Rich-M
Well-Known Member
I have to take my hat off to this one. Clean, easy update that makes this process so simple a child can do it.
As always there is more than one way to make an image file in this program but the main screen is cleaned up so you can easily see how to clone a hard drive, make an image file of restore one effortlessly. Now I am using standard version but everything I am saying applies to the free version as well as the only real difference is the making of incrementals and differentials. I made an image file that is 90 gb in use on a 128 gb hard drive in 16 minutes which is about 10 minutes faster than version 5.0. Even the Rescue Disk, which now defaults to the Windows PE environment but of course you can make a Linux disk if you so desire is way quicker and the Windows PE environment bots now in half the time and is an exact replica of the main screen which makes is so clean and easy to use for restoring or making an image file if you want to do it that way.
The only thing you still have to know is that to make incremental or differential files, you have to leave the sml screen, the last screen you see before it begins making the image file checked as then all you need to do to make an incremental is open the heading "Backup definition Files" and choose the one you want to make the incremental for then right click it and chose "make incremental" or "make differential" and off you go making it the same as the original settings made the original file.
My only issue which is easy to forget is that the personalized settings could easily be missed as in earlier versions because you have to choose "advanced settings" from the main box after designing your project to alter default compression, file size, add a password or check the image file for errors but if you forget as I have done many times just cancel, go back and set it up again is all.
Once again Macrium Reflect for me is the easiest least complicated program I have ever used that does the job of making an image file, cloning a drive or making updated image files under a variety of circumstances and I believe going forward protects you better than any other program. Now it won't get your mail for you or wash your car as Acronis tries to, but it will "save your bacon" every time flawlessly. Their foresite as they had just reduced the size of the Windows PE disk from a Dvd to a Cd for heavy use as Windows 8 was blowing away programs using Linux disks by not being able to read them, and that is something I will never forget.
Storage Craft and Acronis may have all the "bells and whistles" but I find Storage Craft a totally intimidating program and Acronis a most often flawed one and the latter for me has long stopped being dependable as it once was. After constant insurances that Acronis 2013 was ready for Prime Time (updated for Windows 8) I lost one system completely trying to restore an image file and had to return the laptop to have them replace the hard drive destroyed by Acronis, and the other after a simple install as the final program it broke Windows and I had to totally reinstall Windows. BTW anyone reading this who has Windows 8, please make sure your System Restore is defaulted "enabled" as I found out when that happened to me many systems have it disabled from the factory, as that might have saved me if it had been "enabled" in the second instance.
http://www.macrium.com/
Download free full featured trial version:
http://www.macrium.com/Download.aspx?type=home
I see where the free version has not been released quite yet.
As always there is more than one way to make an image file in this program but the main screen is cleaned up so you can easily see how to clone a hard drive, make an image file of restore one effortlessly. Now I am using standard version but everything I am saying applies to the free version as well as the only real difference is the making of incrementals and differentials. I made an image file that is 90 gb in use on a 128 gb hard drive in 16 minutes which is about 10 minutes faster than version 5.0. Even the Rescue Disk, which now defaults to the Windows PE environment but of course you can make a Linux disk if you so desire is way quicker and the Windows PE environment bots now in half the time and is an exact replica of the main screen which makes is so clean and easy to use for restoring or making an image file if you want to do it that way.
The only thing you still have to know is that to make incremental or differential files, you have to leave the sml screen, the last screen you see before it begins making the image file checked as then all you need to do to make an incremental is open the heading "Backup definition Files" and choose the one you want to make the incremental for then right click it and chose "make incremental" or "make differential" and off you go making it the same as the original settings made the original file.
My only issue which is easy to forget is that the personalized settings could easily be missed as in earlier versions because you have to choose "advanced settings" from the main box after designing your project to alter default compression, file size, add a password or check the image file for errors but if you forget as I have done many times just cancel, go back and set it up again is all.
Once again Macrium Reflect for me is the easiest least complicated program I have ever used that does the job of making an image file, cloning a drive or making updated image files under a variety of circumstances and I believe going forward protects you better than any other program. Now it won't get your mail for you or wash your car as Acronis tries to, but it will "save your bacon" every time flawlessly. Their foresite as they had just reduced the size of the Windows PE disk from a Dvd to a Cd for heavy use as Windows 8 was blowing away programs using Linux disks by not being able to read them, and that is something I will never forget.
Storage Craft and Acronis may have all the "bells and whistles" but I find Storage Craft a totally intimidating program and Acronis a most often flawed one and the latter for me has long stopped being dependable as it once was. After constant insurances that Acronis 2013 was ready for Prime Time (updated for Windows 8) I lost one system completely trying to restore an image file and had to return the laptop to have them replace the hard drive destroyed by Acronis, and the other after a simple install as the final program it broke Windows and I had to totally reinstall Windows. BTW anyone reading this who has Windows 8, please make sure your System Restore is defaulted "enabled" as I found out when that happened to me many systems have it disabled from the factory, as that might have saved me if it had been "enabled" in the second instance.
http://www.macrium.com/
Download free full featured trial version:
http://www.macrium.com/Download.aspx?type=home
I see where the free version has not been released quite yet.
