GPT disk, cannot backup?

[ultimate99]

I have an ssd in my laptop and want to create a backup image of it, however it says GPT disk and I cannot even select the ssd. How come?

[+Xinok Subscriber²]

What software are you using to backup the disk?

[n_K]

Live-boot gparted via CD/USB and do a DD if=/dev/YOUR_HD of=/media/BACKUP_DRIVE/my_drive_backup.bk bs=64M

[ultimate99]

I'm using acronis true image home.

[+BudMan MVC]

http://kb.acronis.com/content/2974

Acronis True Image Home Does Not Support Dynamic Disks or Disks with GUID Partition Tables (GPT)

Created - Jul 30, 2009; Updated - Aug 23, 2011

Acronis True Image Home Plus Pack supports dynamic disks or disks with GUID partition tables (GPT). Acronis True Image Home does not

This article applies to:

Acronis True Image Home 2012

Acronis True Image Home 2011

Acronis True Image Home 2010

Acronis True Image Home 2009

Acronis True Image 11 Home

Acronis True Image 10.0 Home

[Karl L.]

If you don't have this solved yet, I recommend looking into Clonezilla. It is probably one of the best whole disk backup solutions available -- and its open source. It has a fairly easy to use interface and will guide you through the whole process. I think that it essentially does something similar to what n_k suggested, except the resulting image is compressed by default (instead of raw) and is accompanied by system information and disk geometry (in case you should ever need it).

I recommend the stable Clonezilla Live iso, which is so named because it is based off of Debian's stable branch, not because the other versions on their website are unstable.

[ultimate99]

Thanks a lot guys!

and I have to create a boot disk for clonezilla, which is kind of inconvenient for me. I want to be able to readily backup my files and image of main drive.

[+BudMan MVC]

Well then do not use GPT, or dynamic disk, why are you??

Or just buy the plus pack for acronis

http://www.acronis.c...mage/#plus-pack

Advanced features Plus Pack features include:

• Ability to Restore to Dissimilar Hardware - Whatever the make, model or installed components of your new computer, Plus Pack restores everything back to its proper form.
  
• Dynamic Disk Support - Back up and restore dynamic volumes with ease, taking full advantage of dynamic-disk capabilities.
  
• Microsoft Windows Preinstallation Environment (WinPE) Support - Speed up your recovery process with fast and easy integration of the latest Microsoft drivers, customized scripts, applications and plug-ins to your rescue or boot media.
  

[ultimate99]

  On 10/10/2011 at 03:03, BudMan said:

Well then do not use GPT, or dynamic disk, why are you??

Well, not intentionally, I just popped my ssd in and installed windows. Can I convert it to non-GPT?

[Gerowen]

A friend handed me a thumb drive with OSX86 in a GPT partition on it, and I've tried GParted, doing a "dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/sdc" and everything to try and make this 8 GB thumb drive usable again, and nothing has worked for me. I even put it in my PS3 in hopes that it would prompt me to format it, and the PS3 didn't even pick it up. If you can figure out how to get data onto or off of your drive, let me know what you used please, :-)

[+BudMan MVC]

Did you setup some sort of raid 0 or 1 array to install your windows onto?? I do not believe out of the box a SSD would magically be set to dynamic disk.

You can convert dynamic to basic again sure - but its going to mean loss of data, and doubt windows would allow you to do it on the drive you booted from so you would have to put the disk into a different system to convert it to basic.

I have not played with this for years, I remember a hex edit sort of way to get a disk back to basic without data loss - but its been YEARS since I have played with that. You could try this software http://www.dynamic-disk.com/buy.html

Never used it, might be pure junk?? Might work perfect -- not sure, never used it. I will try and dig up the old school way and -- that was years and years ago, I believe you can do it with testdisk for FREE

I believe in the past I have done it with http://mh-nexus.de/en/hxd/

When I get a chance I will give testdisk a run on a VM and verify..

[ultimate99]

I don't mind starting over, but I'm sure I didn't change any settings while installing windows regarding dynamic disks...

[+BudMan MVC]

Well then just start over -- change it to basic and you will be fine.

[ultimate99]

  On 14/10/2011 at 14:41, BudMan said:

Well then just start over -- change it to basic and you will be fine.

But then how would I know if it's going to be static or dynamic?

[+BudMan MVC]

I am completely clueless to how you got it to be dynamic other than clicking on it an converting it to that.. I have done HUNDREDS of installs, if not thousands over the years since dynamic has been around and have never once seen it default to dynamic..

So either that disk was preformatted in some other system and set to by dynamic -- or you converted it. I would suggest you either boot recovery tools and change it to basic, or connect to another system and convert to basic. Then install your system and it will be BASIC.

[ultimate99]

What's the best practice for backing my laptop? What should I do and not do? Image backups or incremental updates upon changes/modificaiton of files, etc?

[ultimate99]

I reformatted and reinstalled windows, but it seems to sill be dynamic and GPT partition table and workaround?

[LakeRat]

Turn off UEFI in your BIOS. If it isn't that, I don't know what is doing it.

[ultimate99]

  On 30/10/2011 at 21:41, LakeRat said:

Turn off UEFI in your BIOS. If it isn't that, I don't know what is doing it.

Hmm... I actually had UEFI Only as I read it was recommended with ssd's. Then I switched that to Both UEFI and Legacy, same problem.

I'll try Legacy Only and see.

Thanks for the reply.

[LakeRat]

I hope that fixes the problem.

I just had to reformat my Home Theater PC because Windows Home Server 2011 won't backup GPT partitions either. Other than the 3TB limit, I honestly don't know what advantages GPT has. I only have one SSD (not running GPT or a UEFI BIOS), and I had never heard of any recommendation to use GPT. Where did you read that?

OOPS!, I forgot to tell you that you will have to reinstall Windows if you turn off UEFI in the BIOS. I hope you knew that.

[+BudMan MVC]

Unless you CHANGE it to basic its going to stay dynamic -- does not matter if you reinstall windows 1000 times!

Like I said -- either put the disk in another machine and change to basic disk, or boot to recovery console and change it there.. Once you change it to BASIC then you can install windows and back it up with acronis.

Or just buy the plus pack from acronis I linked too and then you can use dynamic disks.

[ultimate99]

It was a UEFI thing. When I switched to Legacy Only in BIOS, the drive was formatted into basic.

I read that having UEFI only with SSD's would make booting faster, and I really didn't see a difference.

[LakeRat]

Budman had me curious about the dynamic partitions. I don't have any GPT disks running now, so I didn't know if they were basic or dynamic by default. I was only addressing the GPT side of things.

I'm glad to see that I wasn't completely wrong with my answer. When I reinstalled Windows, I deleted all of the GPT partitions, and the disks that were created are basic.

ultimate99, I hope you didn't lose any data during the changeover.

[ultimate99]

same here, I deleted the disks and were created as basic under Legacy Only, if I had UEFI only or Both, it would've been dynamic..