I do not need Acronis True Image any more.
Here's why, for those who might be interested. Those who are not
interested can move on.
I just installed the Enermax 352 DynaBacker RAID-1/ Backup unit. I
have it configured in the Backup mode for now, and I will likely leave
it that way. I see no reason to use RAID-1 when I am using WD drives.
I beat the crap out of a couple Caviars over the past 6 years and
SMART said they looked almost like new. Keep the drive cool and it
will last forever.
I have the Backup mode set for 4:00 am once per day, which is when
things are the quietest. Windows continues to run uninterrupted - no
booting to DVM shells or other contrivances.
I set the Backup speed to NORMAL since there was no reason to use FAST
or SLOW. When I tested it in FAST the filesystem was a bit sluggish.
In NORMAL the filesystem appears to behave normally - no impact from
the unit.
It takes right at 60 minutes to backup my 80GB HD. It copies every
sector even though I only have 15GB on it. I know because I used
Norton Undelete to show me that deleted files were still there. The
only way that can happen is if the entire disk is copied.
I have three 80GB WD SE disks in the set. One of them will be the boot
disk, the second will be the backup disk and the third will be the
archive disk away from the computer. I plan to rotate those disks each
week on Sunday, thereby keeping a one-week disaster recovery archive
available. Rotating will also age the disks uniformly.
Thus far the unit has functioned as advertised. However, as with any
new product, the s/w has nuisance glitches. For example, the installer
laid off the device files in the root director - dumb and dumber. If I
ever caught a developer doing something stupid like that, I would fire
him. I suppose I can hack the registry and convert the settings to
point to a directory.
Another nuisance occurs in Backup mode. If you stop the computer to
rotate the disks, then the s/w will automatically begin building a new
backup when the computer is restarted. Although the manual claims that
the s/w keeps track of the real boot disk and the real backup disk,
it's good to know that the archive disk was rotated from the boot disk
so you can recover if the s/w screws up. They need to fix that - even
the STOP button is greyed out. IOW, you get a backup whether you
wanted it or not every time you change the disk configuration. I
believe this is only in Backup mode.
A third nuisance is the fact that you cannot run any "low-level" disk
utilities while the s/w is running. For example, I had to disable
SMART and DTemp, and I cannot run Everest while the "DynaView" utility
is running. I can shut it off and then run those other utilities, but
I have to remember to restart it if I want an automatic backup at the
scheduled time.
They have a utility that sends email, so you can see what happened
when it tries to do the backup. However the codes are undocumented and
kinda silly because they say things like "WARRY 3". I don't know if
that's Taiwanese for "WORRY" or "WEARY" or "WARY" or whatever.
Unfortunately there is no log that I can find.
They do not include the main manual (61 pages) in the box - only some
dumbed-down "quick install". It pays to get the main manual from the
manufacturer and print it ahead of time.
Those who enjoy the old legacy method of making backups will
undoubtedly claim that procedures involving image-making s/w work just
as good if not better. I claim otherwise. Other than rotating the 3
disks once a week, everything is *completely* automatic. I do nothing
except make sure the backup s/w is properly configured and running in
the tray. But it's restoring that makes it all worthwhile. Just swap
the drive trays. Nothing could be easier IMO.
--
Map of the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy
http://home.houston.rr.com/rkba/vrwc.html
If you can read this, thank a teacher.
If you are reading it in English, thank an American soldier.
