Thread: Safeguard your files with Driveimage XML

STEP 1

DRIVEIMAGE XML CAN BE downloaded by visiting Data Recovery Software - Hard Drive Recovery - RAID Data Recovery. Click the'Free download' link and save the file to the desktop - at , .6Mb, this will not take too long. Double-click the dixmlsetup.exe file to start the installation process, click Next, read the licence agreement, tick the box to agree to the licence and click Next again. Choose where the program should be installed and click Next three times. Click Finish once the installation is complete.

STEP 2

IF WINDOWS VISTA IS being used, User Account Control must be temporarily disabled to use Driveimage XML.To do this,open the User Accounts Control Panel and click the'Turn User Account Control on or off' link. Click Continue when the warning appears on screen, then untick the box labelled'Use User Account Control (UAC) to help protect your computer' and click OK. When prompted, click Restart Now to restart Windows. UAC can be re-enabled by repeating these steps in reverse once the backup is complete.

STEP 3

CLICK THE BACKUP BUTTON in the navigation pane to the left-hand side of the screen and Driveimage XML will perform a quick scan to determine the number of hard disks and partitions that are available. From the list that is displayed, select the disk or partition to be backed up and click the Next button.The'Drive backup wizard'will then load, ready to work through the process of backing up the selected partition. Click Next to continue.

STEP 4

THE FIRST THING TO do is choose where the backup should be created. Ideally, this location should be a separate hard disk or partition, as this reduces the risk of data loss in the event of hard disk failure. Click the folder icon next to the Directory label and navigate to the desired location before clicking OK.ln the Files section ofthe wizard, click the text under the File name heading and enter a suitable name for the backup.

STEPS 5

IN THE OPTIONS SECTION ofthe dialogue box, there are a number of setting that can be configured by simply ticking the box next to the relevant label. Selecting 'Raw mode'will create an exact replica of the selected partition.This will result in a very large disk image file, with information about the free space the partition holds as well as the files to be stored. If you want to copy the backup to DVD later, select' Split large files.

STEP 6

IMAGE FILES WILL GENERALLY be very large,even ifthe'split' option has been selected.To reduce the amount of storage space needed to hold backups, tick the Compressed box.This can reduce space requirements by up to 40 per cent, although backups may take longer. When backing up a drive that is currently in use (the one on which Windows is installed), make sure that'TryVolume Locking first'is selected before clicking Next.The backup process will then begin and Driveimage XML will
display an estimate of how long the task will take to complete.

STEP 7

ONCE THE BACKUP PROCEDURE is complete, click the Finish button. Hopefully, the backup will never be needed, but if it is, the restoration feature of Driveimage XML comes into play. Click the Restore link to the left-hand side of the screen and then click Next to launch the drive restore wizard. Click the button with a folder icon and navigate to the XML file that has been created before clicking Next. Select the disk or partition to which data is to be restored and click Next.



STEPS 8

IT SHOULD BE NOTED that it is not possible to restore a backup of a partition or drive that contains Windows to another drive or partition also containing a copy of Windows that is running.To get around the problem of copying data to a partition that is currently in use, it is necessary to create a boot CD that can be used to run a stripped-down version of Windows. To create such a CD,download a free copy of Bart's PE from.A copy ofthe Driveimage XML plug-in should also be downloaded.

STEP 9

AFTER DOWNLOADING AND INSTALLING the program, insert a Windows XP installation CD, launch Bart's PE from the Start menu, read and agree to the terms of the licence. Click Yes to search for Windows installation files and wait while the program performs a scan.When a message stating that a valid source location has been found is displayed, click OK and select the option labelled 'Create ISO image:C1ick the third button labelled with an ellipsis (... ) and choose a name and location for the disc image that is about to be created.

STEP 10

NOW CLICK THE PLUGINS button, followed by Add. Navigate to the folder containing the Driveimage XML plug-in downloaded in Step 8, select it and click Open, followed by OK. Click Close, followed by Build.Click I Agree and wait while the image file is created - this may take some time, depending on the speed of the computer being used. Once the process is complete, click Close, insert a blank recordable CD and use a disc-burning program, such as Nero, to burn the image file you just created onto disc.The ISO file can then be deleted .

STEP 11

RESTART YOUR PC AND, if necessary, enter the Bios to ensure that it is configured to boot from CD - this can be achieved by changing the CD drive to be the first boot device. Entering the Bios is usually a case oftapping Del or F12 shortly after the PC has been switched on, but keep an eye out for on-screen messages for guidance. Insert the Bart's PE disc created in Step 10 and restart once again. Rather than the familiar Windows logo screen, a message reading 'Starting BartPE'wili be displayed. If data needs to be restored to a networked computer, click Yes, followed by OK, to start network support. Click OK to automatically detect the required network settings, then click the Go button before launching Driveimage XML from the Programs menu.

STEP 12

THE PROGRAM CAN NOW be used in very much the same way as described in the previous steps.Working with Driveimage XML under Bart's PE rather than the standard version of Windows is virtually identical, so click the Restore button, followed by Next. Browse to the XML backup file that has been created and choose the drive to which the data should be restored before clicking Next, followed by Next. Once the restoration process is complete, restart the computer from the Go menu and remove the Bart's PE disc.

STEP 13

DRIVEIMAGE XML CAN ALSO be used to copy files directly from one hard disk to another - this is a useful option if a new hard disk has been installed, as it saves having to reinstall Windows and other programs. Launch the program and click the 'Drive to Drive' button to the left of the screen. Select the disk that is to be copied and click Next, followed by Next again,and then choose the disk to which the data should be copied. Click Next to start the process, remembering that any data on the destination disk will be overwritten.

STEP 14

DRIVEIMAGE XML CAN BE automatically run on a schedule. Launch the Task Scheduler from the Start menu and in Vista, click Create BasicTask,enter a name and click Next. Indicate how often the task should run and click Next before clicking Browse and selecting the Driveimage XML program file. In the Arguments box, type /bF /t"C:\My Backups\drive_c,changing F to the disk that is to be back up and adjusting the backup name as required. In Xp, double-click Add Scheduled Task, click Next and browse to the Driveimage XML program file. Configure the schedule and select the option to open advanced properties. Enter the parameters as described above.