Need a Computer Guru!!!!

[chayton]

Hey people, I wonder if there are any tech savvy folks who can help me.

My hard drive started making noise a couple of weeks ago and I knew it was on its last legs so I made a drive image using Drive Image XML so that when the hard drive DID go I could get my puter back up and running with all the sytem updates, preferences, programs (and casinos) whenever I got a new internal hard drive. I backed up the drive image on my external HD, everything's cool there. My hard drive did go and I just got my new internal drive and reinstalled windows from my restore DVD, so that's cool too.

BUT - I need to create a bootable CD with the Drive Image XML plugin so that I can boot from the CD, access my backed up XML file, and replace the current system with the disk image I saved. Here's my problem, the OS (Win XP Media Center edition) came preinstalled on my computer so it's an OEM version, you can't create a boot CD from it. You CAN however, creat a boot FLOPPY. But I don't have a floppy drive!

I've been all over the internet and found several bootable CD things but I need to be able to include this Drive Image plugin also or I won't be able to restore the system. I just spent an hour on chat to an HP support person but it all boils down to what I said above - it just took longer....

I tried using BartPE to make a bootable CD with the plugin, but unfortunately it didn't work - I'm assuming because of the OEM version of the OS. Anyone have any ideas? If you do, please PM me, thanks!!!!

 

[skiny]

Why do you need to create a bootable cd?

The help files say that you have to put the image into an existing partition. Then restore from the main program window.

 

[vinylweatherman]

I bought a DELL PC for my Mum, and at the time they used the system of having the back-up OS on the hard drive, and NOT provide a CD set. I was able to make a backup.

I realised at the time what a SERIOUS problem this new practice might be, since with Windows 98 on my old PC I have had to reinstall TWICE, the second time due to a new hard drive.

Hard drives fail, and there MUST be a recovery plan in place for this. PC manufacturers save money by not providing the OS on CDs, but this can be a big problem for users when they need to change the hard drive.

With my old PC, there was also something known as a "tattoo", which had to be applied to any replacement hard drive before the OEM OS would allow itself to be installed. It is supposed to prevent piracy of the OEM OS, but was a real "pain".

The casinos should not be a problem, these can be re-downloaded and installed. The real problem comes with "bundled" software that came with the PC, and any data stored on the hard drive that cannot be replaced.

Taking an image should have been an easy solution, but another money saving idea has scuppered this, no floppy drive. My new PC came without this "obsolete" feature, but this leaves me with a bootable CD as the only other option.

Floppy drives can be obtained though, or even "borrowed" from an old PC, and can be plugged in for the duration.

I would be unhappy NOT to have the CD copies of anything I bought with a PC, be it OS or bundled software. I would be prepared to burn my own to save money, but I would want this function available at least.

Failure to solve this problem means having to buy a new copy of the OS, and it is no surprise that Microsoft are not going to object

 

[skiny]

And the software companies wonder why people pirate software.

 

[silcnlayc]

PC manufacturers save money by not providing the OS on CDs

There is always an option of having the cd's sent with the computer. It is on the order page. I have always asked for the cd's and they are free. Not that this helps any, but just wanted to clear that up...

I reinstalled a new hard drive on my laptop...and it was a simple fix. But I had the cd's and all the software was bundled on the recovery cd (it was requested.)

If the computer isn't too old, you can still request the cd. It will cost a few dollars and a few days for delivery (had to do this for someone else) and it makes life very easy.

Hope it all works out for you.

.

 

[chayton]

Thanks everyone! My OS came originally installed on a partition but I burned recovery DVDs quite early on. It wasn't reinstalling Windows that was the problem.

@skiny - I needed to be able to boot up a version of Windows from the CD so that I could restore my hard drive - which you can't do while you're using it to run the OS, it would be like trying to replace a car engine while you're driving it down the freeway.

Anyhow problem solved. I managed to create a boot CD from the version of XP I had on my laptop and last night I restored my disk image and now my computer's back the way it was.

 

[skiny]

:yahoo::yahoo: