Win 10

[JBR]

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2029832/backing-up-your-entire-drive-cloning-vs-imaging.html

Thanks again. I see that they also recommend Macrium Reflect.

Does this mean that if I clone my HD in its entirety then, if the HD is damaged in some way, I can plug my external HD into a USB port and boot up from that? Would it then be possible to copy the lot on to the internal HD assuming it is still working (or a replacement HD), or even a new laptop. I assume the latter would not be possible because the cloned Windows would not be happy with a different system(?).

I have restored an image and also cloned a 320 GB HDD to a 250 GB SSD without problems or 'insider knowledge'

Yes, when I copy to an external HD using my software, it automatically compresses everything. As I have a lot more space on my external HD than on my internal HD I think I'd feel happier without compression, even if it takes longer to back up. Is there any chance that compressing information can lead to problems or degrade some data?

Sorry. I can manage to get by using most things to do with computers, but I'm always willing to learn from a master!

 

[empip]

Master I am not. Not the kind of response I would expect when offered help based upon experience not some superior knowledge.
Obviously you know what's what so get on with it.

-0-

 

[WalksWithTurkeys]

I used CloneZilla to clone my HD onto a SSD, and then replaced the HD with the SSD. My guess is that you could clone the HD onto an external disk, then if the main disk crashed, clone the external drive onto the internal HD. CloneZilla is not so easy to use, you need to make a USB flash drive with it on.

I received my Win 10 update offer today, and requested a copy. Yippee. I loathe Win 8. Basic things are impossible to do, such as running a program you installed recently and cannot remember the name.

 

[JBR]

Master I am not. Not the kind of response I would expect when offered help based upon experience not some superior knowledge.
Obviously you know what's what so get on with it.

-0-

I wasn't being sarcastic, and I appreciate your help thus far.

 

[JBR]

I still have a couple of unanswered questions and I'd be very grateful if anyone can help.

Related to my previous post:

1. If I clone my HD in its entirety to an external HD then, if the HD is damaged in some way, can I plug my external HD into a USB port and boot up from that? Would it then be possible to copy the lot on to the internal HD assuming it is still working (or a replacement HD), or even a new laptop. (I assume the latter would not be possible because the cloned Windows would not be happy with a different system).

2. Is there any possibility that compressing information, when cloning, can lead to problems or maybe degrade some data? Is cloning without compression preferable?

 

[WalksWithTurkeys]

1. Not as far as I know, if the internal drive went AWOL, you would have to clone the data on the external drive onto the internal drive, assuming the latter was functional. CloneZilla runs from the external USB drive. I think there is better software than CloneZilla. Crucial, the memory maker, has better software but maybe only available to their customers. It is conceivable that that you could configure the BIOS to boot from the external drive, and if it was USB 3.0, it might be useable, but slow. Not sure why you would want to do that though.
2. Dunno.

 

[JBR]

Thanks WWT.