Restoring Your System Drive May Result in Backups Being Overwritten
This information may already be contained here somewhere, but I thought it best to pass on what I have found in case it helps anyone. If I have misunderstood anything, please correct me.
I have used ATIH 2009 for some time on Win XP Pro, and I regularly use it to restore my C: drive back to a previous state. I sometimes do this after installing software for evaluation, other times after encountering a problem to get back to a previous, more stable state. I keep no data on the C: drive, so by retaining a history of system backups that I know work (because I have used them to do a restore), I wouldn't lose much if the restore failed.
I use a number of Differential backup tasks daily to backup my system and other data areas, one task for each backup (system, documents, photos, etc).
I recently noticed that after restoring the C: partition, ATI may overwrite existing backups.
I believe this is because it stores the information it requires to generate the next filename for a backup file in it's own data area (in the script file?). After restoring the C: drive, ATI's own data has also been restored, so these filenames may now point to backup files that already exist. If this is the case, the existing files get overwritten.
To avoid this happening, I intend to take a special daily backup (after all the others have completed) of the ATI data stored in:
C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Acronis\TrueImageHome
I can then restore the latest ATI data AFTER doing a system restore so that all the filename information is up to date.
I have experimented with this a little, and it seems to work OK, though actually restoring the ATI data itself requires ATI to perform a reboot (perhaps not surprisingly). I have found it easier to restore the directory structure elsewhere, shutdown all ATI processes, rename the old directory, then copy the previously restored directory in it's place.
Apologies if this is already fully understood, but it may help someone who isn't "in the know".
Dave.
Hello David,
Let me shed some light on your concern.
The thing is that scheduled tasks are stored not only in C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Acronis\TrueImageHome\Scripts folder, but in Acronis Scheduler module itself.
So we may recommend you to create a new set of backup archives after you restore your system drive with Acronis True Image installed or to save a new set of backup archives into a different folder. In this case issue shouldn't occur anymore.
Please reply to this thread if you have any other questions.
Thank you.
Thanks for the reply, but wow, what a hassle! Couldn't you provide a "Save Acronis Settings" facility that could be run like any other backup task?
Surely all data relating to the current tasks must be stored somewhere, or is part of it in the registry?
Dave.
Hello David,
I've already forwarded this request to the appropriate department, so probably this feature (ability to import/export tasks) will be implemented in future versions of Acronis True Image.
Unfortunately, I can't provide you with the time frame when this feature will be included in the software.
Please let me know if you have any other questions.
Thank you.
Well that's great news! I think this facility would be really useful in many situations if done correctly. In particular, it could come in handy when upgrading ATI, as this seems to be more successful if the old version is removed first. If the settings (including all tasks and current status) could be backed up first, then restored after the update it would save time & possible mistakes.
Thanks
Dave.