Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Drive Image 3.0 query

This is topic Drive Image 3.0 query in forum Film-Yak at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

To visit this topic, use this URL:
https://ft-forum.com/ft/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=8;t=000703

Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 02-13-2002, 05:13 AM:

I've been trying to make a system backup of a hard disc using Drive Image 3.0 and have hit a brick wall...

The system consists of a 10gb hard disc (IDE primary master) containing one partition formatted as an NTFS basic volume, which is the system drive (Windows 2K SP2), and an 80gb hard disc (IDE primary slave) which contains two partitions, again both NTFS basic: a 20gb volume for data & general crap plus a 60gb drive for captured video files.

According to the manual, Drive Image can read from an NTFS volume but cannot write backup data on one. What I'm trying to do is launch Drive Image from the DOS boot floppy it creates on installation, back up the system disc into a number of 650mb files on the second hard drive, then go back into Windows and burn the files onto CDs. Therefore I deleted the 60gb video partition, created a new 10gb partition which I formatted as FAT32 and restarted the computer using the Drive Image DOS floppy.

Problem - when booted in DOS, the computer cannot find the FAT32 volume on the second hard drive. I also tried booting it using a Windows ME floppy made on a friend's computer and then starting Drive Image, but with the same result. Drive Image doesn't recognise any hard drive volume onto which I can place the image files.

Is there some fundamental reason why I can't do this, like DOS cannot recognise two physical hard drives or something? Or is it just that I'm missing something?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions...

Posted by Adam Martin (Member # 641) on 02-13-2002, 06:18 AM:

How did you create the partition? Sometimes you have to go in and make it "active" after creating it.

Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 02-13-2002, 07:36 AM:

In Windows 2K using start - settings - control panel - computer management - disc management, then right-clicking on the existing 60gb NTFS volume within disc 1, deleting it, and then creating a new volume and formatting it as FAT32.

I'll investigate to see if there's any way of making the FAT32 volume 'active' - thanks for the tip.

Posted by Jerry Chase (Member # 660) on 02-13-2002, 08:50 AM:

You slid over which version of DOS you were using. Checking on the net, I found:

Early DOS versions maxed out at 2.1 gig.
DOS 6.22 or earlier is limited to 8.4 gig.
Windows 95B (OSR2) supports drives larger than 8.4 gig and provides FAT32, which is required to format one large unpartitioned drive.
Windows 98 supports 17.2 gig, FAT16 & FAT32.
Windows NT 4.0 supports drives larger than 8.4 gig, but only 8.4 gigabytes can be seen on the bootable drive (SP 4 should resolve). Only supports FAT32 with a 3rd party driver addition.

As I remember, your FAT 16 or FAT 32 partition should also be the first partition visible the larger drives.

FWIW, I got a copy of Drive Image or Ghost (I forget which) given to me a few years back at a trade show. That version didn't even have full support for FAT 32 and I couldn't use it on my 98SE computer. I obviously wasn't very impressed.

Posted by Gordon McLeod (Member # 33) on 02-13-2002, 09:53 AM:

I use partition magic to partition drives as you can do it on the fly without dataloss of the dreaded "fdisk"

Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 02-13-2002, 11:30 AM:

Thanks Jerry - you cracked it. The FAT32 volume I'd created was not the first visible volume on the drive. That was my NTFS data drive. I've now copied its contents off onto a temporary folder in the C drive, and then unleashed the dreaded Fdisk on the second physical drive to create a primary FAT32 partition, which Drive Image can now see.

The version of DOS I am using was the one created by Windows ME when you use its 'create an emergency boot disc' function.

Posted by Jerry Chase (Member # 660) on 02-13-2002, 11:53 AM:

I figured that was it. BTW, get a DOS version off a Win98SE machine for when you need it. I'll spare you my comments about Windows ME.

Posted by Ron Lacheur (Member # 1126) on 02-13-2002, 01:27 PM:

I don't even know why Microsoft released Windows ME. It's garbage, pure and simple. The two reliable releases I have found to be are Windows 98SE and Windows 2000 Professional. I have tried XP but not on a level to make any comments about the stability of it.

Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 02-13-2002, 02:01 PM:

The boot disc was made on a friend's machine - the choice of ME was hers, not mine. I just wanted to try something different from the 'DR-DOS' that came with Drive Image to see if that would cure the problem. I'll look out for someone with a 98SE machine to make a boot disc from.

BTW, Drive Image accomplished the backup without any problems relating to FAT32.

Thanks for everyone's help.