[seafood06]

I have a Compaq Presario. I need to find out how to make a backup disk for my computter. Could someone, please tell me how to do this.

Thanks,

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Do you want a boot disk or a system restore?

What is the OS?

[piper]

Do you want a boot disk or a system restore?

What is the OS?

[seafood06]

Do you want a boot disk or a system restore?
I don't know-whats best?

It has Windows XP

[piper]

Do you have your original Windows CD?

A boot disk just allows you to boot with limited utilities in the event of a system problem. What you need is a way to reinstall Windows then recover your system.

1. Do a full backup (files and system state). The image I created for my computer using Windows Backup was too large for a CD, so you may need to get an external hard drive if that's the route you go.

Do you have a backup software?

*** Other options/opinions for backup software, please

2. Then you need your Windows CD to reinstall the OS.

3. Once you can boot back into Windows, you restore your backup file.

In theory, your system should be back.

I've never done this using Windows backup, but I have using Veritas Backup Exec.

[seafood06]

Do you have a backup software? Yes, i do.

What do i do now?

[piper]

Take a backup of your system. Be sure you refer to your backup software's user manual or help files to be sure you create the backup properly. It's vital that you backup not only the files, but also the system state, in order to restore the system later.

Are you in need of restoring your computer at this point or are you just getting prepared in case you have problems?

[seafood06]

Are you in need of restoring your computer at this point or are you just getting prepared in case you have problems?
In case i have problems. i have a small internet business, and i don't want to lose any files.

[seafood06]

I though all i had to do was get a disk or something and go from their.

[piper]

Unfortunately, no. Your Windows CD will only reinstall the operating system. All your files, programs, settings, etc., are lost when you reinstall Windows from a crash situation. You must backup your system regularly with a reliable backup software. You also need to know how to restore your backup file, otherwise, it won't do you any good.

[seafood06]

How do you do a full backup (files and system state)?

[piper]

You said you have backup software. You'll need to check the user guide or help files for the specifics. What software is it?

[seafood06]

What software is it? Compaq System and Application Recovery Windows XP

[piper]

Is that the software that's installed on your computer or the name of a CD you got with your computer?

[piper]

I'm fairly certain that is the OS and application recovery CD from Compaq. That is NOT backup software. That CD will reinstall Windows and any software that came with the computer.

You can use Windows NT Backup to take a backup of your system. I can't vouch for how reliable it is because I've never used it to backup and restore a system. However, it is located at Start, All Program Files, Accessories, System Tools, System Restore. The backup file that will be created ends in .bkf.

Does anyone have any experience with Windows NT Backup?

[seafood06]

Is that the software that's installed on your computer or the name of a CD you got with your computer?
The name of the cd that came with the computer.