I know there are a few members on here who use Macrium Reflect (free version) to make an Image backup of their System Drive, but I'm wondering if many of you realize some of the things you can do with an Image Backup?

One feature I've used many times, and probably known by all, is to mount the Image as a drive, either from within Macrium or using the right click context menu entry "Explore Image", on the Image file itself.

This enables you to explore the image and maybe retrieve valuable files you have lost, without doing a full Image Restore. Really handy.

But the nice trick I discovered yesterday, is that when you Mount your Image as a drive, and it appears in "My Computer" as a normal drive which made me think that this would work, you can actually run programs from inside the Image.

I've navigated so far to the exe files of half a dozen programs stored in that Image Backup, and they have all ran perfectly. One of them I binned recently when clearing out not often used programs to clear some space on my System Drive, and there has been one occasion when I could have used that program.

It now loads and runs fine from within the Image Backup, which is really useful.

Anyways, some of you may already be aware of this, but some may not, so maybe it could be useful.

Very informative post, thanks DennisD. Works the same way for Acronis. I didn't know it would do that until I read your post. I used the mounted image to save a file to a usb drive (while sandboxed running under powershadow, how complicated is that? )

Very very pertinent info for me, had I known how to this (let alone FREE) it would have saved me at least $160 paid to a local expert to free me from SAVEKEEP, which as most of you know cripples the System Restore function

Can't wait to try it!! Thanks again

Macrium's a good backup program, and if you need any advice on it, don't hesitate to ask.

Great program for sure, I have used it ever since it was recommended to me by Dennis some time ago.

Dennis, thank you for the info - both then and now.

how much room does imaging take?

On this computer the "acronis secure zone" is about 30 gb. I wasn't sure how large to make it, so made it larger than recommended. At the time of this picture, the "secure zone" contains a full disk image backup and 2 subsequent partial backups, and the used space is still less than 12 gb.

I don't mean to be advertising for Acronis although I like it. It's expensive...I just got lucky and got good deal on it via this forum. I haven't used Macrium much...maybe another member will add more info.

I store desktop images on an external HD and on the laptop to a partition and DVDs with Paragon. However, the absolute, hands down, most useful application I've ever used is one of the Horizon DataSys snapshot clones RollBack RX, EAZ-FIX or AyRecovery. They claim you can keep 1000 snapshots, although I can't imagine why. I generally keep four to six, delete older ones and defrag the current ones with the built in tool. Anyway, if you have any trouble with your PC it takes only as long as a reboot to select a snapshot you want to return to. You can also just restore files. Taking a new snapshot takes about two seconds and like I said, a restore just requires booting. If you boot normally and discover the BSD for instance, just reboot and hit the home key and the clone's GUI will be available to select a snapshot and restore. It (they) are the absolute ultimate tool. Think of it as System Restore on roids! As a freeware junkie, you can't imagine how many times in just the last six months it has saved my but. e.g. installing IE8 on my Vista laptop several months ago completely nuked (since resolved, although I only ever use Firefox anyway) it. Complete lock up, the power button wasn't even responding, so I pulled the plug (didn't have the battery in). I then just booted into AyRecovery by pressing the home key, chose the most recent snapshot and it was like nothing ever happened. I'd read about all the Wilders posters using these and ended up with a one year free license. I will definitely purchase a license. Just an amazing program!

My 16gb (used space) System Drive is backed up to a 12gb Image.

I'm another Reflect fan . I hadn't heard of it 12 months ago, then I tried a free version that came with a PC mag. Now I'm a big fan and have a licensed version, having ditched Acronis which although good, I felt was too much "bells and whistles". Reflect is good value, clean and quick. My system partition has 42Gb of data and backs up to 25Gb in about 26 mins, with AES and medium compression. Though I usually verify on top and that can take a while.

The Horizon DataSys stuff looks pretty cool too ... might have a play with that

This has really piqued my curiosity. Any more of you guys use this "Snapshot" restore software?

I'd love to know too, Dennis. I haven't been able to find too many reviews for any of these products, and I don't know much about them.

I have never used Windows restore points, but the RollBack stuff goes much further anyway ... http://www.horizondatasys.com/169614.ihtml. I just like the idea that when I get one if those "Oh **** I wish I hadn't hadn't done that" moments I can get back to where I was in seconds rather than potentially hours.

If you browse their site there's more useful info. I did find one review of RollBack which basically said it was excellent; the only gripe was that the restore time wasn't as quick as advertised. Though slowday444 didn't seem to find that to be a problem!

The other feature that is really appealing to me is that you can access the restore points before you load Windows - there shouldn't be many issues this thing can't deal with.

I'm seriously tempted!!

I suggest you search or ask questions here. A whole lot of posters use it and over there.

Hmmm thanks for that. I had just downloaded a trial of RollBack Fx. Looks neat so far. Of course the proof of the pudding .......

I'm hanging on to my "pre-RollBack" Reflect disk image for a while anyway

The one downside I've found (which, of course, makes sense) is that once this rollback software is installed, you can't (or shouldn't) defrag your system any more. This seems to be true for all of these apps. However, RollBackRX has a suspend feature which allows you to use a third party defragger, but even that has a downside. You can read about it here.

Ah yes of course; I hadn't thought of that. Losing all of the snapshots doesn't bother me per se; I would still be doing periodic image backups and when I want to defrag (which isn't often) I would just have to do it at the same time.

Though I am a little surprised that they recommend you uninstall; I'd have thought just suspending the defrag, as per their steps, would have been quite adequate. And I'm always wary of license re-activation where there's a hardware dependency involved.

Sorry guys, I should have mention that you should do all your maintenance, including defrag before installation. After that just use the programs defrag feature. It invokes automatically whenever you delete a snapshot which I do all the time, knowing that subsequent ones are of my PC running without issue. I always figured you could manually invoke a defrag but I looked at the GUI and I didn't see it but I didn't check any help files. When you start to delete a Maintenance tab is visible (you don't need to use it) which makes me believe that has to be available some how. Their defrag really does work because I used to use JK about once a month and it would take about 20 minutes. When I've un-installed AR and used it it takes less than five so AR must really work. Last but not least, check out this question dated Aug 05!

Slowday . . . are you using AYRecovery?

Does it also have its own defrag system -- and a "suspend" feature like Rollback RX?

After doing some reading about this stuff, I was of the impression that the built-in defrags for these programs were more about defragging their snapshot tree images than about defragging your system hard drive. However, I'm not totally sure about this.

Yes AR because they had offered a free license. I'm not aware of a suspend. Well you may be correct on the defrag. I'd assumed that since a snapshot represented the HD at a certain point in time and that when it was defraging the snapshots it was similar to a true defrag. I'd uninstall it and try a conventional defrag and see how long it takes sine I haven't done one in months but since there is a new version I'm not sure my license would work again.

In general, how does this type of software affect system resources and performance?

I've been trying Rollback Rx, and to cut a long story short, it's not for me.

Yes the defrag is of the snaphots, not the HD. From the help file:

If you have taken or deleted many snapshots, you need to defrag snapshots to reclaim free disk space and improve system performance. ..... For best system performance it's important to defrag snapshots and defrag them often.

From what I can see the performance hit, particularly CPU, is negligible. The memory footprint isn't large.

One thing that puzzles me is that in order to change which partitions are "protected" you have to reinstall. For example I originally installed with system partition protection only. If I want to add another partition I need to reinstall. Now that's not something you're going to do often, but I think the installation instructions should be a bit cleared about that!


Go on Dennis, do tell Is because of the vagaries of your particular build, or have you had problems with it?

Well, my build doesn't have any vagaries as you put it, it's a sweetly running system with what I would call a perfect setup for what I do. And that's the way I want to keep it.

The only vagary is System Restore, which I don't, and never will, trust.

Using Returnil, Sandboxie and Macrium Reflect, none of which need to start with Windows, or have a service running, I can do everything I need to do in way of trying out new software, surfing as safely as it's possible to be, and having a backup of my entire System Drive on hand for any disaster.

I don't like the conflicting opinions from different reputable sites regarding whether you can or cannot use a third party defragger, or whether you can or cannot make an Image backup with this running.

Too many unknowns for me. With my setup of choice, I know exactly what I'm doing, how I'm doing it, and when I want to do it.

Of course, this is just my opinion. If you like it fine, but it's not for me.

Sorry Dennis, I didn't mean "oddities" . I know my system is set up "just so" too, and I don't like to add anything that doesn't blend in with that balance. But because my system is set up "jut so" and quite heavily tweaked, it is not "your normal system" ... those are its whimsical bits and I sometimes find that things designed to run against "your average build" just don't fit in.

I take your point about the circumstances when you'd need this software. To some extent it's protection from myself . Sometimes I'll go off on a whim and find myself in new territory, and at least I'd know I was covered. If I was disciplined enough to use a VM then I might not have to worry about that.

One thing that you raised that I need to look at questions whether you can still take a disk image. Indeed I should check compatibility with Reflect generally; like with its recovery console.

No worries. Another thing I wasn't too keen on was it apparently putting itself into the Master Boot Record, so it was running before my system booted up.

I know that's for a reason, in case of System Failure, but it did feel like it was in control of my PC before I was. I have more than enough rescue packages for that eventuality anyway.

And the complete System Drive backup I have with an Image will get me up and running whatever disaster strikes, even a failed hard drive.

If that happens, then Rollback will fail along with it. Rollback has it's good points of course, but the "can you" or "can you not" debate about making an Image with Rollback installed is enough in itself to make me come down firmly on the "not for me" side of the fence.

The bottom line is if you like it, and it works for you, then go with it, but be aware of the Defragging and Imaging issues, and be sure of what you're doing before you do it.

Free snapshot software!

http://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=254089

But beware it is still just an early beta.

Also it is not new by Comodo it is using the workings of Rollback RX Eaz Fix & AY Recovery.

I believe they have taken on the developer of the above software.

Will be interesting I think.