Backing up Windows XP!!!!!!

[carls]

Personally, I would _NEVER_ pay for an operating system unless the installation media is included. If the whole package is a bargain I might settle with one of those recovery CDs - but what happens if you install new hardware and Windows asks you to "insert the Windows CD into your CD-ROM drive" to copy some DLLs not installed by default?

With Windows being as unstable as it is (viruses, trojans, spyware, registry breakdowns etc.) you shouldn't have to be without some way to reinstall your system.

Of course, the hard drive will come prepartitioned - probably as one huge C:\ - and if something blows up and you have to use the "repair" CD it will most likely wipe out all the contents of your drive.

By the way - if I own a Windows XP license but have no installation media, would it be illegal to use a home burned XP CD with my license key?

[carls]

Hmm. One more thing.

Is anyone else thinking that this whole license thing is blowing out of proportion? There's the OS3.9 license debacle, the Microsoft stuff about owning the right to use the product and not the product itself (funny how they even try to apply this to hardware, IE the X-Box), and of course the Unix vs. IBM & Linux thing.

I bet my Sony Discman includes a lot of patented stuff but if it was possible, I could install Linux on it and nobody would care. If I buy a copyrighted book, I can burn it or use the pages for taking notes using a big green marker pen. I could even cut out the little letters and words and use them to write a new book!

But with software... Hey, I'm lucky if I paid enough to let more than ten persons look at my homepage!

[mikeymike]

Oh, how life is so much easier with one partition for just Windows, and another for apps and data.

[carls]

@mikeymike
That goes for any OS IMHO. Workbench: and Work: are two fine examples of good thinking :-)

[seer]

Oh, how life is so much easier with one partition for just Windows, and another for apps and data.

Neh...
1 x 60 Gb HD for windows
1 x 120 Gb HD for programs and data
1 x 200 Gb HD for backup and useless data (pictures and stuff)

That makes life ease with Windows :-D

Offcourse a DVD+/-RW helps as well  ;-)

(I admit that the 60 GB is not only for Windows, amd the 120 GB is more used for data then programs, but one must learn to read during installations not just  clicking [next][next][next][next][next][finish])...

And BTW, I still have over 65% HD space free should anybody wonder)

[Im>bE]

Everyone else has been reccomending things,
so I reccomend you unplug the pc
and throw it out the window.

[adz]

Under no circumstances enable Automatic Updates, and make sure you format and re-install every 9 - 12 months, Windows never likes to clean up after itself. On my last note, always keep a CD backup of your most crucial data, twice now I have seen entire partitions wiped out after a Service Pack upgrade, Microshaft calls it an act of God, trust Microsoft to blame it on someone who can't speak for themself.

[Ilwrath]

Oh, how life is so much easier with one partition for just Windows, and another for apps and data.

This is one I just don't understand on Windows, though.

What good does having apps on a seperate drive do you?  none.  With having a registry, you can't restore the system partition without hosing the apps, so why bother trying to seperate them from the system? It's a useless convention.

I keep the data on a seperate partition many times, but I've been starting to get away from even that.  Just put it all in a directory (like c:\data) and write yourself a logon script to back it up to another computer each time you log on.  :-)  Only takes a second to run an xcopy over the 100-base-T switch... Or, even better, gigabit.  Then, burn the directory to a CD now and then for even more protection.

The theory works for Linux, too... Only use rsync instead of xcopy and just copy your whole home dir.  ;-)

[carls]

@Ilwrath

I keep all data, games and demos on a separate partition. Most games don't write to the registry (at least not the ones I play), so at least my game characters and skill levels etc. will be around if I ever reinstall Windows.

Since I use Windows as a single-user OS I don't bother with exporting home directories and stuff.

[mikeymike]

Under no circumstances enable Automatic Updates

Agreed.  Disable the Background Intelligent Transfer Service also.

and make sure you format and re-install every 9 - 12 months

Hmm, that depends on how you use your computer.  My parents' machine (NT4) is as responsive/fast as the day I finished installing it.  On the flipside, my machine's Win2k install lasts a few months max as I'm always screwing around with Windows :-)

twice now I have seen entire partitions wiped out after a Service Pack upgrade,

I've never seen or heard of that problem before...

[Ilwrath]

twice now I have seen entire partitions wiped out after a Service Pack upgrade,

I've never seen or heard of that problem before...

Hmm... Never applied NT4 SP2 (not SP2a, but the original SP2) on an NTFS boot partition, have you?  ;-)

But, really, most modern service packs break very few things, if your system is anywhere near standard.

[DoomMaster]

Windows XP SUCKS !!!!

[N7VQM]

DoomMaster wrote:
Windows XP SUCKS !!!!

And have you actually USED it?  I don't mean "sat down, played with the mouse for 5 minutes."  I mean actually use it to do something productive?  Or, are you just shouting an opinoin just because you don't like Microsoft?

[DoomMaster]

To N7VQM:

Yes I have used Windows XP.  I own both versions, the Home Edition and the Professional Edition.  THEY BOTH SUCK!  I do have a really nice Pentium 4 PC that I custom built myself using nothing but high quality parts.  I have discovered, along with many other experts in this industry, that Windows 98 Second Edition is the best and most reliable Windows for home use.  Windows 2000 is the best and most reliable Windows for business.  Many web servers will NOT allow you access if they know that you are using Windows XP, that's how bad it SUCKS!  Just try to play Duke Nukem on the Kali game server with Windows XP.  Those guys will tell you to get out, NO WINDOWS XP ALLOWED!  Windows XP really does suck.  I have never had as many problems with a Windows OS until I installed Windows XP.  ALL of the really smart computer people KNOW that Windows XP sucks, they do not even waste their time trying to use it.     :-o

[Madgun68]

I used to use Ghost all the time (2000 version I think.) I used the windows rescue disk and built up a custom disk with the essentials plus ghost.

After that, I installed Windows and all essential drivers and made a ghost image of the drive. Finally, I burned the disk + image to a bootable cd. This way, if I did need to reinstall (which I did on a couple of occasions) I simply used the cd I created instead. Total time to reinstall using this method was roughly 3 minutes or so.

I haven't tried the newer versions of Ghost, but it being able to run in dos mode was a big plus for me.

[N7VQM]

DoomMaster wrote:
To N7VQM:

IWindows 98 Second Edition is the best and most reliable Windows for home use.

Windows 98 is where it belongs:  the scrap heap.

Many web servers will NOT allow you access if they know that you are using Windows XP, that's how bad it SUCKS!

This is ridiculous.  I visited thousands of web sites and my wife thousands of others since I installed XP.  Not a one have denied access because of XP.  You'll have to point out a couple million sites to me before I see that as any indication of the quality of XP.

Just try to play Duke Nukem on the Kali game server with Windows XP.  Those guys will tell you to get out, NO WINDOWS XP ALLOWED!

By what mechinism do other players learn what OS you're using?

ALL of the really smart computer people KNOW that Windows XP sucks, they do not even waste their time trying to use it.

The illogic here is large enough to drive an over-height, wide-load tractor-trailer through.  For this statement to be true, you would have to have interviewed EVERY 'really smart computer person' in the world and have them all agree.  I'd like to see you try that.