How Can One Create Images from Netbooks??

[Yung_Jah]

I know that we are in a world where there are netbooks here and there and as y'all know it doesnt have a CD/DVD drive....but for a situation where it crash....how can one restore it to factory setting?

Whats the best and easiest way to reprogram a netbook? Through a bootable flashdrive? or Using an external CD/DVD drive? (Seeing that the hard drive is under the motherboard or using an 8gig memory card....)

My work place sells netbooks, and normally I configure them/setup them for any customer that purchase one.....and I am thinking....how can I create an image...

[ramesh]

This might help:
http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2009/03..._backup_tools/

[Anthon]

So many backup tools out there for that Yung. I think you have some Portable Backup tools you might find handy in light of what you hope to achieve. Look in your bounty of portables for Acronis True Image Tool or Paragon Backup and Recovery Tool. You can't go wrong with those. You can use them to create additional partition, then create a complete replica of the HDD on the other partition for backup. Recommended after a fresh install to keep backup small enough to burn on a disc.

[kilaj1]

My company recently started using DELL netbooks to replace older desktop systems. We where in teh same boat, no external drive for every user. What i was taxed with was to create a local recovery partition.

After about 3-4 months I created a WinPE recovery partition that has several support tools built in as well as an option to wipe and reinstall the OS partition with all the companies applications. It also changes the SID and computer name automatically. So in less than 15mins you have a fresh install of Windows 7 and all the applications...just need to run windows updates

Of course this does nto help when the Hard drive crashes, so the backup for that is to use the Images (symantec Ghost) and create a bootable DVD (same images used in recovery partition).

I was thinking of making a article on TechJA on how to create this recovery partition...hmm...let me know if you would be interested in something like that

[Anthon]

My company recently started using DELL netbooks to replace older desktop systems. We where in teh same boat, no external drive for every user. What i was taxed with was to create a local recovery partition.

After about 3-4 months I created a WinPE recovery partition that has several support tools built in as well as an option to wipe and reinstall the OS partition with all the companies applications. It also changes the SID and computer name automatically. So in less than 15mins you have a fresh install of Windows 7 and all the applications...just need to run windows updates

Of course this does nto help when the Hard drive crashes, so the backup for that is to use the Images (symantec Ghost) and create a bootable DVD (same images used in recovery partition).

I was thinking of making a article on TechJA on how to create this recovery partition...hmm...let me know if you would be interested in something like that

I've made a bootable backup once that just reinstall when I insert the disc and put the DVD drive to boot 1st. But had no menu option to wipe drive clean or anything like that. It just install the programs installed, drivers and settings like the system was out of box. In details, can you say how you create the menu options, what software you used and the size of he partition?

You could make a thread about the entire process too.

[kilaj1]

I used a menu system called NUmenu within WinPE, I created 2 partitions with Diskpart, one was 10-12GB (recovery partition) and the other was the rest of the drive space (operating system)

Numenu is essentially a GUI for WinPE, there are several diffrent programs that can do this, I just choose to work with this one mainly because of the ease of customizing it. Ill try get some screen shots for you.

Ill start a tread on the recovery partition...its going to be lengthy though

[Yung_Jah]

But lets say there is no DVD to restore the netbook to its factory settings, how can it be done with a USB thumb drive?

Is it a case where this software actually create the image and store it at a location of your choice on the HDD, so it can be transfered to the thumb drive?

And if so, can I use a software to make the thumb drive bootable using this image? (I have no problem making the thumb drive bootable, as I have apps for this)

Lets not think about using an external DVD drive at this point

[kilaj1]

Actually you can use my method to do that...basically setup a recovery partition (USB thumb drive)

But heres the thing, you say you want to restore it to factory settings...with disk imaging software like Ghost, you can image (clone) that system as soon as you get it. This will backup the entire drive into ghost image files (.GHO).

If you create a recovery partition either on the local computer or on a thumb drive you will be able to boot into it and use the ghost image you created to wipe and recover the system.

As I siad I will start a thread on how to do this...Its pretty lengthily but imo and my companies opinion, it was well worth it.

[Yung_Jah]

Well I have seen people using Norton Ghost....but are you saying that once the system is about to boot from the thumb drive, it will recognize the ghost format (.GHO)?

Seems like there is alot to upgrade myself on. Never used Ghost, but got a copy. So much things to get some hands on practice with at home, since they cannot be done at work. (For some things)

Awaiting on that thread.

[kilaj1]

Norton Ghost and Symantec Ghost are 2 different evils...I spit on norton ghost...I laugh at the sys admin for using it and I get a headache when people mention it.....
Symantec Ghost is the corporate level of Ghost, the command line switches should be the same but Symantec one is more powerful imo.

Its not the system really recognizing the GHO format you would ahve to do some scripting to get ghost to launch, I actually have the entire script(s) needed

K let me give you a quick run down on how my recovery partition works, lets say i have a computer with a 160GB HDD.

Without Tumbdrive and creating the recovery partition localy

• Create 2 partitions using Diskpart 1x10GB for Recovery partition, 1x(reset of disk space) for OS.
• Create the base install on the large partition with all windows 7 updates all apps installed, create a ghost image of this partition and copy it to the second partition.
• After customizing WinPE with a GUI menu and adding scripts to the menu add the WinPE image (this is not the same as the ghost image) to the smaller partition.
• Using BCDedit you configure Windows 7 boot menu to show the recovery partition, this is essentially an entry pointing the above mentioned WinPE file.
  
• Within the WinPE environment when you select the Option to ghost ( i have a menu entry saying "System Recovery") the ghost script will run and start the ghost process and afterwords change the computer name and SID. This usually takes from 10mins to 15mins depending on the system specs and size.