Extreme Slowdown of True Image Home (Windows XP)
System: Windows XP Home SP3, NTFS file system, 2 internal SATA drives
Software: Acronis True Image Home V. 10.0 (this is not TI 2010), also tried True Image Home 2011 (test version)
Creating images with Acronis TI has become incredibly slow on my PC. I am creating those images on a second internal SATA drive, not an external USB drive or CD/DVD, and not on a network drive. By all practical standards, TI has become unusable.
Example: image creation of partitions C and D. Actual amount of data: about 21 GB on C plus 10 GB on D. "Normal" compression ratio, "normal" process priority. Size of image about 20 GB. No verification of image after creation. I'm not working with the PC while TI is running. CPU load is near 100 % (22 % user, 1 % kernel, 77 % "interrupts and DPC [deferred procedure calls]" time - does that mean anything?). Creating the image takes well over one hour.
Hoping for an inprovement with a more recent version, I deinstalled TI V.10 and installed a test version of TI 2011. The program interface is different, but there are absolutely no changes regarding the speed.
Image creation with the Acronis boot CD is much faster - about 24 minutes under the same circumstances, which I would regard as reasonable.
I have absolutely no idea what might be wrong. As far as I can remember, TI had been working much faster in the past. Any ideas why TI has gotten so slow, and any ideas for a solution? Or is it "time to say good-bye" to True Image and switch to another imaging program?
Thanks.
Thanks for your reply.
1) I'm using MS Security Essentials and ThreatFire (most recent versions). Deactivating these programs during image creation does not help. Saving about 31 GB of data still takes more than one hour.
2) Previous versions of True Image were correctly de-installed. I also ran the proper version of Acronis' Cleanup Utility and rebooted my PC.
Edit: I think I know the reason. Transfer mode to the SATA disks has been automatically switched to PIO mode for some reason. I'll try to fix that. Didn't notice that before as I did not receive any error messages.
Good sleuthing. If you reset the transfer modes, that should speed things up. Begs the question, though, why did the transfer mode get set to PIO. However, if after restting the problem doesn't come back. I'd jsut whistle past the question.
good luck.
Hi! It takes a LONG time to create an image in my computer (more than 3 hrs).
I have used version 9.0, 10 and now 11 (home version).
What could be the factors slowing the creation of an image file?
More specifically Where is the bottleneck for a given system?
Details: OS: Win XP Professional SP3. IED disk controller. CPU 2.94Ghz.
A monitoring program developed by Advance systems shows the CPU working 100%, Memory 60%, Disk In bursts. Even if itsn't very precise, but it gives an idea on the activity.
Will deeply apreciate guidance
Has ati been this slow with each of the three versions you've used or is this s new issue?
You shouldn't see cpu 100% while ati is running -- it's mostly disk read/writes, which don't take a lot of cpu time. I suspect some other program (maybe security software) is using up the cpu time slices. Try making ATI an allowed program under your security software.
Also, your hdisks could be configured incorrectly, e.g., not using a DMA channel, but let's check the security software first.
Also note that how long a backup takes depends upon, among other things, how much is being backed up.
It always was slow, but now, with more programs, it's just FRUSTRATING.
PHANTOM PROGRAM
I thought that bringing up the program manager (Alt+Ctrl+Del) I will se if something else is running in the background, but it doesn't show anything else, that's why I thoght the program was slow.
I even try to set the priority level to high to no avail.
Next time I will put on hold the Advance System care & the AVG antivirus and then try again.
If you happen to know a way to spot a "fanthom" program running in the background, please, let me know.
By the way, I have experienced a low web browsing until a warning pop-up ask me to stop another program, to speed up my browser, as the other one was using up all my memory. I think is MSWin sessions.
Thank you for your guidance.
Even on an old XP machine, you should get about 1GB/minute when you back up to an internal hard disk. slower to a usb and possibly much slower to network. On a new machine with W7 orW8, you ought to do about 50G in about 10 -12 minutes, give or take.
Let me tell you what I did, and what the results were after implementing the changes.
1- I went to the internet and found a couple of places that teach you how to stop (or delete) any automatic program.
2- I implemented a few changes (the ones I understood).
3- I temporarily disable the "watchdog" programs.
4- I change somehow the nature of the task by requesting a verification of the latest image file (in Drive E:\storage).
RESULT
The time taking by the computer was about 4-5 hrs for completion. I can't be exact because I run some errands while it was verifying.
NOTE
I'm beginning to think that when the monitoring program, like the task manager, tells you CPU at 100% what it really is telling is that the priory to access the CPU is so high that is like having the CPU actually at 100% of its capability. I will try to verify my hunch.
I'm a month away from being 84 yrs old, so buying another computer is not my first priority. I suspect that bus speed is very important. Modern versions use SATA XX or PATA drives, with very high storage, and the motherboard bus works at 64 rather than 32. Everything counts.
I do appreciate the inputs and guidance, but it's time for me to quit looking for a miracle.
I learnt about an application, from a Japanese company called Akami that could have been downloaded into your computer when you bought software that had this application as part of the install process.
Going to the Control panel more likely you will have a folder with that name. I did. When I looked into, I learnt that it came with my Dell computer to facilitate and have a safe dowloading process for their updates, drivers, and the like. I turned it off and will try to create a new image in a couple of days, to observe if the time has been shortened.
NOTE
This software links with MS netsession, the one that always shows in my computers (and many others) when you switch it off.
Will inform you in a couple of days.