Best Hard Drive Imaging Software?

[gerrym]

I'm putting the finishing touches on my new Windows 7 machine and wondering what the best software out there would be to take a fresh image of my new hard drive/windows 7 configuration so later should anything happen, I can simply re-image the hard drive and not have to take the time to install and configure everything.

I tried drivesnapshot but didn't have much success with it. Many thanks.

 

[sminlal]

Windows 7 has a built-in image backup and restore capability which you might want to try. You can access it via:

Start -> All Programs -> Maintenance -> Backup and Restore

Then use the "Create A System Image" link to do the backup and "Create a system repair disk" to create a bootable DVD you can use to restore the image.

 

[gerrym]

Windows 7 has a built-in image backup and restore capability which you might want to try. You can access it via:

Start -> All Programs -> Maintenance -> Backup and Restore

Then use the "Create A System Image" link to do the backup and "Create a system repair disk" to create a bootable DVD you can use to restore the image.

That is fantastic, I had no idea that was there. Thank you!

 

[Darryl_53]

Can this Windows 7 built-in image backup and restore be used to clone my drive to a SSD drive?

 

[eXistenZ]

Can this Windows 7 built-in image backup and restore be used to clone my drive to a SSD drive?

I believe the correct answer is: No. You should do a fresh reinstall of the OS onto the new SSD while all other drives are disconnected.

However, I wonder if you can install the OS onto the new SSD, get it working, and then restore the old backup of the previous HDD image, overwriting the OS originally placed on the SSD. This would save HOURS of installing and perfecting a system that you had already optimized and customized.

No idea if that is crazy or not.

 

[Darryl_53]

I believe the correct answer is: No. You should do a fresh reinstall of the OS onto the new SSD while all other drives are disconnected.

However, I wonder if you can install the OS onto the new SSD, get it working, and then restore the old backup of the previous HDD image, overwriting the OS originally placed on the SSD. This would save HOURS of installing and perfecting a system that you had already optimized and customized.

No idea if that is crazy or not.

Well I found these links
http://www.ssdfreaks.com/content/664/how-to-clone-hdd-to-ssd-with-windows-7s-own-software


http://lifehacker.com/5837543/how-to-migrate-to-a-solid+state-drive-without-reinstalling-windows