me installation of any program (say for example spybot search and destroy etc) means i download the SETUP box of that program from internet or a Cd and then double click (or run) that program to actually get it installed on my computer to get it work. In some cases however the setup box is not available and we have to run from cd directly ( eg windows xp).

BUT i was wondering how do we take back up of say those programs which we have installed by double clicking but for which later on the corresponding setup box or cd is not available ???????????????????????????

I understand that if we have the original CD or say the setup box we can reinstall program innumerable times but what say if ur cd is misplaced after installation of program or say setup box gets deleted after installation of the program.

In that case how can i take a backup of such installed programs on my pc for which i have no setupbox or cd ???????????????????

I am asking this bcz of following reasons...

1. I have lost my windows xp original CD and fear what would happen if i ever have to format my hard disk or reinstall windows xp...

2. I have over last 3 years used many accounting software and financial softwares and although they are installed on my pc...their cd is misplaced or the setup box is not there...

3. Over the years i have worked in many organisations and had the privilege of having costly financial software programs being installed on my pc for work and would not want to lose them in future (and i have no CDs or setup boxes for them)...

4. If i wish to transfer all my data and installed programs to a new hard disk from my old hard disk which i am currently using and which sounds a lot...(and i fear it may crash some day)...

I know i have written a very very long story but I definitely appreciate ur time, effort and patience and would be really grateful if someone can throw some light as to how such issues are resolved and what is the easiest / best way to get this around...

I know there are many knowledgeable and helping individuals on this forum and am sure someone will be kind enough to share his wisdom or experience....

Thanks again in advance...

Most sincerely,

sunando

sunandoghosh at rediffmail dot com

p.s.

a. i use windows xp
b. i use nero for back up of my cd

[PCguy]

I have to say this is the most interesting read I have ever read here on PCTech. Welcome to our site.

A few things.

1. Most programs you download from the internet will have an executable to install. This is what you are calling the Setup Box I am assuming. You can recognize them because the end with a .exe. These files don't automatically disappear after you use them to install. Simply find them on your hard drive and copy them to a CD and you should be good.

2. Programs that you need the CD to install will require the CD to install. You have no choice about it. If anyone is kind enough to lend you the CD, simply make a copy of it before you install it and then you will have a back up copy.

3. You can download anyone's XP CD to reinstall XP on your PC. However, you can not borrow the serial number. The original number you got with your PC is yours and yours alone. Just use that. If you lost it, I can suggest a program that can retrieve the XP serial number off of your PC for later use.

4. Finally, in your case what I would do is use Norton Ghost. I would install XP and all the programs I want. Use it to create an 'image' of your HD for later use. It can break that image up into multiple CDs so you can burn them. Then you can use those CDs to put XP and all the installed programs on to your old HD or a new one and everything will look just like the day you made the image.

I hope this is clear. If not feel free to ask me to explain anything you have questions about.

[icecube]

If you have a laptop, PCGuys suggestions are probably your best shot.

But if you have a desktop, It gets easier. I did a cd backup of my drive and it took 13 disks and at about 8 minutes apiece, it took a while. When I tried to do a reinstall using them, I got a corrupt data error on disk 6. From that point, I did a new install. I didn't loose any data, I just had to reinstall all of the programs over again (I backup my data and put it in my safety deposit box twice a year).

As PCGuy suggested Norton Ghost is the way to go. Ghost 9.0 is out. Buy that and a new hard drive and install it as a slave. Install Ghost and run it. It runs from the Windows interface instead of DOS, and have it image your C drive to the Slave. Turn the system off disconnect the slave. Your image is done.

To test it, set the slave to master and hook it up to the system with the original master disconected, it should boot AOK. Shut the system down and reconnect the original drive and you should be good to go.